Las Vegas WSOP Draws Youngest Field of Contestants Ever
According to a newspaper out west, until a few weeks ago, Steve Gross could not even legally step foot inside of a gambling casino, let alone compete in the 2006 World Series of Poker.
Gross, a Rowan University student who just celebrated his 21st birthday and attained the legal age to gamble in a casino, will travel to the biggest tournament in the world, the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Texas Hold 'Em main event in Las Vegas, Nev. The tournament will take place at the Rio Casino from July 28 through Aug. 10 and will be broadcast on ESPN.
Regardless of his age, for the past four years Gross has played poker on various Internet poker sites, where the legal age to play is 18.
"I started playing in high school, but I didn't take it too seriously," he said before departing for Las Vegas. "But at in college, I tried to improve. I didn't have a game at the time. I would lose $50 here and there."
"I didn't really read any books, but I watched a lot of the better players on television," he said.
Even without casino table experience, Gross has refined his game to the point of attaining national recognition. Pocketfives.com, an Internet haven for poker aficionados, lists Gross' user alias as the 39th best on-line player in the world.
Given the game's soaring popularity and growth, ask any player or casual observer and they will tell you that the WSOP is the quintessential, most competitive and prolific tournament in the world. With more than 8,000 entrants, a first prize of $10 million and the coveted WSOP main event diamond bracelet, all of the big-timers come out to play. More than $70 million in cash will be doled out to competitors who finish "in the money."
Even better, anybody in the world is welcome to join the fray, for a $10,000 entry fee. Now, you may ask how a young college student can afford the hefty buy-in. The answer is as easy as knowing that a full house beats three of a kind. To obtain a spot in the WSOP, Gross had to win a tournament on Pokerstars.net, which offered the $10,000 buy-in to the WSOP as first prize. Gross bested 81 other competitors and earned the bid.
July 27, 2006
Posted By Bob Hartman
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
Previous Page | Internet Gambling | Top Online Casinos | Submit News!