Russell Westbrook’s Why Not? Foundation Poker Night Raises $912,500 In Las Vegas

Poker tables and guests at a Las Vegas charity poker night inspired by Russell Westbrook’s Why Not? Foundation event.

Russell Westbrook’s Why Not? Foundation raised $912,500 at its Sixth Annual Poker Night on Friday, September 18, 2026, according to figures the Foundation reported through BusinessWire. The night moved to Fontainebleau Las Vegas for the first time, played inside the property’s members-only Poodle Room. Poker pros Phil Ivey and Michael Mizrachi took seats alongside Westbrook, a group of NBA players and several entertainment names. Westbrook, who founded the Foundation in 2012, stayed in the tournament to its final hand. For US players who follow the celebrity poker circuit, the event was a rare look at recognizable pros and amateurs sharing the same table for charity.

Key Highlights

The Sixth Annual Why Not? Foundation Poker Night raised $912,500 on Friday, September 18, 2026.
It ran for the first time at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, pushing the event’s six-year total to nearly $3 million.
Phil Ivey, Michael Mizrachi, Bill Perkins and Alan Keating joined Westbrook; pro Michail Grigorev won the 2026 title.
Proceeds fund Foundation programs in Los Angeles and Oklahoma City, including Westbrook Academy.

A Charity Poker Night At Fontainebleau Las Vegas

The 2026 edition marked the first time the Why Not? Foundation ran its Poker Night at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, hosting play in the members-only Poodle Room. Drea Renee and Vince Van Patten hosted the evening on the microphone.

Las Vegas remains the natural home for an event like this, and Nevada was the first state to license and regulate online poker. If you want to understand how the state’s rules work, our Nevada online poker guide breaks down where things stand for players there.

Phil Ivey And Michael Mizrachi Headline The Field

The player list mixed serious poker credentials with celebrity draw. Reporting on the event lists Phil Ivey, DeAndre Jordan, Harrison Barnes, Princess Love, Michael Mizrachi, Bill Perkins and Alan Keating among those who joined Westbrook.

Ivey is an 11-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, and you can read more about his standing in our coverage of his 11th WSOP bracelet win. Mizrachi is another familiar name at the top of the game, as we noted when he took down the 2025 WSOP Main Event. Perkins and Keating are well known to anyone who follows high-stakes cash games.

How The 2026 Poker Night Played Out

According to the Foundation’s release, professional poker player Michail Grigorev won the 2026 Poker Night title. The final table included Princess Love and Randall Emmett, so the celebrity presence held up deep into the tournament.

Ivey made a late entrance and quickly went to work, eliminating Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt and Westbrook. In one featured hand between Ivey and Westbrook, Ivey moved all in for 33,000 and Westbrook called.

Where The $912,500 Goes For The Why Not? Foundation

Proceeds fund Foundation programs in Los Angeles and Oklahoma City. The headline beneficiary is Westbrook Academy, a public charter school for grades six through 12 in South Los Angeles that the Westbrooks and the Foundation launched in 2020.

The Foundation reports that the school’s Class of 2026 graduated at a 100% rate. Its permanent campus in South Gate includes science labs, a film studio and two on-site wellness centers. The school has one social worker for every 115 students, compared with roughly one per 3,500 across Los Angeles County. In July, the Foundation ran its annual Why Not? Basketball Camp for more than 200 young people across South Los Angeles and Altadena.

Westbrook framed the stakes plainly, calling the event “the biggest night of the year for everything we do.” His wife, Nina Westbrook, a licensed marriage and family therapist, serves on the Foundation’s advisory board. With this year’s total, the Poker Night has now raised close to $3 million across six years.

What This Means

For US poker players, this is a reminder that the charity circuit is where celebrity and serious poker still meet in person. You are not going to sit across from Phil Ivey at a fundraiser, but events like this keep marquee names visible and give the game mainstream attention. If you want to put your own game to work for a cause, watch for charity tournaments and buy-in events near you, and treat them the way you would any live game: know the structure, set a budget and play within it.

Sandra is a content writer and editor specializing in online poker and iGaming. She covers poker sites, game formats, industry news, and US online poker laws for Legal US Poker Sites.