The 2014 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is just two weeks away, if you can believe it. Aside from the $10,000 Main Event, perhaps the most highly anticipated event is the Big One for One Drop, million dollar charity tournament that only the richest of the rich or elitest of elite players will enter.
The WSOP announced ten new participants today, headlined by Vanessa Selbst, considering by most to not only be the best female poker player in the world but also one of the best players, period. The two-time WSOP Bracelet winner has earned over $9.6 million in live tournaments and currently ranks fourth on the Global Poker Index (GPI). She told the WSOP, “I’m so excited to be taking part in The Big One for One Drop this year. I didn’t get to play in 2012, but after seeing how much fun everyone had with the event as well as how profound an impact it had on One Drop, I knew I had to be a part of it this time around.”
Also plunking down $1 million is Jean-Robert Bellande, the large personality who was once dubbed a “Bad Boy of Poker.” He is also one of the few poker celebrities that is also recognizable to the general public, as he was one of the contestants on the hit CBS television show, Survivor.
Also announced as the most recent entrants are Anthony Gregg, Fabian Quoss, Max Altergott, Tobias Reinkemeier, Igor Kurganov, Christoph Vogelsang, Niklas Heinecker, and an anonymous Asian businessman (he obviously won’t be anonymous once the tournament starts). Reinkemeier is the only one of the ten newly confirmed players to have competed in the Big One for One Drop in 2012.
The complete list of 33 confirmed entrants is as follows:
Antonio Esfandiari
Guy Laliberté
Bobby Baldwin
David Einhorn
Phil Galfond
Philipp Gruissem
Phil Ivey
Jason Mercier
Paul Newey
Bill Perkins
Vivek Rajkumar
Brian Rast
Andrew Robl
Erik Seidel
Brandon Steven
Sam Trickett
Noah Schwartz
Tobias Reinkemeier
Vanessa Selbst
Jean-Robert Bellande
Fabian Quoss
Max Altergott
Anthony Gregg
Igor Kurganov
Christoph Vogelsang
Niklas Heinecker
Anonymous Asian Businessman
Anonymous Businessman
Anonymous Businessman
Anonymous Businessman
Aria Resort Satellite Seat
Bellagio Resort Satellite Seat
World Series of Poker Satellite Seat
The Big One for One Drop will be a three-day event, beginning on June 29th, giving participants enough time to finish and rest up for the Main Event, which begins on Saturday, July 5th. The Little One for One Drop, which costs only $1,111 to enter, will start July 2nd and run for four days.
The first Big One for One Drop was held in 2012. 48 players paid the $1 million to play, with $111,111 coming out of each buy-in for the One Drop charity (the WSOP took no fee). Antonio Esfandiari won the inaugural record buy-in event, cashing in for $18,346,673.
