World Series of Poker Announces the 2014 $1 Million Big One for One Drop
On Friday, the World Series of Poker announced that the $1 Million Big One for One Drop will return at the 2014 WSOP. The three-day event, which begins on June 29 at Caesars Palace and concludes on July 1 with a televised final table at a location to be determined, will be capped at 56 players. The 2012 Big One for One Drop was capped at 48 and sold out.
If this event sells out, the top prize could be in excess of $20 million. The winner will also earn a special edition WSOP platinum bracelet from Richard Mille.
The WSOP expects to pay out 16-20% of the entrants. Reservations will be made on a first-come first-serve basis, and those who provide a deposit will be guaranteed a seat.
The structure and payout scale are listed here.
Of the $1 million buy-in, $111,111 will be donated to the One Drop Foundation, and throughout the summer the WSOP will encourage money earners in events to donate one percent or more of their winnings to help provide clean water to those in need of it. The WSOP estimates that nearly $10 million of the $42.6 million prize pool in the inaugural Big One for One Drop was donated to charity.
One Drop founder Guy Laliberté has already committed to playing the seven-figure buy-in tournament. In 2012 he finished fifth for $1,834,666, donating all of his winning to the foundation.
“It was a terrific inaugural event in 2012 with One Drop raising nearly $5.7 million from the Big One event,” Laliberté said in a press release. “There is still a lot of work to be done to ensure access to water for all. I have no doubt that the poker community will once again live up to its reputation for generosity by helping to transform lives sustainably.”
Antonio Esfandiari won the 2012 Big One for One Drop, earning $18,346,673, and finished fourth in the 2013 One Drop High Roller for $1,433,438. Esfandiari, Phil Laak, and Jeff Gross traveled with One Drop to Honduras and El Salvador to directly help with the philanthropic efforts.
“This event quickly established itself as a special and unique and for that reason we chose to make it an every other year affair,” said Mitch Garber, Caesars Interactive Entertainment’s chief executive offer. “But we can’t wait to host it again in 2014 and continue to use the vehicle to impact the planet through One Drop’s platform.”
The schedule for the 45th annual WSOP is currently being developed, and the staff plans to make a “Save the Dates” announcement in November.
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