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Copyright 2005 PokerMag
November 13, 2005
HEADLINE:
500 To Vie For Spot In ESPN Poker Tournament
BODY:
An expected 500 people will gather at La Villa Real Special Events
Center at 7 p.m. today to play
Texas Hold ’em Poker for charity, the winner earning
a $10,000 spot on the World Series of Poker.
To get into the game, players made a $100 donation to Rio Grande
Valley Safe Kids, a program dedicated to preventing accidental
childhood injury, such as in automobile accidents.
"The reason people want to come out is it’s something
that can be fun, and it goes to a good cause," said Frank
Santiago, RGV Safe Kids director of development.
Participants won’t be playing for money, so the event is
legal under Texas law, which generally forbids gambling for cash.
The evening’s winner will receive a seat at the World Series
of Poker, to be broadcast on ESPN from Las Vegas in July. The
"buy-in" for the series is $10,000. The prize will also
include airfare and hotel accommodations.
Tonight’s game could become part of a South Texas tour.
"If it goes well … then we’re thinking of going
and doing it in Laredo and Corpus," Santiago said. "We’ll
definitely do another one in McAllen."
That game will likely be in March, and if the other two take
place it would also be some time next year. Players would vie
for other spots on the World Series of Poker in July.
Friday’s tournament plays into a growing trend in the Valley
as poker, specifically Texas
Hold ‘em, becomes increasingly popular. That is driven
by poker games featured on ESPN, the Travel Channel, Bravo and
E!.
"A lot of people are playing at home," Santiago said.
"There’s a real cross-section of ages and demographics."
Natives and Winter Texans, mid-lifers and college students, men
and woman, are expected at tonight’s game. Players must
be 21 or older, the same as World Series of Poker rules.
Safe Kids isn’t the only organization in the Valley to
tap into poker’s popularity.
The annual fundraiser for the Junior League of Harlingen, a
philanthropic organization, is a Texas
Hold ‘em tournament Saturday from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. for
prizes that include a trip to San Antonio. Poker, for entertainment
only, was part of the McAllen Chamber of Commerce’s casino-themed
annual banquet at La Villa Real Saturday. And the Pharr Fire Department
had a Texas Hold ‘em fundraiser in September.
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