With the exception of the Main Event, which starts this weekend, the tournament everyone was waiting to see at this year’s World Series of Poker was the $1 million buy-in Big One for One Drop.
First held two years ago, popular poker pro Antonio Esfandiari took down the inaugural event for more than US$18 million in 2012 – the biggest first place prize ever awarded in a poker tournament. After a hiatus in 2013, the Big One for One Drop was back this year with 42 players forking out the massive US$1 million to enter and dreaming of another monster payday.
The field for this year’s Big One for One Drop
The field was stacked with some of poker’s biggest names, plenty of online guns and a handful of cashed up businessmen wanting to test themselves against the best. Among the starters were Esfandiari, Phil Ivey, Erik Seidel, John Juanda, Sam Trickett, Erick Lindgren, Daniel Cates, Greg Merson, Vanessa Selbst and Daniel Negreanu but of those only Negreanu would make it to the money – eventually finishing runner-up and pocketing a tidy US$8.3 million.
Daniel Colman
Also in the money were Scott Seiver and Tobias Reinkemeier among others, but in the end it was American Daniel Colman who prevailed to secure a massive US$15.3 million payday. Colman’s victory wasn’t without controversy after he refused to give any interviews and only reluctantly posed for photos following his success, but either way his name is now firmly etched in folklore as the winner of this prestigious event.
Chad Brown
There was also some sad news this week with popular pro Chad Brown passing away from cancer at the age of 52. Only days earlier Brown had been awarded an honorary bracelet in honor of his contributions on the felt and his passing has left the entire poker community shocked and saddened.
