Sports Veterans Ante Up For Africa
Ante Up for Africa is a different kind of poker tournament. It’s become an integral part of the WSOP, but winning this tournament isn’t about winning the big bucks. Of course, players play to win, since the title is still an honor, as is cashing, but this is one tournament where players are often not in it for the cash at all. For example, when poker pro Phil Gordon took $130,641, he donated it all to charity. According to Las Vegas law, players can’t be required to give up their winnings to charity, but in this event, the accepted practice is to give at least half to charity. The event has raised almost $4 million for Darfur over the past four years.
The event has been running for three years, and it raises awareness of the crisis in Darfur, Sudan, as well as raising money for those affected by the humanitarian crisis caused by the war there. Since it is a charity event, it attracts a lot of players who aren’t necessarily known as poker players. Some former sports pros have showed up at the tournament. Jerome Bettis, a former Pittsburgh Steeler, took sixth place. Bettis was known as “The Bus” during his NFL career because he tended to run over his opponents. The Ante Up for Africa tournament was no exception. Bettis said “We used to have a home game with some of my teammates for eight years solid every week. It was a pretty good game, so I’ve been playing for a while.”
Another athlete who took part in the event was Evander Holyfield, one of the world’s greatest heavyweight champions ever, who won the sympathy of non-boxers around the world when a crazed Mike Tyson bit his ear during a match. Holyfield said that he wasn’t scared about playing poker in front of a crowd. “When it comes down to it, it’s about making good decisions,” Holyfield said. “It’s the same thing in boxing.” Holyfield didn’t get quite the results that Bettis did, but was glad he had played. “When it comes to this tournament itself they were talking about what’s happening in Africa and how they want to raise awareness. I wanted to contribute to someone who is less fortunate. How can I not be a part of something like this?” Holyfield said.
