Millions pouring out of The Bellagio as Dan Smith, Jason Mercier, Tom Marchese and Jason Somerville all take seven figures away from the 2014 Bellagio $100k Summer Super High Roller after cutting a four way deal.
As I write this article, David Einhorn has just been eliminated from the BIG ONE for ONE DROP in the very first level of play.
“That’s a shame,” I say to Kevin Mathers who is seated next to me, “He’s the guy who gave his third place winnings to charity two years ago ($4,352,000)”
Then I think again.
It’s nice to give money to charity. I do so myself. But if we give too much of our poker money to charity then surely it will destabilize the entire strata of high stakes tournament play?
Take the Bellagio for example.
It was scheduled to run a $10k event, just days before the BIG ONE for ONE DROP. The players convinced the venue to change the buy-in to $100k and 66 players turned up. Of those 66 players, 21 re-entered to create a total prize pool of $8,613,000, with over $2.8m reserved for first.
It wasn’t that long ago that $2.5m was the purse for winning the most prestigious poker tournament in the world – the $10,000 WSOP Main Event – and today it’s peanuts. Players can just decide to create a $100k buy-in at the drop of a hat, and 66 players turn up to play.
In a recent interview with Olivier Busquets, the WPTAlpha8 commentator questioned the longevity of these types of events.
“I also have a view that the finances are a little bit vulnerable. People are traveling a lot, you go through periods where things don’t go well, and things can change relatively quickly for people. I am hoping there is enough money to sustain these tournaments into the future.
“I think there are groups of investors who have done really well and hopefully they keep investing. But it’s not obvious to me that the high buy-in model is really that sustainable. We shall have to see if the money continues to flow in.”
It’s difficult to see how this momentum can be maintained, and if the rich businessmen take away our profits then we could be in serious trouble; but for the moment I guess as voyeurs of the game we should just sit back and take an eyeful while we can, and the players who are fortunate enough to find backing to play in these events, had better use their opportunity to get as rich as they can.
Four people who have just added to their considerable bankrolls are Dan Smith, Jason Mercier, Tom Marchese and Jason Somerville.
The quartet decided to cut an ICM deal after Doug Polk was eliminated in fifth place (Polk had originally refused a deal when the action was five handed).
Smith picked up over $2m, and the official win, because he had the chip lead after the deal was cut. It was Smith’s fourth seven figure score of his career, and his highest to date.
Jason Mercier picked up his third seven figure score when he secured over $1.6m for a second place finish. Once again it was Mercier’s best financial performance of his career.
Tom Marchese picked up his second seven figure score, and the highest of his career, after picking up over $1.4m for a third place showing, and Jason Somerville was the fourth millionaire when he picked up over $1.3m, for his career best score, and the first seven figure score of his career.
Final Table Standings
1st. Dan Smith – $2,044,766*
2nd. Jason Mercier – $1,622,181*
3rd. Tom Marchese – $1,465,451*
4th. Jason Somerville – $1,347,352*
5th. Doug Polk – $602,910
6th. Matt Hyman – $430,650
7th. Adam Bilzerian – $344,520
8th. Gabe Kaplan – $258,930
9th. Chris Klodnicki – $172,260
*Denotes a four way deal.
