Bodog Salutes Our Troops - A Tribute to American Heroes

Hawaiian-style entertainment at the Bodog VIP luau

On July 22, with the sun shining over the island of Oahu, and the Pacific Ocean lapping rhythmically onto Honolulu's pristine beaches, Hollywood celebrities, poker professionals, team Bodog Internet qualifiers, and U.S. troops took it indoors to the Kahala Mandarin Oriental Resort to play poker for charity.



This was only part one of a two-day charity event in Hawaii, sponsored by Bodog.net, to benefit the Fisher House Foundation and to say thanks to the men and women of the U.S. military.



Part two was an outdoor concert at the beautiful Waikiki Shell, featuring stand-up acts by comedians Colin Quinn, Wanda Sykes, and Paul Rodriguez, and musical performances by Bodog recording artist Bif Naked, and rap icon Snoop Dogg. Although the event was for charity, it wasn't just some bake sale …

(from left to right) Army's Shane Woods holds his green and white runner-up chip – David Williams Matt Savage and his wife, Mary Ann – Carson Daly – Paul Rodriguez

From buffets fit for a J-Lo wedding to a tournament "losers lounge" set up like a late-night talk-show greenroom, the event was red carpet all the way. So, unless your face appears on plasma screens or the silver screen, you had to win your way in – except, if you were one of the 60 troops stationed in Hawaii who got the nod to gamble and jam out to some hip-hop. And these troops knew a thing or two about poker, all battling through interservice satellites held on the grounds of Hickam Air Force Base, Schofield Barracks (Army), Pearl Harbor (Navy), and Kaneohe Marine Corps Base to claim seats.



There were two ways to earn a spot on team Bodog: possessing poker skill and dumb luck. Although the two are not always mutually exclusive, in this case they were. Certain players won their spot via a player points freeroll tournament, while others won a raffle for having referred a friend to Bodog.

Bodog CEO Calvin Ayre and Estella Warren (actress)

Once there, the players joined invited guests Carson Daly (Last Call With Carson Daly), Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie), and Dulé Hill (West Wing), among many others, for what Tournament Director Matt Savage referred to as a "semishootout." The structure ensured that one team Bodog player, one poker pro, three celebrities, and four troops would clash at the final table.

The players started with $10,000 in chips and the blinds at $100-$200. The action was fast, and the celebrities seemed to take the brunt of it early. Daly, actress Katherine Heigl, comedian Paul Rodriguez, director Peter Berg, and actor Dulé Hill all made early exits. The trophy for the first one out (an oversized pink chip attached to a plaque with a Slinky), however, went to the Army's Nathan Esafe, a fill-in, who had never played poker before. "Hey, at least I got something," Esafe said, holding up his trophy. "Those guys didn't get anything."



David Williams lost the battle of the poker pros, but was still happy to be a part of the festivities. "I get to do something I love, and for someone else," Williams said. "Hawaii's a blast. I want to live here. It's the second-best place in the world other than Vegas."



Williams' elimination guaranteed fellow poker pro Josh Arieh a spot at the final table. Arieh used the waiting time to listen to bad-beat stories and talk online poker with Bodog's guests, and provide some insight into his alliance with the website: "You're playing with sports bettors. It's fun. At some sites, it seems like everyone's playing for a living. The atmosphere is so different. I guarantee that a lower percentage of people are playing for a living (on Bodog) than on any other site."



The final table featured Josh Arieh, Shane Woods (E-7 sergeant first class, Army), Jorge Garcia (actor, Lost) Timothy Johnson (Boston College sophomore, team Bodog Internet qualifier), Shaun Lawrence (gunnery sergeant, United States Marine Corps), Estella Warren (actress, Planet of the Apes), Nathan Pandora (sergeant, United States Marine Corps), Shannon Elizabeth, and Jeffrey Lemon (sergeant E-5, United States Marine Corps).



Each player started with $100,000 in chips, and when the dust settled, it was Estella Warren who had all $900,000 worth. On her road to victory, she knocked out both Arieh and Williams, and earned the coveted Bodog Salutes the Troops giant black poker chip. A donation in her name was also made to the Army Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) fund. Excited, but humble in victory, Warren credited her poker skill to her actor/director boyfriend Peter Berg, who taught her how to play poker on their first date.

Bodog ice sculpture – Bodog's Ice Volcano stands guard over the veggie dip at the VIP luau

The tournament provided hours of fun and excitement for the troops, and acted as a much needed morale boost. "It was a good experience, so memorable for me," said 18-year Air Force veteran and poker fanatic Raul Pira, who is awaiting his last deployment before retirement.



The tournament was a tough act to follow, but the concert didn't disappoint anyone. Carson Daly hosted, and Wanda Sykes, Colin Quinn, Bodog Music's Bif Naked, and comedian Paul Rodriguez got the crowd warmed up.

Rodriguez passed the microphone off to Bodog founder and CEO Calvin Ayre, who presented the Fisher House Foundation with a $50,000 donation. The short ceremony seemed to put the proper punctuation on a successful weekend.



But the real bling bling on the cake came courtesy of one Calvin Broadus, aka Snoop Dogg. With more than 8,000 military personnel on hand, Snoop took the shell-shaped stage sporting a red, white, and blue Support Our Troops jersey, and a diamond-encrusted microphone.



What had been a mellow, in-your-seat night of comedy, save for the rock performance by Bif Naked, quickly turned into a dance party and West Coast rap-along. Snoop dug deep into his catalog of hits, pulling out old-school favorites like Gin and Juice and Who am I? (What's My Name?). Although assuredly tired from all the dancing, no one in the crowd left their feet for Snoop's hour and a half set.

(from left to right) Josh Arieh and his wife, Angela – Shannon Elizabeth – Joshua Malina Colin Quinn and Wanda Sykes – Snoop Dogg

Bodog Salutes Our Troops: A Tribute to American Heroes certainly set a new standard for gaming philanthropy, but Bodog believes it comes with the territory. "Bodog has had an extremely successful run," Ayre said. "We think we have a responsibility to give something back."



For more on the Fisher House Foundation and Bodog, visit www.bodog.net.