The
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a series of poker tournaments held annually in Paradise, Nevada and, since 2004, sponsored by Caesars Entertainment. It dates its origins to 1970, when Benny Binion invited seven of the best-known poker p ...
bracelet
A bracelet is an article of jewellery that is worn around the wrist. Bracelets may serve different uses, such as being worn as an ornament. When worn as ornaments, bracelets may have a supportive function to hold other items of decoration, suc ...
is considered to be the most coveted prize a poker player can win, but in most years there have been competitive events that did not award a bracelet to the winner. While most of these events are charity events or are related to poker, a few are not.
Tournament of Champions
The World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions was an invitational
freeroll
In poker, a freeroll tournament is a tournament with no entry fee, and a freeroll hand is where a player is guaranteed to at least split the pot with his opponent, with a chance they can win the whole pot if certain final cards are dealt.
Freero ...
poker event held from 2004 to 2006. Wins in this event do not count as official
WSOP bracelets, but the winner receives a large trophy in the shape of the official
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a series of poker tournaments held annually in Paradise, Nevada and, since 2004, sponsored by Caesars Entertainment. It dates its origins to 1970, when Benny Binion invited seven of the best-known poker p ...
logo.
The 2004 tournament involved ten players with the winner.
Annie Duke
Anne LaBarr Duke (née Lederer; born September 13, 1965) is an American former professional poker player and author in cognitive-behavioral decision science and decision education. She holds a World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet from 2004 ...
receiving 2 million dollars. No other positions were paid.
The 2005 tournament was rife with controversy as prior to the event, Harrah's advertised that to qualify a player would need to win any World Series of Poker circuit events or by reaching the final table of the 2005 WSOP $10,000 no limit Texas hold 'em championship event. Despite this qualification, under the pressure of the corporate sponsor
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961.
History
Pepsi wa ...
, Harra's Casino allowed
Phil Hellmuth
Phillip Jerome Hellmuth Jr. (born July 16, 1964) is an American professional poker player who has won a record sixteen World Series of Poker bracelets. He is the winner of the Main Event of the 1989 World Series of Poker (WSOP) and the Main Event ...
,
Doyle Brunson
Doyle F. Brunson (born August 10, 1933) is a retired American poker player who played professionally for over 50 years. He is a two-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion, a Poker Hall of Fame inductee, and the author of several ...
, and
Johnny Chan
Johnny Chan (;He has another Chinese name "Chen Qiangni" () which is also commonly used by Chinese-language media. It is a transliteration of "Johnny Chan" (as "Chen" for "Chan", "Qiangni" for "Johnny") rather than his Chinese birth name. born ...
to compete.
Mike Matusow
Michael Matusow (born April 30, 1968) is an American professional poker player residing in Henderson, Nevada. Matusow's nickname of "The Mouth" reflects his reputation for trash-talking at the poker table.
Matusow began playing poker seriously ...
won the million dollar prize. World Poker Tour commentator
Mike Sexton
Michael Richard Sexton (September 22, 1947September 6, 2020) was an American professional poker player and commentator. He was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2009.
Early years
Sexton was a gymnast and attended Ohio State University, w ...
won the million dollar prize in 2006, defeating a field of 27 players.
In 2010, the Tournament of Champions returned to the WSOP. The event was held on June 27, 2010.
Huck Seed
Huckleberry ''Huck'' Seed (born January 15, 1969) is an American professional poker player best known for winning the Main Event of the 1996 World Series of Poker.
Early life
Seed was born in Santa Clara, California, but grew up in Corvallis, ...
won the $500,000 first prize.
Ante Up for Africa
An annual celebrity event was changed in 2007, as it became a pro and celeb event called "Ante Up for Africa", hosted by actor
Don Cheadle
Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including two Grammy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also earned nom ...
and poker pro
Annie Duke
Anne LaBarr Duke (née Lederer; born September 13, 1965) is an American former professional poker player and author in cognitive-behavioral decision science and decision education. She holds a World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet from 2004 ...
. The 2007 event attracted 167 celebrities and poker stars. The final two players,
Dan Shak and Brandon Moran, agreed to share first place and donate all prize money to charities in
Darfur. Their actions set a precedent as the 2008 champions, John Hennigan and second-place finisher Michael DeGusta again donated 100% of their winnings to the charity.
Jeffrey Pollack, the WSOP commissioner, said, the WSOP was "delighted to once again host Ante Up For Africa at the World Series of Poker”
Alex Bolotin won the third annual tournament defeating a final table that included
Phil Gordon,
Chris Ferguson,
Rafe Furst
Rafe Furst is an entrepreneur, impact investor, writer, producer and poker player. He is co-founder of Crowdfunder and advises many projects that involve technology and social entrepreneurship. Furst has spoken about transformation of early-s ...
, and
Erik Seidel
Erik Seidel (born November 6, 1959) is an American professional poker player from Las Vegas, Nevada, who has won nine World Series of Poker bracelets and a World Poker Tour title. In 2010, he was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame.
Early lif ...
.
World Series of Rock Paper Scissors
Former
Celebrity Poker Showdown
''Celebrity Poker Showdown'' is an American celebrity game show that aired on the cable network Bravo. It was a limited-run series in which celebrities played poker, with eight tournaments during its five-season run.
In each show, five celebrit ...
host and ESPN.com columnist
Phil Gordon has hosted an annual $500 World Series of Rock Paper Scissors event in conjunction with the World Series of Poker since 2005. The winner of the WSORPS receives an entry into the WSOP Main Event. The event is an annual fundraiser for the "Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation" via Gordon's charity ''Bad Beat on Cancer''. Poker Super Star
Annie Duke
Anne LaBarr Duke (née Lederer; born September 13, 1965) is an American former professional poker player and author in cognitive-behavioral decision science and decision education. She holds a World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet from 2004 ...
won the Second Annual World Series of Rock Paper Scissors. The tournament is taped by ESPN and highlights are covered during "The Nuts" section of ESPN's WSOP broadcast. 2009 was the fifth year of the tournament.
All-In Energy Tournament
The All-In Energy Tournament was an invitational poker event at the 2008 WSOP for people who 1) purchased 16 cases of All-In Energy drink online, 2) purchased the most drinks during a designated time period, or 3) won an invitation via a sweepstake. The event was officially held and recognized as All-In Energy Drink was an official sponsor of the WSOP.
Champion of Champions
In 2009, a tournament for the WSOP Main Event Champions was introduced for the 40th Anniversary of the WSOP. This tournament was a freeroll wherein the winner won a Corvette and the "Binion's Cup" named after the Binion Family who founded and ran the WSOP for decades. The event was won by 1983 WSOP Champion
Tom McEvoy
Thomas K. McEvoy (born November 14, 1944, in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is a professional poker player, author and member of the Poker Hall of Fame, 2013 inductee. He is best known for winning the 1983 World Series of Poker Main Event.
Early life ...
who defeated 2002 World Champion
Robert Varkonyi
Robert Varkonyi (born 1961) is an American poker player, best known for winning the Main Event of the 2002 World Series of Poker.
Early life
Varkonyi was born in and raised in NYC. He first started playing poker as an undergraduate at the Mas ...
heads-up to win the Binion's Cup.
Caesars Cup
The Caesars Cup is a
poker tournament, inspired by golf's
Ryder Cup, which pits some of the biggest names in poker from Europe and the Americas against each other in a series of heads-up and team-based poker matches across a single day. The contest is expected to be held annually, with the venue alternating between Europe and North America. The inaugural Caesars Cup took place in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
on September 25, 2009, as part of the
World Series of Poker Europe
The World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) is the first expansion effort of World Series of Poker-branded poker tournaments outside the United States. Since 1970, participants had to travel to Las Vegas if they wanted to compete in the World Series ...
(WSOPE).
Team Europe
Team Europe may refer to a number of sports team using the designate to represent a unified team of European countries in sporting competitions. Whilst neither the European Union nor the Council of Europe are countries themselves, European teams ...
beat The Americas 4 to 1.
Free Million Dollar Game
The Million Dollar Game is a tournament sponsored by the WSOPE corporate sponsor Betfair. For 18 weeks leading up to the 2009 WSOPE, Betfair will be holding a series of daily online tournaments. The winners of those events will then play to represent their "region." Prior to the kick off of the 2009 WSOPE, these representatives will compete for the million dollar winner takes all grand prize. WSOP Director of Marketing Ty Stewart said, “Creating an event combining the online and offline poker worlds is sure to create even more excitement for WSOP Europe.”
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Non-Bracelet Events At The Wsop
World Series of Poker