The 2017 WSOP Main Event winner Scott Blumstein actually isn't the only man benefiting from the deuce on the river that took out Dan Ott on the final hand of poker's biggest tournament of the year. The world poker champion won for each of his four friends $40,750 out of the $8,150,000 he won, their massive reward for investing a tiny $60 a piece to support his $10,000 buy-in to the tournament.
Aldo Boscia, John Scuteri, Peter Gerolamo and Nick Muldrow each gave Blumstein $60. Gerolamo said, "I knew when he was in the top 36, we had each made $1,000."
According to one of his friends Aldo Boscia, of course, Blumstein really had no need for the $240 his friends gave him, but he wanted them to sweat it out with him.
When Blumstein made it to the final table and was guaranteed $1 million already, his friends flew from Philadelphia to show their support and accompany him in Las Vegas, wearing "Team Blumstein Final Table ‘17" shirts. They watched him along the sides, hour after hour of poker play, and eventually coming out on top.
Boscia, who claimed that the money Blumstein made is life-changing for him, said, "We know he is exhausted, but we are too. I just have a normal 9-to-5 job. I have student loans. I can now make a down payment on a house."
Other than Blumstein and his supportive friends, there were some other bigger winners in this outcome. One of them was Asher Conniff, who bought 3 percent of Blumstein's winnings for just $420. He is now walking away with $244,500.
Conniff said, "Not a bad day at the office. Especially since I didn't work for it." Conniff is actually a poker pro, who when he was 26 years old won the WPT World Championship in 2015 and the $1,600 buy-in turned out to be a $937,683 prize. Conniff said, "No one is prepared for the amount of pressure that comes with the final table. Some of the moves he made proved he had the balls of a champion."
You can't beat this ROI
It is absolutely common for poker players to sell off some action to help them afford the buy-in amount to get into prestigious tournaments like the yearly WSOP Main Event. By doing this, it takes out some of the risks and aids in offsetting the high variance of poker tournaments. Blumstein is no exception, and as this is his first time playing in any high-stakes world series event, he sold off additional pieces of action a few weeks before the tournament even started. His lips are sealed when it comes to exactly how much he sold.
Blumstein said, "My dad sold a half a percent to the owner of a bagel shop. A friend of my grandfather's, who is 93 and plays poker, had two percent."
On June 21, he tried to sell more action on Twitter "Selling to the WSOP main event. If anyone wants a piece of the winner side right on in", but no one obliged. Surely those who saw and remembered that ad of his but passed it off would be regretting it now.
Reliving that Memorable Moment of a Lifetime
On July 20, Blumstein began the final table of the Main Event with a bit of a chip lead over 64-year-old British John Hesp who is also his first time ever to enter the WSOP Main Event. The kid from New Jersey apparently also had a cheering squad, including friends who have financially invested (started just for fun) in the outcome of his poker escapade.
On the first 3 days of the final table, Blumstein managed to best Hesp in some parts, leaving the British senior with a smaller stack in the end. On to the next 2 days, it was smooth sailing for Blumstein.
The heads-up match between him and Pennslvania's Ott had lasted 60 hands.
Blumstein emerged victorious and he ran over to celebrate winning a humongous $8,150,000 with his friends. His friends were very ecstatic, as they too have won big as well.
No Regrets
Blumstein said he has no regrets about the people he partnered with and he will accordingly give the money they are due when he receives his cash prize.
He said, "The truth is that a bunch of guys who had small stakes in me helped me the most at the end, when I needed support, when I needed to be driven places. I can say pretty confidently that without their support, I might not have won it all."
Source: https://www.highstakesdb.com/8033-scott-blumsteins-four-pals-turn-60-into-40750-each.aspx
that can bring you a small fortune.
And that he share a little piece of his big winning are really nice for his friends.
