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The People’s Championship
The Main Event of the WSOP will start later today, and soon after that the tournament directors will announce a record number of entrants and a prize pool that is surreally large. This is an annual rite now; for three years running we’ve shaken our heads in wonder at the breathtaking scale this event has achieved.
For me, though, it’s not the size of the tournament that makes this event so special and unique. I’m not even that impressed by the other aspects of the event that people cite when they say it’s extraordinary. Sure, it’s great that a home-game novice can compete head-to-head with a world-class pro. And it’s wonderful that in two weeks the world will have a couple of new celebrities and a few very wealthy men and women.
But what I really love about the Main Event – and what separates it from all other poker tournaments or contests of any sort – is that anyone who has any relation with the game will have participated in this event’s formation. Even if you’re not playing in the Main Event, there is no doubt that some money you once held is in the prize pool.
If you played a $26 satellite online and failed to win, that money is still part of the payout. If you played some $1/$2 limit at a local casino, there’s little doubt that someone who took a pot you were involved in invested some of that money in trying to earn a seat in this tournament. Something that was once dear to you – you’re money – is here and soon it will be given away.
As for me, I kept a light tournament schedule this year and played only a few super satellites. I won’t be batting for the big prize. But roughly $2,000 that was once part of my bankroll is part of the $70 Million-plus prize. When a new champion is crowned, I’ll be able to say that about $400 of his $10 Million take was once mine. Every one of the tens of millions of people who play poker can make a similar claim.
I might feel a certain ownership of the Knicks, and my fiancée feels a visceral tie with her beloved Red Sox. But should our teams succeed we can only celebrate because at some point we chose to have an affiliation. We never threw a pitch in batting practice or suggested a different follow-through on a jump shot. We had nothing to do with any of the success.
But here, at the Main Event, part of the measure of the eventual champion’s achievement will be the sum of money that he takes home. I’ll have helped make him the champion that he becomes . You can make the exact same claim.
The People’s Championship starts today – the Main Event of the World Series of Poker.
