One of the biggest events in poker history is coming back to Las Vegas this December as the World Poker Tour announced the return of the $1,000,000 buy-in Big One for One Drop.
The million-dollar buy-in event, which previously took place at the World Series of Poker (WSOP), will now be at the Wynn as part of the 2023 WPT World Championship festival, adding further hype to an event that didn’t need it after a massively successful festival in 2022.
Whichever deep-pocketed players ante up a million to play the Big One will be doing so for a good cause. According to WPT, 6% of each buy-in “will directly benefit the One Drop Foundation to continue their mission of ensuring sustainable access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene for communities facing extreme challenges.”
“The Big One for One Drop is such an iconic tournament in the world of poker. We are honored to put on this incredible event in conjunction with the One Drop Foundation and Wynn Las Vegas,” WPT CEO Adam Pliska said in a press release. “The $1 million buy-in is a testament to the heights this industry can reach and the continuous evolution of the World Poker Tour.”
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Who Will Be the Next Big One Winner?
In previous years its been offered, the Big One for One Drop has produced some of the biggest prize pools ever and awarded many of poker’s biggest names.
Poker Hall of Fame candidate Antonio Esfandiari took down the 2012 event that drew 48 runners to win an incredible $18,346,673. Two years later, Daniel Colman went on one of the biggest runs in poker history that included topping the Big One field of 42 players to win $15,306,668.
In 2016, the Monte-Carlo One Drop Extravaganza €1,000,000 Big One For One Drop drew 28 entries and saw Hong Kong’s Elton Tsang topping them all to win $12,248,912.
At the most recent Big One in 2018, all-time money leader Justin Bonomo topped the field of 27 players to win $10,000,000.
Before the million-dollar event, WPT will host two charity events in July. First will be the WPT EveryOne for One Drop at Wynn kicking off on July 9, a $10,000 buy-in event that will have a $10 million guarantee attached. After that, the $111,000 buy-in WPT Alpha8 for One Drop will commence on July 14 and will be live-streamed from Day 2 onward.
“Wynn is proud to host one of the largest events in poker history, included as part of the second annual WPT Championship festival,” Wynn Executive Director of Poker Operations Ryan Beauregard said in the press release. “We look forward to sharing this one-of-a-kind experience with players and fans from across the globe.”
Previous Big One for One Drop Winners
| YEAR | ENTRANTS | WINNER | PRIZE (IN USD) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 48 | Antonio Esfandiari | $18,346,673 | |
| 2014 | 42 | Dan Colman | $15,306,668 | |
| 2016 | 28 | Elton Tsang | $12,248,912 | |
| 2018 | 27 | Justin Bonomo | $10,000,000 |
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*Images courtesy of WPT.