The 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is now underway and Las Vegas Aces star point guard Kelsey Plum was on hand Wednesday for a special “Shuffle Up and Deal” moment to kick off the first marquee event of the summer, the $1,000 Buy-In Mystery Millions.
The honorary tradition to commence the highly-anticipated tournament featuring a $1 million mystery bounty occured on Wednesday, May 31 at 10 a.m. as play got underway with the first of four flights from Paris Las Vegas and Horseshoe Las Vegas.
Plum also unveiled the WSOP gold bracelet to be won in the Mystery Millions event. Plum is no stranger to championship jewelry, being a key member of the 2022 WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces team.
Following the honorary “Shuffle Up and Deal” moment, Plum was available for media interview opportunities along with WSOP Vice President Jack Effel, and then she took the opportunity to enter the tournament.
WNBA Champion Kelsey Plum
This year’s edition of the WSOP is poised to break records, and Plum is no stranger to record-breaking feats. She holds the record for NCAA all-time women's leading scorer set during her time at the University of Washington.
As a highly touted shooting prospect, the San Antonio Stars drafted Plum into the WNBA by the first overall pick of the 2017 WNBA draft. The following year, the Stars relocated to Las Vegas and were renamed the Aces.
The Vegas team improved upon their record each year in 2018 and 2019 and went from one of the lowest in the standings to one of the top teams in the league with Plum on the roster.
Kelsey Plum in WSOP action.
Plum suffered an injury and missed the 2020 season, but she made an explosive return to the court in 2021 and earned the WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year honor.
2022 turned out to be a huge year for Plum as she became one of the top players in the league. Not only did she make her first WNBA All-Star Game appearance, but she was also named WNBA All-Star Game MVP.
Additionally, Plum was an integral part of the starting lineup that led the Las Vegas Aces to their 2022 WNBA Championship and secured the first major league title in Las Vegas history.
Mystery Millions
Getting the 2023 WSOP off to an exciting start is Event #3: $1,000 Mystery Millions; a mystery bounty event with a $1,000,000 guaranteed top bounty.
The popular format made its WSOP debut last year and generated a prize pool of $12,559,680 from 14,112 entrants. This year, the sensational event is set for the beginning of the series. It will surely attract another massive field as players have another way to make a life-changing score in addition to the normal payouts.
In 2022, Quincy Borland ultimately won the coveted bracelet and $750,120 first-place prize. However, there were several opportunities to take home a huge payday without making the final table for players who scored knockouts on Day 2.
The 2023 WSOP bracelet.
Poker pro Matt Glantz was the fortunate player to pull the top million-dollar bounty and found himself with a seven-figure result despite finishing 40th in the tournament. Additionally, plenty of other high-value bounties were won with fifty $25,000+ cash prizes pulled from a chest full of envelopes.
This year, the long-awaited tournament will see thousands vie for a spectacular start to the series as WNBA champ Plum kicks off the festivities leading to a WSOP champ. Of course, PokerNews will provide live reporting coverage throughout the event, so stay tuned to find out who will be this year’s millionaire.
