The 2023 WPT Choctaw Main Event was played from May 5-8 and had 612 $5,000 unique entries, distributing a total of $2.1 million in prizes. Jaffee was the last one standing, managing to weave his way through the field and gather all the chips, as well as the second biggest prize of his career: $400K. When asked what the victory meant to him he told us: “WPT is as prestigious a tour as there is in poker, so winning two main events on their tour is a special accomplishment.”

While Jaffee has 34 cashes and 6 final tables on the World Poker Tour, the recent win in Choctaw is his best memory from all his years playing on the tour: “Obviously winning makes it special to begin with, but I also had tons of friends there cheering me on as well as my parents. Having my parents there to see it firsthand and seeing them as happy as they were definitely made it extra special.”

With his first place finish, he also won a seat in the 2023 WPT World Championship and rose to third place in the WPT Player of the Year rankings. Bin Weng is currently leading the rankings and we asked Jared if he has aspirations of sitting atop the leaderboard: “I doubt I will be able to catch Bin because his lead is so huge. I may only play one or two more events this season and it would likely take another win at least. Anything is possible, but I consider it highly unlikely and it isn’t really something I’m thinking about.”

Jaffee’s first World Poker Tour win came almost a decade ago, back in November 2013 at the WPT bestbet Jacksonville Fall Poker Scramble, which had 358 entries pay the $3,500 buy-in. For his first place finish, he took home a prize of $252K and got his name affixed to the (now-called) Mike Sexton Cup. Below is a clip of Jaffee’s interview with the WPT’s Tony Dunst after his victory:

When asked what advice he would give someone who is going to play their first WPT Main Event, Jaffee replied “I would just tell them that the structures are very forgiving. You don’t need to panic if you lose a few pots early on and you should still be in a position where you won’t need to force the issue. Try not to think to far ahead and just focus on the next hand. Also, just enjoy it: they are fun events to play with a great staff!”

We wondered if Jaffee was among those who actively utilize poker training sites, but he said that “To be honest I’m not much of a studier. For me it’s more about getting in reps and playing as much as possible. I’ll also talk hands occasionally with people I think are more studied than myself hoping to grab some extra insight the easy way.”

Here’s a list of the six WPT final tables that Jared has made:

Date	Event	Buy-In	Entries	Result	Prize
January 2010	Southern Poker Championship	$10,000	208	4th	$135,079
August 2010	Legends of Poker	$5,000	462	5th	$86,000
November 2013	Jacksonville Fall Poker Scramble	$3,500	358		$252,749
January 2014	Borgata Winter Poker Open	$3,500	1,229	4th	$258,590
October 2019	WPTDeepStacks Pittsburgh	$1,100	386	6th	$14,615
May 2023	Choctaw	$3,800	612		$400,740

The World Poker Tour’s final tables are 6-handed, but Jaffee notably also placed 7th at the 2014 WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $167K, 7th at the 2015 WPT Choctaw for $112K, 8th at the 2016 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Finale for $88K and 8th at the 2021 WPT Venetian for $93K.

His First Cash, Poker’s Triple Crown and December’s Tournaments

Jaffee’s first recorded cash according to HendonMob is a tournament at the 2009 EPT Deuville . When asked what he remembered from that event, he replied “Yeah, I won a seat to the EPT Deauville on PokerStars somewhat accidentally. I thought it was a satellite to something else and next thing I knew I was headed to France. It was a nice trip and a fun experience but honestly at that point I didn’t really know what was going on. I was awful at poker and had no idea what the big time tournament scene was like. I was definitely sort of a deer in headlights, but at the same time it helped solidify that this was something I wanted to pursue and be a part of. So it was a springboard for me.”

With both a WSOP bracelet and WPT titles, Jaffee is just missing an EPT Main Event title to achieve poker’s “Triple Crown”. Is it something he would like to achieve in his career? “I’ve been missing just an EPT title for the Triple Crown now for quite a while, but my EPT experience has been very limited. It would definitely be a very cool accomplishment and I hope to play some EPT’s in the future, but I realize that I’m not likely to play a ton of them so it will be pretty difficult to make it happen. But if I pulled it off, I would definitely find it to be pretty special” he said.

In December the WPT World Championship returns to the Wynn. Jaffee shared his thoughts on the 2022 edition and whether he thinks that this year the tournaments will be even bigger: “I think pretty much everything the Wynn does is top shelf. Last year’s event was tremendous and as soon as it was over, I knew it was there to stay and I was looking forward to playing it again. As far as the field size, I assume it would be similar depending on the exact timing of the WSOP Paradise in the Bahamas. I think having the two series compete is truly unfortunate and undesirable. With that said, I can’t see a time where I won’t support the Wynn and promote their events. I think it’s important to be vocal when venues do things right because sadly that isn’t the norm.”

To finish, Jaffee shared what he enjoyed most about live tournaments: “I think my favorite part of live tournaments is that every time you sit down you get a different experience. Not all of them are good, but never knowing who you are going to be playing with and what you may see definitely makes for an entertaining environment. I’m not a big fan of routine and when it comes to poker tournaments you never know what’s gonna happen from one minute to the next. It’s definitely more my speed.”

*All images courtesy WorldPokerTour.com

Check out some more great interviews here on Cardplayer Lifestyle:

• Scott Eskenazi, 2023 WPT Rolling Thunder champion
• Alex Gray, WPT presenter
• David Costabile, actor and player
• Hili Shakked, former head of 888poker
• Andre Akkari, poker legend from Brazil
• Tom Wheaton and Alec Rome, producers of the documentary “Dreamers”
• Erin Lydon, Poker Power Managing Director
• Kyna England, Poker Power Instructor & 2021 MSPT Player of the Year

WatchWPT is a way for WPT Enterprises to bring the World Poker Tour to poker fans at their convenience. Making it an app allows it to fit into the busiest of lifestyles, but its availability as a website (worldpokertour.tv) gives viewers even more options.

The new and improved #WatchWPT app is here — and IT'S FREE!

Dive into our extensive library of past livestreams, TV Final Tables, and more!

Check it out here – https://t.co/maW705XHTu
Also available in the App & Google Play Stores pic.twitter.com/lJgaCha9Zj

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) August 2, 2023

I’ll admit that I didn’t know the WPT had an app that needed to be improved. The “new and improved” WatchWPT has a new user interface and more content.

Reason for WatchWPT App Relaunch

According to the World Poker Tour, the relaunch of WatchWPT was to broaden its reach, taking it to the level of an app that poker fans can access from their mobile devices. At the same time, they launched the product for availability on Vizio and LG Smart TVs. Soon to follow will be Samsung and Philips TVs.

More than that, the relaunch is a part of the rebranding efforts that began last year for the World Poker Tour. With the Season XX changes, WatchWPT was slated for upgrades as well. It now has an improved interface and provides a more user-friendly experience.

What to Watch on WatchWPT

The vast library of World Poker Tour events is on the WatchWPT app and website. Check out everything from old Grand Prix de Paris and Legends of Poker final tables to Alpha8 and celebrity specials. There are also collections of the most memorable WPT final tables from the past as well final tables and livestreams from the 2022 WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas.

Currently, the categories by season includes everything from Season 8 of the World Poker Tour through Season 18. All three seasons of Alpha8 high rollers are available as well.

More episodes are being added, however, including that 20th season finale at Wynn last year and the livestreamed cash games from that event.

It appears that the team behind WatchWPT is still uploading additional episodes and footage. According to the WPT, this will continue through next year as the library becomes home to more classic content to complement new footage.

Free Registration

There is a registration feature, which simply requires a login name, password, and email. This allows viewers to use extras like the “continue watching” feature, so you can stop watching an episode or stream at any point and resume at that place when you return.

You can also “favorite” certain episodes to rewatch later. This is an especially helpful feature if you see poker hands that you want to watch again to improve your own poker game.

There was a downside to my experience with the app though, namely a lot of ads. Before watching a video, there are six ads, though some of them are very short.

The upside, however, is that the app and content is free. In a world where TV watchers now have to seemingly pay for every channel available, the World Poker Tour’s shows are free on apps like this. And its availability through an app makes it easier to watch on a mobile device and on the go.

WPT EveryOne for One Drop $10K

This event was played from July 9-14 at the Wynn Casino in Las Vegas and featured a buy-in of $10,500. A total of 1,676 entries created a prize pool of $16.2 million, far exceeding the $10 million guarantee.

Among the notable players who finished in the money were: Isaac Haxton (198th), Erik Seidel (197th), Joe McKeehen (192nd), Andrew Moreno (186th), Chris Moneymaker (141st), Ethan “Rampage” Yau (127th ), Dan Smith (115th), Jeremy Ausmus (79th), 2022 WPT World Championship champion Eliot Hudon (66th), Adrián Mateos (57th), WPT Prime Championship winner Stephen Song (39th), 4-time WPT champion Darren Elias (19th) and Stephen Chidwick (16th), among others.

The winner of the tournament was Bin Weng, who collected the biggest prize of his career: $2.2 million. Weng is in the midst of his best year ever, having already made two final tables in WPT Main Events — placing fourth at the WPT Choctaw for $143K and winning the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown for $1.1 million. With these results he leads the WPT Player of the Year rankings, and has passed the $7 million mark for career live tournament earnings.

Bin Weng Wins the WPT EveryOne for One Drop ($2,227,054)
Photo Credit : WPT#onedrop #wpt #wynnlasvegas #everyoneforonedrop #poker4water pic.twitter.com/BYMSrwPQTP

— All In For ONE DROP (@allinforonedrop) July 15, 2023

The final table consisted of a half dozen crushers, each of whom happily padded their bank accounts:

1. Bin Weng –  $2,227,054
2. Scott Baumstein  –  $1,503,988
3. Niko Koop  –  $1,872,438
4. Freddy Heller –  $956,000
5. Dominik Nitsche   –  $700,100
6. Tom Cannuli  –  $524,500

WPT Alpha 8 For One Drop $111K

After several years of absence, the exclusive Alpha 8-branded tournament returned and was played from July 14-16 at the Wynn Casino. With 45 entrants paying $111K each for seats at the tables, the total prize pool was $4.6 million, and it was split among the final seven players.

The lion’s share went to Jonathan Jaffe, who collected the biggest prize of his career: over $1.5 million. Jonathan is a regular player on the World Poker Tour, where he boasts 14 cashes, 4 final tables and 1 title (WPT Montreal in 2014). With his Alpha 8 win, he boosted his live tournament earnings to $9 million.

Here’s how the final table played out among those who made the money:

1. Jonathan Jaffe –  $1,537,600
2. Taylor von Kriegenbergh –  $1,042,100
3. Dan Smith –  $701,700
4. Aleksejs Ponakovs –  $485,200
5. Michael Lim –  $350,100
6. Iaron Lightbourne –  $273,200
7. Isaac Haxton –  $222,600

Congratulations Jonathan Jaffe, Winner of the $111,000 @WPT Alpha 8 For One Drop Event. Jonathan battled his way to victory through a star studded field, taking home $1,537,600! pic.twitter.com/BGVNylpKxX

— Wynn Poker Room (@WynnPoker) July 17, 2023

WPT Big One For One Drop $1M

The crown jewel of the WPT-One Drop Foundation trifecta will be the return of the “Big One For One Drop,” which will feature a whopping $1 million price tag to enter, and which will be played from December 18-20 as part of the 2023 WPT World Championship. It will be the fifth edition of this event after previous installments of the tournament held in 2012 (winner: Antonio Esfandiari – $18.3M), 2014 (winner: Dan Colman – $15.3M), 2016 (winner: Elton Tsang – $12.2M) and 2018 (winner: Justin Bonomo – $10M).

How many entries will the new edition have? Who is most likely to emerge atop as a newly-minted multi-millionare among millionaires? Learn more in this article.

It’s coming. #TheBigOne @onedrop @allinforonedrop @WynnLasVegas @WynnPoker pic.twitter.com/0dpunxnMBV

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) July 12, 2023

The full 2023 WPT World Championship schedule will soon be announced, with even higher numbers expected than last year, and the returning Big One For One Drop on top of it all. This will signal a perfect end to 2023, a year where live poker has broken numerous records, with more likely to fall at the Wynn in December.

If you would have told 21-year-old me that I’d someday get to be in the same room with those two legends, I’d be beside myself. Hell, 41-year-old me typing up these words still can’t believe I had that opportunity just a few short hours ago.

You might be asking yourself, “what was so special about that opportunity?”

There’s an old saying that you can tell a lot about a person by the company they keep. As much as the 2023 WPT Honors ceremony was about the honorees, in my eyes it was similarly about the group that assembled to pay tribute to said honorees.

A Ceremony Like No Other

A good deal of pomp and circumstance went into the ceremonial aspects of the event, with numerous individuals stepping up to the podium to “make the case” for each nominee’s worthiness of receiving the WPT Honors to the dutifully bespectacled and robed WPT President Adam Pliska. The World Poker Tour might be unrivaled in our industry when it comes to putting on special events like these, and to have had a seat at the ceremony was akin to witnessing a very special episode of poker’s greatest show.

After Angelica Hael officially nominated Vince Van Patten, a parade of World Poker Tour stalwarts including Matt Savage, Lynn Gilmartin, Tony Dunst, and company Founder Steve Lipscomb ascended to the mic to heap oodles of praise upon their longtime colleague and friend. Beyond their obvious outpouring of love and appreciation for the man, what stood out to me from the speeches about Vince was his colleagues’ admiration for his work ethic. Plainly speaking, the man showed up every single day and just put in the work. But Vince hasn’t just “clocked in” for 21 years; he’s done so with the same vim, vigor, and joie de vivre with which he showed up on his first day. A rare quality, to be sure.

Ever humble, Vince deflected the praise to in turn show appreciation for his World Poker Tour colleagues and the late Mike Sexton; the people who helped and supported him along the way. In response to the deluge of kind words spoken about him, he humorously quipped that “this is like attending your own funeral.”

I couldn’t help but draw direct lines of comparison to the reactions when Cal Ripken Jr. broke Major League Baseball’s consecutive games streak years ago; a veritable poker Iron Man was getting his due. How sublime for someone who has worked so hard for so long to enjoy such a special moment of public appreciation.

A similar cavalcade comprised of Jeffrey Haas, Hermance Blum, Lance Bradley, Israel Rosenthal, and Sven Stiel took to the stage one by one to express their gratitude and appreciation for Isai Scheinberg’s contributions specifically to their careers as well as to poker on the whole.

From my perspective, it was astounding to note the attendance of so many former PokerStars employees who had worked under Scheinberg until the then-privately owned company was sold in August 2014. It’s simply surreal to think that one man was ultimately responsible for putting together such an impressive array of talent. All of those people have since moved on to other successful endeavors and roles in the subsequent years, many still within the poker industry. But witnessing “the old PokerStars family” reunite under one roof felt like watching the Avengers assemble.

They spoke of Isai’s three simple, straightforward rules: never lie, never cheat, and always do the right thing. While simple, rules like those aren’t always easy to adhere to in an industry with billions of dollars at stake, as history has taught us.

Scheinberg has always been notorious for his preference of privacy. The entire poker world knows of his accomplishments, but the great man rarely, if ever, surfaced publicly. Being at the 2023 WPT Honors ceremony to see Isai accept his award felt like being transported to PokerStars’ headquarters prior to 2014; a place full of people who never lied, never cheated, and always did the right thing. No wonder it proved to be such a successful venture.

While fish may be surrounded by water, they still rise to the surface when it rains to welcome new droplets. So, too, the entire room full of luminaries could be seen leaning in to listen closely to the soft-spoken Scheinberg during the latter’s acceptance speech. It was a telling moment.

Reflections From Fellow Attendees

Reader can clearly identify my long-held esteem for both the World Poker Tour and PokerStars, but I’ve always been an outsider and independent media voice. So, in order to gain a greater understanding and appreciation for what I had borne witness to, I asked a few insiders who worked with Vince and for Isai, to share their thoughts and perspectives on the evening. Here’s what they had to say:

“There are two men in my life who have been incredible role models of what it means to be an honest entrepreneur. One of them was my late father; the other is Isai Scheinberg. I didn’t think that I was going to get into the world of gambling and learn more about honesty than I had learned before in my life as a journalist. Isai taught me that you can be a good businessman and you could be a good person at the same time. He was more generous with me than any other boss or company owner ever has been, and I think he is worthy of every honor he’s been given and more.”

Brad Willis, Editor-in-Chief of Poker.Org, formerly the Head of Blogging at PokerStars

“Both of these gentlemen have meant so much to me in my poker career. Isai doesn’t realize it, but of course being a part of the poker industry just would not have been the same without Isai Scheinberg. I want to thank him. He hasn’t received the accolades that he deserves; I think he should of course be in the Poker Hall of Fame.

And I think that Vince Van Patten deserves recognition for all that he’s done for the game. It’s not very often that you see someone who has been around in the game for as long as he has been. He’s become like family to me, so I speak from the heart: we’ve spent a lot of time together sharing our passion for poker. I really appreciate everything both of these guys have done.”

Matt Savage, Executive Tour Director of the World Poker Tour

“I’ve been in poker for just over seven years. It’s incredible to hear the historical stories and learn how our industry has evolved. We get into our positions these days and de facto only think about our current time and present roles. To go back and see the history is just incredible. There are so many stories from the people who came before us, and it’s important to appreciate them.”

Eric Lusch, Media Relations Manager with the World Poker Tour

“I have not been to a poker event since 2016. The only reason I came tonight was because of Isai Scheinberg. All the things that have been said about him; it wasn’t enough, about what this man taught me and what he taught everybody in the room. Not just about business and about poker, but about life and how to treat people the right way.

The emotion that I feel tonight is because of the sense of community that I’m feeling and don’t remember poker having had for a very long time. I miss it. The World Poker Tour was always the rival to the organization that I worked for… and I didn’t realize until tonight just how super cool the people who work for the World Poker Tour are, from the top down… and there’s no such thing as ‘down’ with them! Everybody’s got an important role to play in the World Poker Tour. I’m so impressed with the WPT, what they’ve done tonight, the sense of camaraderie they have, and the love they have for each other.

When we talk about playing poker, sitting around a table, and competing to take each other’s money… the game is about more than that. It’s about the friendships, and the love, and the trust, and the lessons you learn from one another. Even though I was here for just two hours tonight, I came away with a great sense of energy.”

Nolan Dalla, former Director of Communications at PokerStars

The Coolest-Ever Poker After-Party

Poker.org owner Eric Hollreiser, himself a former PokerStars employee, hosted a swanky afterparty in one of the Wynn ballrooms that featured an open bar, flowing chocolate fondue fountains, and the most succulent strawberries to delight our tastebuds as we mingled to mellifluous music. Designed to orchestrate a reunion of former PokerStars employees, many World Poker Tour personages could also be found among the attendees.

You can tell a lot about people by the folks they surround themselves with.

I hesitate to use the word “magic”, but there was something indescribably unique in the air throughout last night’s festivities.

I suppose that’s what happens when the spotlight shines on poker’s best. The entire room lights up.

ClubWPT will stage 14 satellites (two per month) from April 16 until the end of October. Each satellite will have 20 guaranteed entries to the WPT World Championship Challenge, which will be played on November 5. The top 10 placed players in that event will win a WPT World Championship Passport valued at $12,500 to play in the WPT Season 2023 Grand Final in Las Vegas.

“ClubWPT is an essential branch of the World Poker Tour landscape, and as such, we sought to link the site and its members to our biggest event of the year,” said WPT CEO Adam Pliska. “We are proud to offer a chance to win a seat to the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas to all members of the WPT community.”

PRESS RELEASE@ClubWPT will run a 300-player #WPTWorldChampionship Challenge finale on November 5, giving away $150,000 in prizes!

Read more: https://t.co/2s2DwvYKPr

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) April 20, 2023

Here are the details of the next satellite to be played this Sunday:

• Date & Time: Sunday, Apr 23 @ 5:30 PM ET (Diamond eligible)
• Lobby Name: $150K WPT WC Passport Challenge – Satellite
• Game: No-Limit Texas Hold’em
• Top twenty (20) finishers of each satellite will win a seat into the $150,000 WPT World Championship Passport Challenge qualifier on Sunday, November 5, 2023.

In addition to the two monthly satellites, there will be one last chance to qualify with the Last Chance Invitational to be played at the end of October. ClubWPT members who were unable to qualify via the previous satellites will be able to participate and will also have the chance to claim 20 entries for the WPT World Championship Challenge.

$150,000 WPT World Championship Challenge

On Sunday November 5, the WPT World Championship Challenge will be held with the 300 people who won their entries via the 15 satellites. The top 10 finishers will win a passport package valued at $12,500 which includes the following prizes:

• $10,400 WPT World Championship Main Event seat.
• Hotel stay at the luxurious Wynn Las Vegas.
• $1,000 cash (self-arranged flight and incidentals).
• Dedicated ClubWPT VIP host.
• Official ClubWPT branded merchandise.
• Meet & greet with WPT talent.

In addition, a total of $25,000 in cash prizes will be awarded to those finishing in 11th-100th place in the final:

• 11th-13th: $1,000
• 14th-15th: $750
• 16th-20th: $500
• 21st-40th: $350
• 41st-60th: $250
• 61st-80th: $200
• 81st-100th: $100

With a full third — 100 of the 300 participants — receiving some sort of prize, just getting to play in the WPT World Championship Challenge is a lucrative opportunity.

About ClubWPT

ClubWPT is the official subscription online poker game of the World Poker Tour. VIP and Diamond users pay a monthly subscription fee for exclusive access to member benefits including full episodes from every past season of the WPT television show, valuable savings and coupons, invites to official World Poker Tour live events and much more. Each month, members can play poker to win a share of more than $100,000 in cash and prizes, including seats to live WPT events.

WPT World Championship 2022

The 2022 WPT World Championship was an absolute success and broke numerous World Poker Tour records. The series’ Main Event featured the largest guaranteed prize pool in history at $15 million, which came very close to being doubled with over $29 million in prize money being awarded.

Last year, ClubWPT sent nearly 30 members to the WPT World Championship at Wynn Las Vegas to play in the $10,400 event and aims to top that mark this season. Along with an extraordinary poker experience, Passport winners were granted access to an exclusive VIP lounge and unique promotions.

Eliot Hudon

Last year, three of the series’ most prestigious events were won by Eliot Hudon, Stephen Song, and Lina Niu.

The return of the World Poker Tour’s highly anticipated festival is scheduled for November 29 to December 23. The full schedule of events has not yet been announced, but we already know that the 2023 WPT World Championship Main Event will be played from December 12-18.

New and additional ways to qualify for the 2023 WPT World Championship will surely continue to be announced, so keep your eyes peeled and check back with us here at Cardplayer Lifestyle for the news!

2023 WPT Rolling Thunder Recap

The festival’s $3,500 buy-in main event was played from April 1-4 at the Thunder Valley Casino in Lincoln City, California, and attracted 590 entries. It thus became the largest edition of this tournament, surpassing the 465 entries from back in 2014. Just like last year, the World Poker Tour continues to break records, and is at the forefront of the current live poker boom.

Photo: Joe Giron for WPT

The prize pool for the main event totaled $1,888,000 and was distributed among the top 74 players. Among them were notable names such as Allen Kessler (73rd), Angela Jordison (67th), Steven Buckner (65th), Eric Afriat (60th), Giuseppe Pantaleo (51st), Aaron Mermelstein (48th), Matas Cimbolas (35th), David Baker (14th) and James Turner (11th).

The big name at the final table was the World Poker Tour’s own Tony Dunst, who was looking to add to his already stellar career resume. Alas, it was not be due to a tough board runout that benefitted the tournament’s eventual winner. Scott Eskenazi started the final table with the second smallest stack among the final 6, but began winning smaller pots and grew in chip count. Hands later, he eliminated Dunst in sixth place after hitting a flopped straight. You can watch the hand here:

BRUTAL RIVER for @tonydunsttv #WPTChampionsClub Member and Commentator @tonydunsttv got off to an absolutely brutal start at our #WPTRollingThunder Final Table…

In this hand, Tony faces the absolute worst possible river card against Scott Eskenazi — can he make the… pic.twitter.com/Pnqq6xPJbf

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) April 4, 2023

With only 4 players left Scott became the new chip-leader and then eliminated Alberto Tapia when his 9-9 beat Tapia’s A-K. He held the lead until Jeremy Joseph eliminated Alejandro Jauregui in third place.

The heads-up began with these stacks: 11.1M for Scott and 18.2M for Jeremy. Scott won several pots and went on to lead the count. The tournament came to an end when Jeremy went all-in with A-2s and Scott paid with a better hand: A-Ks. The board brought no surprises and Scott Eskenazi became the 2023 WPT Rolling Thunder champion.

Here are the full final table results:

1. Scott Eskenazi – $361,660 + WPT World Championship entry +
2. Jeremy Joseph – $234,000
3. Alejandro Jauregui Reynoso – $172,000
4. Alberto Tapia – $128,000
5. Victor Paredes – $97,000
6. Tony Dunst – $73,400

Congratulations to Scott Eskenazi our new #WPTRollingThunder Champion!

After navigating the 590 entry field @TVPokerRoom, Eskenazi showed up as one of the short stacks going into the Final Table before battling Jeremy Joseph heads-up to take home the title, $361,660 and the… pic.twitter.com/94Px20434l

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) April 5, 2023

2023 WPT Rolling Thunder Champion Scott Eskenazi Speaks

We got in touch with the brand new champion and asked him what it felt like to win his first WPT title at his first final table on the circuit: “It feels great but still a little surreal. It’s a poker dream come true.”

When we asked with whom Scott celebrated his the victory, he said “I was very lucky that my wife was there railing me. She’s my biggest fan and my soulmate. We didn’t get to celebrate that night but we’ve been celebrating ever since – we actually had to rush to the airport right after the tourney as we were hosting a big family dinner the next night. I’ve gotten so many congratulatory calls and texts from friends and family which means so much to me.”

Photo: Joe Giron for WPT

What does it mean for Scott to join the WPT Champions Club and have his name on the Mike Sexton Trophy? “It’s humbling. My last dinner at a restaurant before COVID was a group dinner where I met and sat next to Mike Sexton. He was telling these great poker stories and it was such an honor to meet him. He was a wonderful ambassador for poker.”

In addition to Scott’s best result, he also won an entry to the 2023 WPT World Championship at Wynn, Las Vegas. Naturally, he hopes to parlay this success to even bigger success at that event later in the year.

Scott has been collecting cashes on the live circuit for 15 years, with his first result being a win in a Las Vegas event. While he doesn’t remember too much from that specific event, Scott remembers that “after winning it, I was definitely hooked.”

We asked Scott what he enjoys most about playing World Poker Tour tournaments in particular and he responded that he “loves the competitiveness. I’m also a numbers guy so poker allows me to use my math skills.”

Beyond hopefully winning the 2023 WPT World Championship, Scott told us that he also has ambitions to “win a WSOP bracelet and to have fun doing it.”

Photo: Joe Giron for WPT

Coming up after #WPTRollingThunder, we head to our #WPTPrimeIndia Festival aboard the @TheDeltinLife @Adda_52 featuring a ₹65,000 Main Event!

Festival Dates : April 12 – 18
Main Event Dates : April 13 – 17

Full Schedule & More Info: https://t.co/PcmNimduHM pic.twitter.com/OsDAiLqHEI

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) April 3, 2023

The WPT Prime India Festival

The festival will have 14 events with different entries and modalities. In addition to the WPT Prime Main Event, there will be a High Roller, a ladies-only women’s event, a team tournament and a Mini Main Event for those of lesser bankroll means.

Below is a listing of the tournaments to be held during the festival:

You can see the complete schedule with the satellites in this link.

WPT Prime India Main Event

Schedule:

• Day 1A: April 13 at 1 PM (Play till field is in the money)
• Day 1B: April 14 at 1 PM (Play till field is in the money)
• Day 1C: April 15 at 1 PM (Play till field is in the Money)
• Day 2: April 16 at 1 PM (Play till the Final Table has been reached)
• Day 3: April 17 at 1 PM (Final Table)

Structure:

• Buy-In: ₹65,000
• Re-entry: Unlimited re-entry is allowed until the start of Level 7
• Starting stack: 30,000
• Ante Format: Big Blind Ante
• Blind levels: 40 minutes during Day 1, 60 minutes during Day 2 and Day 3
• Late registration: Registration closes at the start of Level 7
• Payouts: One in eight entries will be in the money (approximately 12.5%)

The Deltin Royale Ship

The Deltin Royale is considered the best casino in India and is one of the largest in Asia. In addition to the casino games, it offers live entertainment, restaurants and a bar on the deck of the ship that offers a magnificent view. The ship’s poker room is the largest in India.

The City

The ship is located off the west-central coast of India, bordering Maharastra to the north, Karnataka to the east and south, and the Indian Ocean to the west. It was established as a state on May 30, 1987 and is the least extensive state and the fourth least populated. The churches and convents of Goa were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1986.

What can you do in Goa besides play poker on the Destin Royale? The options are several: visit the Bom Jesus Basilica, enjoy the nightlife, go to the Shree Manguesh Shantadurgai Pradanna Temple, visit the Bhagwan Mahavir wildlife sanctuary, visit the Dudhsagar waterfall or hang out on the magnificent beaches.

One of the magnificent beaches of Goa

The World Poker Tour’s History in India

The World Poker Tour visited India for the first time in 2017 with its WPTDeepStacks circuit, which had 527 entries and distributed $420,622 in prize money. The winner was Vikash Mantri, who achieved a career-best score by cashing for $92,539.

Another WPTDeepStacks tournament was played in November 2018 and this time the number of entries grew to 697, with a prize pool of $506,237. Nikunj Jhunjhunwala emerged as champion, winning $92,660.

The last time the WPT came through India was in October 2019 and the 630 entries made up a prize pool of $463,464. Ashish Munot took first place and the top prize of $89,576.

Ashish Munot

Who will be the champion this year? Will the 2018 event numbers be beaten? We’ll see in a few days.

Plus  we give away a free prize at the end for folks in the YouTube chat. Join us on YouTube next Monday at 7:30 ET for free to ask our guests questions in real time, and you can win too!

LoriAnn is active on Twitter as https://twitter.com/LoAnPer66

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Time Stamps

But then I got to thinking… perhaps there’s more to the story than meets the eye. Maybe the news is an indication that much like the World Poker Tour has upped its overall game over the last year, charitable fundraising could really be taken to the next level as part of this partnership, too.

The likelihood of this was confirmed when I reached out for comment from WPT CEO Adam Pliska, who said “We think when all is said and done, the poker community will be very excited by what this partnership leads to and ultimately that will lead to even more funds being raised for One Drop’s mission of ensuring access to safe water for people across the globe.”

The wheels in my head have been spinning for a little while and I’ve come up with a list of a few things that would really be great for the poker world to see result from this new partnership.

1. Return of the Big One for One Drop

This is a no brainer. Getting players to pony up $1 million apiece for a seat in a poker tournament is just as amazing a feat in 2023 as it was when the Big One for One Drop first debuted in 2012. The event has been staged eight times, with four of those featuring a $1 million buy-in and the other four featuring a $111,111 buy-in. It would stand to reason that the World Poker Tour would aim to bring back this special event at the higher $1 million price point.

As for what else would make this event’s return super special, the potential entry of all-time poker greats such as WPT ambassadors Doyle Brunson and Phil Ivey, coupled with the reemergence of One Drop Foundation founder Guy Laliberte to the poker world alone makes such an event that much more headline-grabbing.

Top it all off with the WPT’s state-of-the-art production and storytelling flair, and you’ll have an event that won’t just be excellently staged in real time, but that will live on as a visual on-screen spectacle for ages.

2. Return of the Little One for One Drop

Another no brainer, staging a $1,111 event allows folks with more modest bankrolls to also partake in the charitable poker giving. To further enhance the event’s prestige, perhaps the WPT could consider producing a final table broadcast for this one, too.

Beyond the inherent added value of having $111 of each buy-in donated to a very worthy cause, the players could also receive some added value if all those players who’d make the (televised or live streamed) final table would also be rewarded with seats to…

3. All-New $11,111 High Roller for One Drop

Here’s an idea for the WPT and One Drop Foundation to chew on. A 5-figure buy-in level has thus far been absent as a special event in the One Drop repertoire.

Plenty of folks from poker’s high roller circuit would likely jump into this one without having the stress of risking (or putting together a staking package for) a 6-figure sum.

Collecting $1,111 for charity from each entrant naturally would add far more than just another drop in the proverbial bucket to the joint WPT-One Drop Foundation fundraising efforts.

While we’re shining the spotlighting on this partnership, let’s also be sure that the final table of this event gets TV/broadcast treatment, too.

And if it’s possible for there to be a seat added for the event’s winner to the Big One for One Drop, well then that would just be brilliant.

4. One Drop in the MUG

Much ado was rightfully made of the incredible, one-of-a-kind WPT Premier Meet Up Game (MUG) that kicked off last year’s WPT World Championship festivities.

Surely reproducing it would be awesome, but how do you top it? Maybe by adding a charity component.

I would love to see the Wynn get on board with this initiative by agreeing, just during the WPT Premier MUG, to (the admittedly tongue-in-cheek) “No Drop for the House” and having the cash game rake donated to the One Drop Foundation. This would be a beautiful gesture that’s by definition a win for all parties involved, including the players.

And for the value adds? What could be more appropriate than awarding to participants randomly drawn special prizes of a 1% piece of a WPT ambassador’s action to any One Drop tournaments they compete in?

Conclusion

The fact of the matter is that pretty much anything done in the poker world that would help increase charitable fundraising is by definition a good thing. The World Poker Tour has proven time and again that when it puts its full organizational weight and effort into an idea, amazing things can happen.

Further per Pliska, “The WPT Foundation has been a tremendous success for WPT charitable initiatives and by partnering with the One Drop Foundation, we think we have demonstrated a commitment to working with them to continue their great work and elevate charity poker.”

Whether it’s via any of the ideas I came up with, or something else unexpected out of left field, it will be great to see the WPT propel charitable fundraising for the One Drop Foundation to the next level in the coming years.

The WPT Prime Australia Festival

The festival will feature 14 events with entries ranging from $330 AUD to the $10,000 AUD Super High Roller. The WPT Prime Main Event will have a $2,000 AUD buy-in and three starting rounds where players will attempt to advance to Day 2. There will also be Pot Limit Omaha and Mystery Bounty tournaments on the schedule.

WPT Prime Main Event Schedule

• Day 1A: March 2 at 2:30 PM (play till field is ITM)
• Day 1B: March 3 at 2:30 PM (play till field is ITM)
• Day 1C: March 4 at 11:30 AM (play till field is ITM)
• Day 2: March 5 at 11:30 AM (until final table)
• Day 3: March 6 at 11:30 AM (final table)

How are you getting to #WPTPrimeGoldCoast?!

Our #WPTPrimeGoldCoast Festival begins Feb 23 @TheStar_GC featuring a $2,000 AUD Main Event!

Festival Dates: Feb 23 – Mar 6
Main Event Dates: Mar 2 – Mar 6

More Info: https://t.co/mhbBRrvre2 pic.twitter.com/SGI6lxmZTd

— World Poker Tour (@WPT) February 7, 2023

WPT Prime Main Event Structure

• Buy-In: $2,000 AUD
• Starting stack: 30,000 chips (150 big blinds)
• Re-entry: Unlimited during late registration
• Blind levels: 40 minutes during Day 1 and then 60 minutes
• First level: 100/200 with 200 Big Blind Ante
• Ante Format: Big Blind Ante
• Late registration: Closes at the start of Level 7
• Action Clock: During Day 2 and final table
• Payouts: 12.5%
• Players per table: Play will start 9-handed and will move to 8-handed as son as possible

Below is a full schedule events for the festival:

You can view the complete schedule with all the events, satellites and their structures in this link.

The WPT Prime Australia Venue

The Star Gold Coast situated on Broadbeach Island offers a wide variety of entertainment options: luxury hotels, spa, iconic bars, pools, restaurants and a world-class casino, where the WPT Prime Gold Coaster will be played.

Ashleigh Lawrence from the WPT Royal Flush Crew invites you to the festival:

Hotel options

The Star complex has several hotel options to choose from: The Star Grand, The Darling and The Star Residences. If you use the code “Poker” when booking you will receive a special discount.

You can see the Hotels and book your reservation here.

Australia’s Gold Coast

Gold Coast is an Australian coastal city and region approximately 70 kilometers south of Brisbane in the state of Queensland. It is the sixth-largest city in Australia and one of its most visited tourist destinations for its beaches and subtropical climate.

What can you do in Gold Coast? These are its main attractions: go by boat to Moreton Island, kayaking and snorkel on Wave Break Island, learn to surf in Surfers Paradise and visit Movie World, Sea World and Wet N’ Wild parks.

The beautiful beaches of Gold Coast, Australia

WPT in Australia

This will be the sixth time the World Poker Tour has visited Australia. The first time was in 2019 with the WPTDeepstacks and it returned after the pandemic in 2021 with a leg of the WPTDeepstack and another leg of the WPT Prime.

During 2022, two events were played on Australian soil. First up was the WPT Prime Gold Coast, which had 896 entries for $1,500 AUD and had a prize pool of $1.1M AUD. Yang Lei was the victor, winning $201,755 AUD.

During September, the WPT Australia was played, which had 71 entries of $5,400 AUD and distributed $3.5M AUD in prize money. The champion was local David Tang, who won the biggest prize of his career: $647K AUD.

David Tang

Who will be the next World Poker Tour champion in Australia?