Whatever happened to Peter Eastgate, who at the age of 22 won the 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event for $9,152,416? And whatever happened to his Main Event gold bracelet that he sold for $150,000 to raise money for charity?
Keep on reading to find out, but also be sure to check out the following clip from a recent episode of the PokerNews Podcast in which the crew breaks it down.
Where’s Eastgate?
The year following his big win, Eastgate hit the tournament circuit hard as a Team PokerStars Pro and amassed $1,276,860 in earnings in 2009. In 2010, that dropped to $272,740; the year after that, it fell to just $14,232 (despite returning to the game by competing in the 2011 NBC Heads Up Championship).
He made a brief comeback in 2012, winning $209,111 – he signed on as a member of Team Betfair Poker that year to play the WSOP Main Event – but his last tournament cash of $3,896 came when he finished 80th in the 2013 ISPT London €3,000 Main Event, according to The Hendon Mob.
So, what happened?
"When I started playing poker for a living, it was never my goal to spend the rest of my life as a professional poker player,” Eastgate shared in an announcement on July 6, 2010, when he shockingly skipped the WSOP Main Event. “I have decided to take a break from live tournament poker, and try to focus on Peter Eastgate, the person. I want to thank PokerStars, my friends and family for their support over the last 20 months and for their support in my decision to take a break from poker.”
Well, that break turned into an indefinite one, as Eastgate has essentially disappeared from the poker world.
Peter Eastgate
"It's no secret that I am a pretty introverted guy. I've always said that I'm not good in the spotlight," Eastgate told Bernard Lee in a 2018 interview for ESPN. "I've always been nervous about that, and I don't like the way I sound in interviews."
Bernard’s piece also explained that sports betting, especially during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, fueled Eastgate’s decision. He lost $1.2 million by the quarterfinals and an additional $500K when Spain won.
"That played a crucial factor of me being very fed up with the whole gambling industry. It's very tiring on your emotional level," Eastgate said. "I decided I didn't want to go to Las Vegas and play the main event. ... Being on a downswing, I didn't want to go to Las Vegas and be in a gambling-related environment, especially when I was losing a lot."
Bernard Lee's 2018 ESPN piece on Peter Eastgate.
He continued: "I could have stuck to my endorsement deal and I would have freerolled the tournaments I played. But I was also a degenerate gambler; otherwise, you cannot [lose] $2.2 million in sports betting. So, I was putting a stop to that by quitting the whole industry and poker. I was also tired of my mood being so dependent on how I did in the gambling world, including at the poker tables."
"Living an extravagant life has never really been my thing. I'm still safely economically independent."
While he made periodic poker appearances in the following years, Eastgate tried to explore other avenues. He spent time pursuing careers in engineering and teaching but decided neither were for him. Last the poker world knew, he had moved back to Denmark and lived a simple life.
"Living an extravagant life has never really been my thing. I'm still safely economically independent," Eastgate said in the ESPN piece. "My spendings are very low. The way I live my life, I could live my life like this for another 200 years. To others, it seems like a big mystery when I have to account for all the times I have done nothing. From the outside, it seems incredibly boring, but I'm thriving. I'm not depressed by any means … Overall, I'm very unproductive — just imagine a Sunday, and I live that every day of the week, but I'm enjoying myself."
In November 2010, Eastgate announced he would auction his bracelet on eBay with all proceeds going to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Why part with the physical embodiment of his remarkable poker accomplishment? According to him, the bracelet was just collecting dust, so he wanted to do something worthwhile with it.
The eBay description read: “The unique piece of a Corum bracelet weighs 168 [grams] and is made of 18kt White Gold paved with 291 diamonds and the face, which says ‘World Series of Poker 2008’, is hand-painted in silver and decorated with black and red card suits.”
Reactions to the announcement were mixed, especially when the always boisterous Antanas “Tony G” Guoga said he was going to buy the bracelet and have it fashioned into a collar for his dog, Zasko. A PokerNews op-ed dissected the entire issue, describing Tony G's intentions as "a bit of fun for a great cause."
Tony G tried to buy Peter Eastgate's bracelet.
In his blog, Tony G explained his plan prior to the bracelet’s sale: “I have decided that I am going to buy Peter Eastgate’s WSOP Main Event winner’s bracelet. It is currently trading at $16,500 on eBay and I am going to lead the bidding at $17,500 – I don’t expect any further bids and as I know there are very few people with the heart and courage to challenge a determined Tony G. What am I going to do with Peter’s bracelet? Well, the plan is to get it adapted into a special collar for my trusted German Shepherd, Zasko. The ultimate dog bling – as my gladiator and protector he deserves to be kitted out in such style. My dog will be wearing Eastgate’s bracelet.”
Of course, there were other bids, a total of 116 as a matter of fact, with the final bid of $147,500 taking down the auction. The buyer, who was only known only as “7***1” per eBay’s privacy policy, placed the bid only 22 minutes before the auction’s end. Despite bidding up into six figures, Tony G said in his blog that he was not the phantom bidder.
More than two years later, it was revealed the winner was William Haughey, a Scottish businessman successful through his refrigeration company, City Refrigeration Holdings. Haughey, a recreational poker player who had donated millions to charity, was inspired by the fact that the purchase would benefit UNICEF.
William Haughey
In January 2012, during Day 1a of the Aussie Millions Poker Championship, PokerNews was granted an exclusive interview by Haughey, who shared a bit about purchasing the bracelet.
I thought it was a magnificent gesture when Peter said he was going to give the money to charity
“I thought it was a magnificent gesture when Peter said he was going to give the money to charity,” he said. “That was the only reason why I bought the bracelet. I paid $150,000 for the bracelet, but if the money wasn't going to charity, I wouldn't have even paid $50,000 for it. Some of the younger players said that the integrity of the bracelet was lost, and there was no respect, but the kids in Africa will be cheering Peter Eastgate today and not worrying about what the poker blogs are saying.”
Initially, Haughey wanted to use the bracelet to raise even more money for charity, even offering to partner with the WSOP to find a way to do it and indicating he would match anything raised up to $1 million. Unfortunately, such an event never came to pass and Haughey maintained possession of the bracelet.
That was pretty much that, at least until late March of this year when Haughey made a surprise appearance playing the 888poker LIVE Glasgow £888 Main Event.
Not only did Haughey navigate a 407-entry field to finish in eighth place for £7,430, he brought the 2008 WSOP Main Event bracelet with him to show people. It was the bracelet’s first public appearance in nearly 15 years, and makes us wonder when, if ever, we might see Peter Eastgate again.
