Three Maricopa residents place in Harrah’s fundraiser poker tourney

Three Maricopa residents placed among the top table finishers while Major League Baseball’s Royce Clayton hit a home run with the inaugural Poker Celebrity Bowl at Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Resort raising more than $40,000 for the Royce Clayton Family Foundation.

The Poker Celebrity Bowl was a Texas No-Limit Hold’em event kicking off Super Bowl weekend. Stars from sports and Hollywood came out in full force to support Clayton.

“Harrah’s Ak-Chin was delighted with the success of the Poker Celebrity Bowl and the tremendous support from Royce Clayton, our celebrity partners and sponsors Goldwater Bank, Porsche Cars and Heartland Poker Tour,” said Geoff Andres, vice president and general manager of Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Resort.

The poker event included more than 20 of Clayton’s fellow celebrity athletes, actors, and professional poker pros. The exclusive list included MLB pitcher Kyle Lohse, Jose Canseco, NFL’s Rolland Roland Williams, Jamir Miller, MarTay Jenkins, NBA Hall of Famer Bob Lanier, LPGA Laura London, music producer Bruce Walker, Fox Sports Super Bowl host Fred King, Heartland Poker Tour host Chris Hanson, Sex in the City’s Willie Garson, The Closers’ Tony Denison, and ER’s Eric Palladino.

The professional poker pros included more than 15 World Series of Poker champs with more than $30 million in earnings. Poker pros on hand were Michael Binger, Chris Ferguson, Jamie Gold, Clonie Gowen, Erik Seidel, and Robert Williamson III.

“Poker is a fantastic way for fans and celebrities to unite,” Clayton said. “I am fortunate to have accomplished many of my goals. The Royce Clayton Family Foundation was started to help others achieve their dreams and today we were able to raise money to make a difference.”

The $1,000 buy-in tournament was open to the public at the Harrah’s Phoenix-Ak Chin Casino in Maricopa. More than 70 players played for the coveted first prize. The poker pros and stars represented at the final table were:
The final table finishers.
1st Place – Jeromy McMahon (Maricopa)
2nd Place – Larry Schohn (Lincolnwood, IL)
3rd Place – Vinny Barone (Queen Creek)
4th Place – Troy Towne (Maricopa)
5th Place – Chris Ferguson (Las Vegas, NV)
6th Place – Lucky Sanderlin (Maricopa)
7th Place – Joshua Remmert (Mesa)
8th Place – Christian DaFour (Chicago)
9th Place – Clonie Gowen (Dallas)
10th Place – Jose Canseco (Los Angeles)

Canseco and Gowen were knocked out ninth and tenth in a surprising hand. Gowen went all in with Ace/8 of hearts. Canseco called all in quickly with Ace/King of jacks. After thinking, Troy Towne of Maricopa also called with his Jack/9 of hearts. The flop came with a Jack and then a 9 came later giving Towne 2 pairs and knocking out Canseco and Gowen. Ferguson’s luck did not hold up, and he finished fifth.

After a brief heads-up match, Maricopa local Jeromy McMahon won the tournament. McMahon won a $10,000 seat into World Series of Poker® Main Event and over $5,000. Larry Schohn won the second place prize including $3,374 and a main event into the Heartland Poker Tour. Third place went to Vincent “Vinny” Barone. He won $2,381 and the coveted 2-Day Porsche Driving School Experience.

The Royce Clayton Family Foundation was started by Major League’s Royce Clayton in 1997. Clayton is a 17-year veteran and considered one of the greatest shortstops. He won the 2007 World Series of Baseball with the Red Sox. He has been honored for his philanthropy work with the Jim Sundberg Community Achievement Award. He was nominated in 1999 and 2000 for the Roberto Clemente Man of the Year award.

Royce Clayton Family Foundation is committed to improving lives and giving back to the community. The foundation worked to promote education, help homeless children, provide aid for battered women, develop athletic opportunities for minority youth, and raise awareness for sickle cell anemia.

Submitted photo