$300 Jason Taylor Foundation Charity Event
Level 4: 100/200 with a 25 ante
Entries: 95
Level 4 begins, and the field has grown to nearly 100 entries. Apart from the man of the hour, Jason Taylor, a number of other sports celebrities are in the house this evening.
ESPN personalities Israel Gutierrez and Dan LeBetard both turned up to show their support for Taylor and his cause.
As much fun as the celebs are having, the poker pros seem to be enjoying this event as much as anyone.
$300 Jason Taylor Foundation Charity Event
Level 1: 25/50
Entries: 72
It’s an exciting night at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood. The World Poker Tour and the Jason Taylor Foundation are hosting this $300 charity event, featuring more than $10,000 in added prizes.
According to their website, Taylor’s Foundation was created “to support and create programs that facilitate the personal growth and empowerment of South Florida’s children in need by focusing on improved health care, education and quality of life.”
Taylor, a former NFL player, was given the starting honors, first taking to the mic to thank the players for turning up in support of his foundation. He also thanked Seminole Hard Rock for their help in organizing this, as well as the WPT for sending talent in support of this event.
“Have a good time tonight,” Taylor said. “I don’t know the rules, but I know you can rebuy for a few hours. So, if you get knocked out, rebuy so we can get more money for the foundation. I [don’t][care] if you win or not, but we do want the money,” he laughed.
The beverages and the laughter are flowing in equal measure this evening, and it figures to be a good time in the ballroom.
Here are the vitals for this event:
$300 Jason Taylor Foundation Charity Event
Before the action was underway in the Jason Taylor Foundation/WPT Foundation Charity Event, Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood Hotel & Casino held an Exclusive Player’s Party in the beautiful L Bar.
The party was attended by top poker players, fans, and those who just wanted to join in the poker fun for a great cause. The event included passed hors-d’oeuvre and free cocktails from the creative minds behind the L Bar drink menu.
In addition to the prizes offered up for the tournament, there was a silent auction with more than $9,000 in items up for bid including a round of golf for three with Jason Taylor.
The party was fun, but it was soon time to move everyone to the ballroom to raise a lot of money for a fantastic cause, troubled youth programs
$1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-out)
End of Level 12: 300/600 with a 100 Ante
Players Remaining: 66 of 261
The first 12 levels are complete, and the field is now on their dinner break with 66 players remaining. Ryan Olisar has done the most work in the early going, setting the pace with 130,000 chips heading to break. He and Thomas Johnson are the only two who have six-figure stacks, while four other players have crested the 80,000-chip mark so far.
Here’s the top of the current leaderboard:
Ryan Olisar – 130,000
Thomas Johnson – 107,500
Joe Kuether – 98,700
Asher Conniff – 98,400
Unknown – 91,700
Joel Harwood – 81,200
$1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-out)
Registration closed for the $100,000 Guarantee Event 15 and the official numbers show 261 players registered to play the Freeze-out. They created a prize pool worth $253,170 and easily surpassed the Guarantee early in the day.
The last 27 players will earn themselves a payout with a min-cash picking up $2,279 while the winner will bank $70,883 along with the shiny Seminole Hard Rock Poker trophy.
1st: $70,883
2nd: $41,773
3rd: $24,051
4th: $19,494
5th: $15,190
6th: $12,659
7th: $10,127
8th: $7,595
9th: $5,063
10th – 12th: $3,291
13th – 15th: $2,785
16th – 18th: $2,532
19th – 27th: $2,279
$1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-out)
Level 9: 300/600 with a 100 Ante
Total Entries: 261
Players are back in their seats and registration has closed on the $100,000 Guarantee Freeze-out. The sweat is over and the final number shows 261 players in the game to push the prize pool over $250,000.
Numbers, prize pool, and payouts will be posted as soon as they are official.
$1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-out)
End of Level 8: 250/500 with a 75 Ante
Total Entries: 257
Event 15 players are on their second break of the day and only one new entrant away from pushing the prize pool over $250,000. Registration will close when they return and we’ll see just how much money is on the line.
$1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-out)
Level 8: 250/500 with a 75 Ante
Total Entries: 250
Event 15 hit the first magic number of 250 players and they sit only six new players away from making the prize pool climb over $250,000. It will be a tight race to get there before registration closes in 30 minutes, but it’s a huge number either way.
We found former November Niner David “Chino” Rheem in the meeting room at a tough table. Not that there are many soft spots in a $1K. Rheem has earned more than $7.3 million in his career including four payouts over seven-digits, two WPT titles, and a seventh place finish in the 2008 WSOP Main Event.
$1,100 No Limit Hold’em (Freeze-out)
Level 7: 200/400 with a 50 Ante
Total Entries: 246
Players continue to push the prize pool higher in the $100,000 Guarantee freeze-out and they are going to tease a $250,000 prize pool before registration closes in less than an hour.
Several players already hit the rail including Joe McKeehen, Neil Blumenfield, and Darryll Fish. Event 15 is down to five tables in the ballroom with the rest residing in the meeting room. Busted players are being replaced by newcomers like Marcus Stein, Natasha Barbour, and Jessica Dawley, our most recent addition to the Seminole Hard Rock Poker team.
She brings along a very nice list of accomplishments including a sixth place finish at the live-stream WPTDeepstacks final table during the 2015 Seminole Hard Rock “Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open” in December.
Tournament Flyer | Tournament Structure Sheet
The Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood Hotel & Casino is proud to team up with the Jason Taylor Foundation and WPT Foundation to host a charity event to benefit South Florida youth.
The $300 buy-in charity tournament features more than $10,000 in prizes in addition to the cash prize pool including a seat in the $2,000,000 Guarantee WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship. The tournament kicks off at 7pm but the fun starts at 5pm with an Exclusive Player party at L Bar with complimentary cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.
Besides the prizes added to the tournament, there will also be a silent auction with items that include a Jason Taylor golf outing for three and a WPT Tournament of Champions VIP Experience.
This is sure to be a fun evening for a great cause.
Added Tournament Prizes:
1st: $3,500 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship Seat*
2nd: Hard Rock Resort Package (Mexico or other destination)*
3rd: Party Like a Rock Star Basket – Beach Boys*
4th: Party Like a Rock Star Basket – Hendrix Experience*
5th: Party Like a Rock Star Basket – War*
6th: Party Like a Rock Star Basket – Alonzo Mourning*
7th: Hard Rock Goodie Basket & Hotel Experience*
8th: Monster Headphones
9th: WPT Chip Set
* – Details below
Silent Auction Items:
Continue reading Jason Taylor Foundation/WPT Foundation Charity Event