It began simply. He saw a Twitter post that announced a contest to select a veteran for an expense paid trip to enter the 2023 Las Vegas World Series of Poker. It was for one of over 60 tournaments, this one called the "Salute to Warriors."
The contest was sponsored by self-described "besse frens" Angela Jordison and Jacki Hughes. Over time I've come to think of the two as poker pros although they might disagree. Angela had been playing in a tournament out East I believe. She was so impressed with the sportsmanship and demeanor of one of her competitors (a military veteran) she offered him travel, lodging and entry fees for the upcoming "Salute" tournament.
As news spread, others stepped up to offer sponsorship for more veterans and so, being what I would call expert organizers, Angela and Jacki decided to develop a contest for a total of 10 winners. Veterans were asked to make a video explaining their military service, interest in poker and the World Series. They also needed to submit documentation of their veteran status. It was all done online so it was a speedy process.
I thought; well, I love playing poker and the World Series is right up there on my bucket list so I made a short video and submitted it. Then, to my surprise, a pal from many previous local tournaments; Charisse Case recommended me. That did it I think. I was one of the top ten. Donations kept pouring in and in the end Angela and Jacki ended up selecting 15 veterans to sponsor.
Still, I wasn't sure I would be able to make it for a while as some family medical issues needed attention. Finally, thanks to my daughter Samantha and wife Julieann, things cleared up just a few days before the tournament. Son Tyler also showed interest (To watch over/chaperone his old dad?) so we booked flights. From Sacramento, Spirit Airlines is the only carrier that offers direct flights to Las Vegas at reasonable times. They seem to have a pretty bad reputation but our travel both ways was smooth although they do tack on charges for most everything. It was however, a pleasant surprise to find that the bathrooms on the planes weren't coin operated.
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For our first morning there, Angela and Jacki had organized a fine breakfast in a private setting. There, they also handed out gift bags loaded with donated poker merchandise. We were later joined by Lon McEachern and Norman Chad, legendary voices of poker and both nominees for the 2023 Poker Hall of Fame. Lon lives in our area. We have played several tournaments together and he also narrated my deepest large poker tournament run a few years earlier so it was a great to see him and introduce my son.
Next, the Salute to Warriors began. I had a decent day, running deep in the field but not cashing. Some of our group of "15" ran deeper and I believe a couple of them ended up in the money. All together, it was most impressive as thousands, more like tens of thousands of players showed to enter dozens of tournaments in and around the Las Vegas strip.
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| Tyler Thomas Campbell WSOP winner |
On our third day there, it occurred to me that my son should enter a World Series tournament just to chalk up the experience even though he had only played a couple of tournaments many years before. He agreed and at breakfast, he asked many questions about the fundamentals...folding, betting, ranges and such. Together, we covered just enough information to get him started. It was a $250 Series side event and neither of us had high expectations. Early on, Tyler caught pocket Aces and had three callers all-in. His Aces held up, he quadrupled his stack and knocked out two of his three opponents in the process. In a field of over 900 entrants, he played pretty tight from then on and finished in the money! I was and I am sure proud and happy for him.
In one of the early levels of that tournament, I was in the big blind. There were mucks all around to the small blind and he called at I think around 2,500. I looked down at my pocket and it was ten-deuce off suit. I immediately announced "all-in" and the small blind folded. I then showed my hand in honor of Doyle Brunson (RIP) and the hand he is most famous for. The entire table got a kick out of that one. (In case you don't know, he won back-to-back World Series titles with that hand.)
As for me, I met some mighty fine folks, had some deep runs in the three tournaments I entered and enjoyed every bit of it...even the block-long, fast-moving bathroom lines during breaks. Over the years, I've written maybe a dozen stories about the Texas Hold'em poker experience. This will likely be the culmination...the end...finis as I gotta' get back in the game and focus on that. Or will there be more? We'll see.
In the meantime, for those of you who know, I'll see you at the final table.
