The Charity Series of Poker was the brainchild of poker pro Matt Stout. He put it together to serve as a means by which the poker community could show its generous side. When called upon, poker players have always stepped up and put their hearts on the tables. Stout wanted to establish a recurring way to make that happen to the benefit of a range of charities.
The first event was in early July 2014, hosted at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas at the time of the World Series of Poker Main Event. Poker players were in a central location, and it was a good opportunity to raise money for a Nevada-based charity. Three Square was a food bank feeding many people in the Las Vegas area, and the poker tournament raised $14,605 for it, enough to provide more than 43,000 meals.
That success led to the CSOP’s second event in late August 2014 at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, Florida. Poker players, alongside several Miami Heat pro basketball players, celebrities, and musicians, raised $29,400 for Habitat for Humanity.
For years, the CSOP benefited Habitat for Humanity and various food banks, though it eventually grew to add other charities to its lineup. They raised money for children’s hospitals, disease research foundations, and military veterans’ groups. For the past several years, children’s charities took on new meaning for Stout as his infant nephew battled cancer. He died from it last year. This upcoming event is personal for Stout, more so than most. Proceeds will benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
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Raising Hope for the Kids
The tournament is the 33rd for the Charity Series of Poker. Titled “Raising Hope for the Kids” to benefit St. Jude, this will be a unique virtual gala and poker tournament starting at 3pm PST on Saturday, August 28.
Participants in the tournament can buy in at any of the three tier levels:
-Tier 1: $200 = 10K starting chips-Tier 2: $300 = 20K starting chips and St. Jude gift box-Tier 3: $400 = 30K starting chips and St. Jude VIP gift box
There will be no rebuys or add-ons, so this is the one opportunity for players to donate via the tournament itself. All donations are tax deductible and go directly to the charity.
The grand prize from the tournament will be a Las Vegas trip, including two nights of hotel accommodations, two dinner tickets, a $50 restaurant gift card, and two buy-ins to the next St. Jude Against All Odds benefit tournament. The second-place finisher will win a one-hour meet-and-greet or poker lesson via Zoom with Daniel Negreanu. And the third-place finisher will receive a seat into the next CSOP celebrity cash game. Other final table finishers will receive prize bags, which will also serve as bounties on some of the featured players.
Participants will compete on the Faded Spade Virtual Poker platform, one set up for play-money action.
There will also be a silent auction for those who buy in to the tournament.
More information and ticket information are available on the St. Jude web page dedicated to this event.
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