According to WSOP officials, the final World Series of Poker (WSOP) Tournament of Champions sponsor seat will be awarded to the winner of a nine-man sit and go put on by the WSOP Academy. Nine popular poker pros that did not qualify for Tournament of Champions voting because they’ve never won a bracelet will compete on June 10th for a spot in the $1 million freeroll.
The lineup is a veritable “who’s who” of non-bracelet winners, headlined by Tom “durrrr” Dwan. The youngster from New Jersey appeared in the top 10 following fan voting for the 2009 Poker Hall of Fame class despite not being old enough to rent a car. Dwan was promptly stricken from the ballot, but will now get his chance to earn a WSOP Tournament of Champions seat. Dwan was the runner-up to Simon Watt in Event #11 of the 2010 WSOP, nearly reaping the rewards of millions of dollars in bracelet side bets.
Andy Bloch is also a member of the high-stakes sit and go. Bloch has 10 final tables during WSOP and WSOP Europe play, including a runner-up finish in the inaugural $50,000 HORSE Championship to Chip Reese. However, the one accolade that has eluded him is a WSOP bracelet.
Danish poker sensation Gus Hansen will also take to the felts as part of the WSOP Academy’s Tournament of Champions sit and go. Hansen won three events during the first two seasons of the World Poker Tour (WPT) and is responsible for many Denmark residents getting into the game. Hansen has over $4 million in career WPT earnings and took second in the 2008 WPT Championship for over $1 million.
WSOP Academy CEO Jeff Goldenberg told ESPN.com why the popular training entity was sponsoring the unique nine-handed event: “We’ll be using the footage from this event on the soon to be released WSOP Academy Online. Fans everywhere can watch as nine extremely talented players battle it out for one of the most sought after seats ever given away. The WSOP Academy is very happy to be part of this opportunity.” Ali Nejad and 11-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth will provide commentary for the sit and go.
Goldenberg added in a press release distributed by WSOP officials, “The WSOP Academy will utilize the sponsor seat at the TOC to highlight the talents of players who are champions in their own right, but did not have an opportunity to be voted into the TOC. We have created a unique opportunity for our customers to watch and learn from these players as they battle for a highly coveted prize. We expect to see some great poker!”
The WSOP Academy’s roster of instructors includes Poker News Daily Guest Columnist Annie Duke, Hellmuth, 2004 WSOP Main Event champion Greg Raymer, and 2007 WSOP Europe Main Event victor Annette Obrestad. Other players set to take part in the June 10th sit and go include Bertrand “Elky” Grospellier, Titan Poker pro Sorel “Imper1um” Mizzi, WSOP Player’s Championship winner Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi, UB.com pro Liv Boeree, Victory Poker pro Paul Wasicka, and “Iron Man 2” star Don Cheadle.
Duke, Mike Matusow, Mike Sexton, Joe Cada, and Barry Shulman earned automatic bids to the 2010 WSOP Tournament of Champions, which will begin on June 27th with 27 players. The final nine will convene at the Rio on July 4th to play down to a champion. One sponsor seat will belong to a qualifier from the WSOP’s for-profit online poker site, while the remaining 20 spots will be determined by a fan vote.
The Tournament of Champions is one of three events that will air on cable station ESPN as part of its coverage of the 2010 WSOP.
