Sin Melin Finishes on Top as €15K Raised for Helping Hands Charity
More often than not poker is about winning money, but every now and then it serves as a vehicle for something more altruistic. You see, Poker and charity have gone hand in hand for years. Tens of millions of dollars has been raised for various charities, from large-scale operations like the One Drop Foundation to smaller, localized programs like Tia's Hope.
On the European Poker Tour, one of their charitable endeavors has been the Helping Hands Charity Tournament, events that raises funds for PokerStars' charity partner, Right To Play. The events, which are held at various EPT stops, have proved so successful that it received a Charitable Initiative of the Year nomination in the 14th Annual European Poker Awards, which will be held on Wednesday. It really comes as no surprise as PokerStars' parent company, Rational Group, has a long and storied history involving charitable activities.
The latest Helping the Hands Charity Tournament took place on March 21 during the EPT Malta here at the Portomaso Casino in the Hilton Malta. The event, which boasted a €100 buy-in, began with a drink and canapé reception, which attracted a long list of poker luminaries including EPT President Edgar Stuchly; Head of Poker Communications at PokerStars Lee Jones, who was busy teaching newbies how to play at the training table; Miss Finland Sara Chafak and her better half Tuomas Varesvuo; and Team PokerStars Pros Liv Boeree, Theo Jorgensen, and Jake Cody, as well as PokerStars Sports Star Fatima Moreira De Melo.
"I think it's great for the image of poker," said Cody, who had flown in from the UK earlier in the day. "It definitely brings a lot of new people into the game by giving it a great image that brings people who might not have played before. It really gives them a chance to play for the first time."
Cody was one of 69 players to join in the fun that evening. Also in action were World Series of Poker bracelet winners Barny Boatman and Chad Holloway; Right To Play’s Neil Child-Dyer; Sue Hammett – Head of Corporate Giving at PokerStars; as well as the US ambassador to Malta, luminaries from the Maltese business world, and local politicians. As a result a total of €15,000 was raised for the PokerStars official charity, which as previously mentioned uses the power of sport and play to transform children’s lives.
As fate would have it, Cody made it all the way to heads-up play against UKIPT Brighton finalist Sin Melin. The two actually started at the same table, but took two very different routes to the final. Cody was short stacked right off the bat, while Melin chipped up and never looked back. In one hand just before the first break, she even scored a double elimination after hitting her gutshot straight draw on the river. She coyly checked, and Holloway bet with trip nines. Another player called, and then both ended up calling off when Melin check-raised all in.
"I had loads of chips, and he didn't have many chips," Melin told PokerNews about reaching heads-up play against Cody. "We only played one hand. I had queen-ten, and I think he had jack-six. He just went all in and I called. I don't even remember what the board ran out. All I remember is that I won the hand and got some bragging rights that I beat Jake Cody heads up. It was pretty cool."
For her efforts, Melin took home an iPad Air and had her victory immortalized with a winner's photo:
"It's helping children all across the world, so it's a good cause," Melin concluded. "It was really great. I met some really cool people — some people from PokerStars, some from the charity — and I had a lot Team Pros at my table, which wasn't easy but was good fun. I had a really good time, really enjoyed it."
According to their mission statement, Right To Play is a global charity using sport and play to educate and empower children and young people to overcome the effects of poverty, conflict and disease in disadvantaged communities around the world. For more information, click here.
For more on the Helping Hands Charity Tournament, check out PokerNews' highlight video: