Poker Champ Wins $1M in Daily Fantasy Football Contest on Thanksgiving

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Dec 01, 2024 4 min read

Last December, Dan Sepiol won $5.2 million in the $10,400 buy-in WPT World Championship, one of the biggest tournaments in poker history. Now, 11 months later, he secured another seven-figure score, but not one that will make it onto Hendon Mob. On Thanksgiving Day, Sepiol won a daily fantasy football tournament for $1 million.

The million-dollar victory didn't come under festive circumstances, however. The 30-year-old spent the holiday on a flight from Las Vegas to Florida for the 2024 World Poker Tour (WPT) Seminole Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open Championship at Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood, which is where he was when he clinched the huge score.

PokerNews caught up with Sepiol during a break on Day 1b to talk about the fantasy victory, which WPT first wrote about yesterday, and to reflect on his breakout year that has included a WPT title and bracelet victory.

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"Everything Fell My Way"

Sepiol's fantasy win came in a $4,000 tournament on DraftKings called the NFL $2M MEGA Millionaire, a severely top-heavy event that saw the runner-up earning $100,000, just a fraction of what was awarded to the winner. “So it was a pretty big jump," said Sepiol.

It wasn't an easy path to victory for Sepiol. It all came down to a late play by Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in a Thanksgiving matchup against the Green Bay Packers.

"I had Tua and then I stacked the Packers in the late game," Sepiol said. "And then everything just fell my way."

There was no time to celebrate as Sepiol played Day 1a of the RRPO Championship the next morning, busting multiple bullets before trying his luck again in Saturday's Day 1b. He advanced to Day 2 and was eliminated outside of the money, though he is still way up on the trip.

"I love playing, I'm a very competitive person ever since I was a kid," he said.

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Father & Son

Sepiol's love for the game comes from his father, who lives in Florida and introduced his son to cash games in the Tampa area when he was 18. "So I've played a decent amount in Tampa."

After the RRPO festival, Sepiol will visit his dad in Orlando before heading back home to Las Vegas for the WPT World Championship event that made him a poker star. The Sr. Dan Sepiol was on the rail at Wynn Las Vegas last year as his son won $5.2 million and became a part of poker history.

The younger Sepiol has followed his championship victory will just as good of a year in 2024. This summer, he won his first WSOP bracelet in the $1,500 Shootout for $305,849 and a WPT Alpha8 Trifecta event for $672,000.

He also loves playing in Florida specifically. In August, he made a heads-up deal with Bryn Kenney in a $25,500 Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open High Roller for $390,810. "(There are) great tournaments and WPTs here. I try and come here three or four times a year."

"South Florida is great. There's a lot of money here and a lot of gamble."

That's also an apt description of Sepiol himself, who didn't have any money on the Saturday college football matchups displayed in the tournament ballroom but was ready for Sunday's NFL action. "No college stuff, nothing tonight. But I'll have to put in some research tonight for football tomorrow."

We will see if Sepiol's research pays off today.

_{*Photos courtesy WPT}

Connor Richards is an Editor & Live Reporter for PokerNews and host of the Life Outside Poker podcast. Connor has been nominated for two Global Poker Awards for his writing.

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