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Texas rancher wins $1,500 lowball title at WSOP, plans to donate most of the winnings to charity20 June 2012Larry Wright has been coming to the World Series of Poker from his Texas ranch for nearly 40 years. He often sits in low- and middle-limit cash games. He occasionally plays a satellite or two, or perhaps a second-chance tournament. Once in a while, he even enters a gold bracelet event. Larry wouldn’t normally stand out in any crowd, except for this one. He’s almost always has a smile upon his face, a kind word for strangers, and even kinder word for his friends and associates, and occasionally a gift for those he believes warrant his generosity and trust. Fact is, we wish there were more like him. We need more Larry Wrights. Many, many more. Not just in the poker world, but alas – the real world, too. We need a thousand Larry Wrights. We need a million Larry Wrights. We need more of his happiness. We need more of his kindness. We need more of his countless acts of charity. Larry’s gift to us all is himself, and what a magnificent gift that is. This extraordinary man won the $1,500 Deuce-to-Seven Lowball event at the World Series of Poker on Sunday at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Four decades in the making, he finally collected his first career WSOP gold bracelet. He also earned $101,975, his largest poker prize ever. But if you think this was about cards or chips or gold bracelets or prize money or any of the trappings of a championship victory on poker’s most glamorous stage, you would be wrong. You would be very wrong, indeed. This victory was about rewarding righteousness. It was about bestowing victory on someone who was deserving of the honor. It was about proving that once in a great while, great things do happen to good people. Over the years, Larry has helped half the poker world, it seems. If a line were to form consisting of all the poker players Larry has helped over the years, stanchions would be necessary. And judging by the huge turnout along the rail as he inched closer and closer to victory at tonight's final table, all those people Larry helped over the years were there to show their love and respect. Numerous cases of personal restitution were displayed on this night. Many of them probably never re-paid Larry back a cent, nor could they. But they could give him something, and that was themselves and their presence at a time when Larry could glance over at the rail and see what he'd meant to them in their lives. "I don’t know how to say no to friends," said Wright. It was a final table stacked with big names. Brandon Cantu finished second. Andy Lichtenberger was third. Michael “the Grinder” Mizrachi was fourth, Erick Lindgren finished fifth, Rep Porter was sixth and Ryan Tepen was seventh. But the loudest cheers were for the barefooted player sitting in the nine seat. Four former gold bracelet winners were drowned out by Larry’s loyal band of family, friends, and followers. When he finally scooped the last pot of the tournament at 8 p.m. on a Sunday night and was assured of a long-awaited victory, Larry pumped his fist into the air. He ran over to his wife and dived into her adoring arms. He was swarmed by his daughter, a brother, and several well-wishers who engulfed the newest gold bracelet champion into a giant love hug. "My wife has been a counselor for 17 years," said Wright. "She just retired, and they all came out for Father’s Day and what a beautiful Father’s Day. I have a large group from home here with me, and it’s been fun having them here too today." It was a moment of celebration. It was a moment of exuberance. It was a moment of beauty. So, who is this man? Why did this man bring out so much joy from others? What makes him special in the poker world? Larry lives on a ranch with his wife of 40 years. He resides near a small town outside of San Antonio. He raises cattle. Deer roam free on his land. Despite the big ranch and many acres, Larry would not call himself a rich man, at least in terms of actual monetary worth. But if wealth were measured by love and respect, Larry would be a Billionaire -- with a capital "B." Just ask the former employees of his trucking company. Larry worked most of his life in the trucking business. He built dup a fleet of trucks and specialized in shipping and transportation. When he turned 60, Larry decided he’d worked long and hard enough. He’d made enough money to be happy. So, he decided to give up his successful trucking company. He sold it. In fact, he sold it directly to his employees. For how much? Try $1. That’s right, one dollar. After a lifetime working 12 hour days, sometimes six days a week, Larry walked away from it all and gave up his life’s work over to the people he trusted most – the very people that had helped make him such a success. But Larry’s acts of kindness do not start, nor do they end there. Following this WSOP victory, Larry was joined by his wife on the stage inside the cavernous Pavilion. While a few thousand poker players were off in the distance competing for the next gold bracelet, Larry knew this was a very personal moment long in the making. The husband and wife spoke to reporters. The couple were not necessarily eager to publicize their intentions. They never brought up the subject. But during the course of the post-tournament celebration, someone from Larry’s family pulled a reporter aside and casually mentioned that most of the prize money would be going to another cause, outside the poker world. When pressed for an answer, Larry reluctantly shared his plans for much of the prize money. Larry announced that he would donate the majority of the money to a religious charity that does missionary work in Africa. In a moment that seemed almost surreal in a room filled with incessant bloodthirsty competitiveness, Larry spoke of new housing and construction projects he's helped fund in the dire nation of Sudan. Sure, a faraway place. But a place very near and dear to Larry and his wife who made this one of a number of causes. When asked to elaborate, Larry revealed that he did not consider the prize money to be his, per se. Larry called himself a steward of the money, which was intended for a more noble purpose. And so, that’s Larry’s story – or at least a small part of what is most certainly a far more comprehensive compilation of good deeds that have helped others for many, many years. After all the dealings been done, and after all the money’s been lost and won, and after all the gold bracelets have been displayed and put away, and after all the cameras are long gone, each of us will be left with what we are -- what we have become -- and what we have done. Larry will be able to look in the mirror and like what he sees. Were that a greater reflection of ourselves, imagine the possibilities. For Larry Wright, this was a Father’s Day to remember. Wright topped a stacked tournament field of 285 players, including many of the world’s top pros, en route to his first gold bracelet victory. "This event here wasn’t that big but it was a who’s-who field," said Wright. "I was pretty intimidated at every table. So I just stayed patient and it was almost like it was meant to be that I would win this on Father’s Day. It was meant to be." The top-35 players finished in the money. Noteable players who cashed but did not make the final table included: Bryan Devonshire (ninth), Erik Seidel (13th), Jennifer Harman (19th), Hasan Habib (20th), Scott Fischman (25th), Leo Margets (26th), Galen Hall (32nd), and David Sklansky (33rd). Last year this event drew 275 people; this year participation went up 3.6 percent. Modified from tournament notes provided by WSOP Media Director Nolan Dalla. |