Having previously announced a partnership with the One Drop Foundation, the World Poker Tour (WPT) has unveiled two charity tournaments set to take place at this year’s Wynn Summer Classic.
See the 2023 Wynn Summer Classic schedule here!
Last year, ex-pro-gamer Jinho Hong took down the Wynn Summer Classic Championship, and many will be looking to follow in his footsteps.
Today’s announcement is no surprise, with the WPT having a long history of partnering with non-profit organizations, including the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Tiger Woods Foundation
However, today’s announcement adds extra excitement to the Wynn festival, with WPT CEO Adam Pliska praising the speed it took to add the events to the festival’s schedule.
“We are proud to once again pair up with Wynn Las Vegas as the host venue for our maiden WPT EveryOne for One Drop event, and the return of Alpha8, during the Wynn Summer Classic,” said Pliska. “It is remarkable how quickly these events came together, but not surprising given One Drop’s worthy charitable cause of ensuring sustainable access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene to communities around the world.”
“We are excited to put on our first-ever One Drop Foundation events in partnership with WPT and the WPT Foundation,” said One Drop Foundation Chief Marketing and Events Officer Alexandre Meunier. “It is a pleasure to be hosted at the beautiful Wynn Las Vegas. We thank them for their hospitality and support in advancing our global mission.”
World Poker Tour, One Drop Foundation Partner for Charity Poker Initiatives
The One Drop Foundation
The One Drop Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 2007 by Guy Laliberté, the co-founder of Cirque du Soleil. The organization is dedicated to providing sustainable access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene education for communities around the world.
One Drop aims to address the global water crisis, which affects over 840 million people worldwide who do not have access to safe drinking water. The organization works with local communities to implement water access solutions, such as digging wells and constructing water systems, as well as providing education and training on water management and sanitation practices.
WPT EveryOne for One Drop
The first charity event announced is the WPT EveryOne for One Drop which comes with a buy-in of $10,500 and a guarantee of $10 million.
There will be three Day 1s, starting on July 9, 2023, and will conclude with a live-streamed final table on July 14.
WPT EveryOne for One Drop Schedule
| Day | Event | Buy-in | Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday, July 9 | WPT EveryOne for One Drop Day 1a | $10,500 | $10,000,000 |
| Monday, July 10 | WPT EveryOne for One DropDay 1b | $10,500 | $10,000,000 |
| Tuesday, July 11 | WPT EveryOne for One DropDay 1c | $10,500 | $10,000,000 |
| Wednesday, July 12 | WPT EveryOne for One DropDay 2 | – | $10,000,000 |
| Thursday, July 13 | WPT EveryOne for One DropDay 3 | – | $10,000,000 |
| Friday, July 14 | WPT EveryOne for One DropFinal Table* | – | $10,000,000 |
*denotes live-streamed coverage
WPT Alpha8 for One Drop
The second charity event announced is the return of a WPT classic with the WPT Alpha8 for One Drop. This three-day $111,000 High Roller tournament is the first Alpha8 tournament to take place since December 2015. It starts on July 14, with live-streamed coverage on both Day 2 and for the final table on July 16.
WPT Alpha8 for One Drop Schedule
| Day | Event | Buy-in |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, July 14 | WPT Alpha8 for One Drop Day 1 | $111,000 |
| Saturday, July 15 | WPT Alpha8 for One Drop Day 2* | – |
| Sunday, July 16 | WPT Alpha8 for One Drop Final Table* | – |
*denotes live-streamed coverage
Alpha8 History
The World Poker Tour first announced Alpha8 in July 2013, unveiling a global series of super high-roller poker tournaments that were to be broadcast on FOX Sports 1.
The first season saw four events, two of which were won sensationally won by Philipp Gruissem (pictured), who picked up titles in London and St. Kitts for over $2.4 million in combined winnings.
The first two seasons of Alpha8 were chockful of early-2010 high-roller tournament crushers, such as Dan Colman, Jason Mercier and Noah Schwartz, who won the last event of Season II in January 2015.
The final Alpha8 event, until now, came in December 2015 with a stop at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic. The last Alpha8 champion crowned? Fedor Holz, in what was the first seven-figure score of his career and perhaps precipitating his 2016 “Sun Run”
Fedor Holz Wins WPT Alpha8 Las Vegas for $1,589,219; Daniel Negreanu Takes Third
Former WPT Alpha8 Champions
With a new Alpha8 tournament announced, who will add themselves to the list of winners on the World Poker Tour’s most high-stakes tournament series?
| Season | Event | Date | Buy-in | Entries | Winner | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Alpha8 Florida | Aug-13 | $100,000 | 21 | Steven Silverman | $891,660 |
| I | Alpha8 London | Oct-13 | £100,000 | 20 | Philipp Gruissem | $1,379,840 |
| I | Alpha8 St. Kitts | Nov-13 | $100,000 | 28 | Philipp Gruissem | $1,086,400 |
| I | Alpha8 Johannesburg | Feb-14 | $100,000 | 10 | Dan Cates | $500,000 |
| II | Alpha8 London | Oct-14 | £60,000 | 23 | Dan Colman | $957,390 |
| II | Alpha8 St. Kitts | Dec-14 | $100,000 | 15 | Jason Mercier | $727,500 |
| II | Alpha8 Las Vegas | Dec-14 | $100,000 | 55 | Andrew Lichtenberger | $2,104,245 |
| II | Alpha8 Florida | Jan-15 | $100,000 | 6 | Noah Schwartz | $585,000 |
| III | Alpha8 Las Vegas | Dec-15 | $100,000 | 45 | Fedor Holz | $1,589,219 |
Did You Know the World Poker Tour is Online?
The launch of WPT Global means that poker players around the world now have the chance to win their way to WPT events, win prizes and enjoy exciting games such as Poker Flips. As one of the world’s largest cash game poker networks, WPT Global is available in over 50 countries and territories around the world.
WPT Global offers a large deposit match bonus: 100% on deposits up to $1,200 (using any payment method). New players depositing a minimum of $20 automatically receive this match bonus which is unlocked in $5 increments (credited straight to the cashier) for every $20 of rake contribution.
Both tournaments and cash games count towards bonus unlocking; new players have 90 days from the date of the first deposit to unlock and claim their full bonus amount.
European Executive Editor
Will Shillibier is based in the United Kingdom. He started working for PokerNews as a freelance live reporter in 2015 and joined the full-time staff in 2019.
He graduated from the University of Kent in 2017 with a B.A. in German. He also holds an NCTJ Diploma in Sports Journalism.