A Historic Day for the WSOP
In its 40th year of existence, the WSOP has just officially crossed the $1,000,000,000 mark for total prize money awarded. That's one billion dollars, in case you're having trouble counting zeros. Though the complete numbers for this year's prize pool are still in the works, running tallies from today's entries confirm the milestone.
"It’s nice to reach this milestone during the 40th annual WSOP," said Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack. "What’s most remarkable is that nearly two-thirds of this amount has been awarded in just the last four years. Poker is alive and well and here to stay."
For the fourth consecutive year, the total prize pool for 2009 will eclipse $155,000,000, making this far and away the most lucrative sporting event in the world. For the sake of comparison:
- Since 1959, the Daytona 500 has awarded $21,327,256 in prize money. Over the last three years, the Main Event champions at the WSOP have earned a combined $29,402,416
- Wimbledon has just finished up for 2009, paying out about $20,500,000 to its participants. That's less than one quarter of the total WSOP prize pool this year.
- Since 2001, the Kentucky Derby has paid its winners a total of about $16,700,000. The last two Main Event champions have earned a combined $17,369,517.
Our sincere congratulations go out to the WSOP and the entire staff over the past forty years for making this the premier gaming event in the world.