WSOP events always have interesting themes that spark the interest of all participants. Some events are dedicated to certain charities, like the Covid-19 Relief Charity Event, while others try to attract the attention of specific groups of players. One of those events is the Ladies No-Limit Hold'em Championship, which started on October 11, 2021.
How many women have joined this event? Who is the most likely to get a straight flush winning hand? And what are the additional facts you should know about? Find out the answers to all those questions NOW!
WSOP Event 22#: Ladies Championship Details
The 22nd WSOP live event started on October 11 and is scheduled to last for 4 days. While all players were allowed to join the event with a $10,000 buy-in, female players had a considerable discount, and they had to pay $1,000 only.
644 players chose to join the event, out of which only one was male. Tom Hammers, a poker player from Minnesota, is the first man to join the annual ladies' event in years. Apparently, he decided to join his wife and daughter – who also enrolled in the event – to raise money for charities that support women.
In a tweet he posted earlier this month, he said: "Going to play the @wsop ladies' event. All proceeds go to women's charities. Tony Hartmann and my idea. Any donations will be welcome."
And indeed, with the assistance of his friend, Hammers managed to get a spot at the poker tables. However, he didn't manage to remain there for long, as he was eliminated on the first night by Christina Gollins.
Apparently, as Hammers stood up from the table, his departure was met by cheering and whistling – which is the traditional response whenever a man dares to enter the tournament…and loses.
By the end of the first day of the event, 170 ladies remained in the running for the top spot. 97 of those are guaranteed a prize of at least $1,633, a portion of a total prize pool of $573,160.
And while there is no knowing who will leave the table with a gold bracelet, Angelina Rich is currently in first place with 301,000 chips. American pro - Lily Kiletto - is in second place with 265,000 chips, and Michelle Ferrante came in third by the end of the first day.
Christina Gollins (with 202,000 chips), Dusti Smith (197,400), and Cherish Andrews (185,000 chips) will try to move up the winners' ladder on day 2.
Women in Poker
In recent years, more women began playing live and online poker. However, there are still very few female pros out there. Reports show that in 2019, only 0.5% of WSOP poker players were women younger than 30.
It seems as if women still feel that poker is a male-dominated field, even though things are changing slowly. Organizations like Poker Power strive to teach women poker skills and increase the number of female pros. In fact, Poker Power's goal is to encourage at least 1 million women to play poker. And while the goal hasn't been reached yet, things are moving in the right direction!
In Conclusion
Every year, WSOP organizers dedicate one event to encourage women to play more poker. It seems as if this years' ladies' event attracted quite a lot of attention from the public. And everyone asks the same question: which female pro will get her crown? Stay tuned and find out the answer to this question in a few days!