For the second year in a row, 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champ Jamie Gold made his way to The Bahamas for WSOP Paradise. It was an easy decision for the bracelet winner, who won $12 million for winning the Main Event, a record that stood until Daniel Weinman won $12.1 million in 2023.
“It’s so beautiful and there are so many things to do,” Gold told PokerNews. “A lot of my friends wanted to come here and so it was kind of a no-brainer that I would be here.”
Aside from that, Gold was among the throngs of people attracted to poker’s largest-ever guarantee.
“I’m always excited about the WSOP events and the fact that they are having their largest guarantee ever – the Super Main Event with a $50 million guarantee – certainly made it even more attractive. But after I was here last year, it is such a great combination of a vacation and WSOP events. So, imagine what we have is a mini version of what we have in Vegas but on the ocean.”
Check out PokerNews’ 2024 WSOP Paradise hub here!
Playing the Super Main Event
For Gold, a special promotion with PokerStake and WSOP Paradise also appealed to him.
“You could sell half your action on PokerStake and they were willing to do that for anybody,” he said, referring to the site guaranteeing up to 50% coverage on unsold action for the first 100 eligible players. “I had no idea until I talked to Josh Arieh.”
Gold was one of the eligible players who took advantage of the promotion.
Similarly, he thought it was cool that the WSOP+ App was ensuring players who bought into the Super Main Event with Bitcoin could maximize their returns. Anyone who used WSOP+ to buy in with Bitcoin and cashed the tournament can make a withdrawal on Dec. 20 and they would cover the difference if the Bitcoin price goes up after the deposit.
“The fact that you can buy in for Bitcoin and if it goes up during the time that you’re playing, and you cash the tournament, they will pay you the difference,” said Gold. “So, you’re basically freerolling on your Bitcoin if it goes up you didn’t lose out on anything.”
Gold’s took his shot in the $26K buy-in Super Main Event on Friday’s Day 1b flight.
“I have never played a bigger buy-in than a $10K except for cash. I wouldn’t say that I’m nervous, I’m just excited,” he said before play. “I think it’s the equivalent probably of some of these super pros that buy into the $250K over the summer where, you know, they hadn’t done that before and they weren’t used to doing anything more than $100K maybe. I’m really excited to see how the action changes. I think it’s going to be a tough field, I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of dead money in it.”
Unfortunately for Gold, while he battled for most of the day, he was not among the players to bag chips. Whether or not he gives it another go remains to be seen, but it might be tempting as an overlay might be in the cards.
“I have this feeling that maybe they won’t [hit the guarantee] and that GGPoker was being overly generous,” said Gold. “I’m not even saying that it wasn’t smart for them to do it. I think it’s a great thing for them to do. I don’t think that overlays are great for poker in general because it then makes [operators] hesitant moving forward. So, I hope that it’s broken. I really hope that we get more than the 2,000 entries that they need, but I have a feeling it’s going to be close.”
Loving the Atlantis
While he may be out of the Super Main Event, Gold has plenty to keep him busy as the 2024 WSOP Paradise is taking place at the Atlantis on Paradise Island.
“They have one of my favorite places in the world – Nobu,” said Gold, a noted epicure. “They have a Fish by José Andrés and a really good Italian restaurant. It’s just a pretty extraordinary combination of so many things that I love and the weather is beautiful. If we came during hurricane season it wouldn’t be so great, but they do it at the right time and what GGPoker, WSOP, and Triton are putting together for everybody, it feels like a gift for poker players and it looks like there might be an overlay. But even if there’s not, just the fact that they’re creating all of this for us to enjoy it’s amazing.”
He added in regard to GGPoker taking over ownership of the WSOP: “It feels as if they care a lot and they’re going to put a lot of money into it. They’re not shy about investing in it. Look at how much money they spent to get the brand. So, you can imagine what this can become.
“The technical aspect of it is just the fact that they’re creating a whole new app with WSOP+. I feel like the combination of the way that they will film it all and maybe create more content will help drive more people to the brand, to have some kind of connection to it. I believe that GG owning the WSOP brand – and the amount of time, effort, and money that they’ll put into it – could really help grow poker, which is great for everybody.”
What’s Next for Gold?
When he’s not playing poker, Gold stays busy in Hollywood (remember, he was a talent agent when he won the Main Event).
“I definitely want to play more poker. I’m taking the game very seriously, and I feel there’s always so much more to learn.”
“I am definitely going to be funding more movies and TV shows,” he said of his plans for the New Year. He also shared that he’s involved with a new dental product and hopes to share details in the near future. Given his dad was a dentist and his mom ran the dental office, it’s a product near and dear to his heart.
And while it’s been nearly two decades since his historic Main Event win, Gold is already looking forward to the next WSOP in Las Vegas.
“I will definitely be at the World Series during the summer. Very excited about that,” he said. “I’m thinking about maybe a couple of other Circuit stops that I haven’t really played in a long time.”
GGPoker’s stewardship of the WSOP is a new era of poker, and for Gold, he hopes to change with it.
“I definitely want to play more poker. I’m taking the game very seriously, and I feel there’s always so much more to learn, and the more I learn, the more excited I am about the game. I’m really excited about the future of poker, about my future in poker.”
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