Event #45: $500 SALUTE to Warriors Day 1 | 2025 World Series of Poker

06-15-2025 10:04 UTC-8

Steven Genovese is Back

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Jerome Solomon

Level 2 : Blinds 200/300, 300 ante

Steven Genovese looked like almost every other player at his table. He isn't just any old player.

Genovese won the Salute to Warriors event in 2023. He'd kind of like that to go untold, at least at the table.

"I'm trying to go incognito," he said.

Genovese garners a different reaction at his home games these days. Of course, a new level of respect is to be expected when you show up to a regular weekly affair sporting a WSOP bracelet.

"Yeah, the boys treat me a little different," Genovese said. "I got my little 15 minutes of fame, locally. It was fun."

Genovese missed last year's WSOP because of heart bypass surgery. He is healthy now and hoping to be in the hunt for another bracelet.

"I'm feeling good, but they say don't eat red meat ... that's hard."

Player	Chips	Progress
Steven Genovese	54,000 54,000	54,000

Tags: Steven Genovese

Level: 2

Blinds: 200/300

Ante: 300

06-15-2025 09:40 UTC-8

This One Means More to Zoucha

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Jerome Solomon

Level 1 : Blinds 100/200, 200 ante

For Bob Zoucha, an Air Force veteran with nearly two decades of service, this tournament is different from all the others at the WSOP.

“This one is special, because it's for my fellow veterans,” Zoucha said, as he rushed to his table to play the first hand. “I was honored they asked me to do that.”

Zoucha, who was honored to make the “Shuffle up and Deal” announcement to start the tournament, has played in the event since its inception. He cashed in 2022, and has bigger hopes this year.

“Now I just need to see some veterans meet me at the final table,” he said.

Player	Chips	Progress
Robert Zoucha	50,000 50,000	50,000

Tags: Robert Zoucha

06-15-2025 09:31 UTC-8

Jason Wesemann

59,100 9,100

Table 110Seat 6

06-15-2025 09:31 UTC-8

Shuffle Up and Deal Ceremony

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Roxanne Johnson

Level 1 : Blinds 100/200, 200 ante

Jack Effel, Vice President of the World Series of Poker (WSOP), delivered a heartfelt speech reflecting on the significance of the tournament and emphasizing the profound impact the donation will have on veterans. Effel also announced that the bracelet for this event is special due to its red, white, and blue stones.

He then introduced Cedric Johnson, the head of Salute, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting veterans in need. Johnson expressed his gratitude to the players for their generous contributions to the cause.

Tim Mullin, Director of the United Service Organizations (USO), followed with a brief presentation, accompanied by members of the National Guard, and concluded with the playing of the national anthem.

To officially commence the event, a special guest was invited to deliver the traditional "Shuffle Up and Deal" announcement: Robert Zoucha, who oversees audio and visual operations for the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Zoucha honorably served for thirteen years as a combat cameraman in the United States Air Force.

Tags: Cedric Johnson Jack Effel Robert Zoucha Tim Mullin

06-15-2025 09:14 UTC-8

Tournament has Officially Started

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Roxanne Johnson

Level 1 : Blinds 100/200, 200 ante

The tournament has officially started with 1,095 entrants to start the day.

Level: 1

Blinds: 100/200

Ante: 200

06-15-2025 08:38 UTC-8

Jason Wesemann

50,000

Table 110Seat 6

Let's go!

06-15-2025 08:00 UTC-8

Get Ready for Event #45: $500 Salute to Warriors No-Limit Hold'em

Share on Twitter Share on Facebook

Calum Grant

Welcome back to PokerNews, the official media partner of the 2025 World Series of Poker and home of live updates from all bracelet events.

Today will see the start of Event #45: $500 Salute to Warriors No-Limit Hold'em at 10 a.m. local time here at Horseshoe and Paris, Las Vegas, with starting stacks of 50,000 and blinds of 100/200/200 with 40-minute levels. This event is open to all participants, and $40 of each entry will be donated to the U.S.O. and other veterans organizations.

Day 1 will play for 17 levels, with 20-minute breaks every three levels and a 75-minute dinner break after Level 12 around 7 p.m. Registration remains open for late arrivals until the start of Level 10 (about 5 p.m.).

Day 2 will pick back up at 11 a.m. Monday and will play for 15 to 17 levels, depending on how things are going, with 15-minute breaks every three levels and a 60-minute dinner break after Level 26 around 5:30 p.m. Day 3 will play down to a winner with 15-minute breaks every three levels and a to-be-determined dinner break.

Last summer, the Salute to Warriors event drew 4,517 runners and raised over $180,000 for veterans. The UK's Ben Collins took down the event for $207,486 from the $1,851,970 prize pool and his first WSOP bracelet.

“It’s just surreal," said Collins. "All along the way you think about holding the bracelet, you get the support from everyone which then keeps you going as you get further… to actually do it, is just ridiculous.”

Year	Entries	Winner	Country	Prize
2024	4,517	Ben Collins	United Kingdom	$207,486
2023	4,303	Steven Genovese	United States	$217,921
2022	3,209	James Todd	United States	$161,256
2021	1,738	Eric Zhang	United States	$102,465
2019	1,723	Susan Faber	United States	$121,161

Planning on playing this event? PokerNews activates MyStack for every WSOP event, regardless of that tournament's buy-in, allowing you to directly adjust your chip counts in our live reporting

MyStack is a free poker tool that puts you in control of your chip counts on our live reporting pages. Once you have created a free PokerNews account, you can use MyStack to update your chip counts in real time; hopefully, your stack will continue increasing throughout the event!

Become a Bigger Part of the Action With MyStack

Stay tuned to PokerNews for updates on this and all bracelet events at the 2025 WSOP!

Tags: Ben Collins Eric Zhang James Todd Steven Genovese Susan Faber

Event #45: $500 SALUTE to Warriors

Day 1 Started