Auburn senior Stephen Darby played in his first World Series of Poker event in Las Vegas June 16, and walked away as a winner.
While the event that Darby placed in is a part of the World Series of Poker, it was not the main event, which has become famous after being aired on ESPN.
"The most common question I get when I tell people I played in the World Series is 'Oh, the $10,000 event?'" Darby said. "I have to explain to people that it's called the World Series of Poker because it's literally a series. There are around 70 tournaments and I played in the 28th one, which was a $1,000, no-limit Texas Hold 'em tournament with 2,108 entries."
Darby placed 187th out of the 2,108 entrants and walked away with $1,935 for his effort.
216 entrants made the money in Darby's event, and he said that at the end of day one, the entire room knew how close they were to cashing in.
"Everyone was watching the table next to us, and as soon as we saw the last guy get knocked out we knew we had made the money," Darby said. "So everyone in the room started celebrating and clapping when they announced that we were in the money."
Chris Authement, a longtime friend of Darby's and a semipro poker player, has cashed in twice at WSOP events. Authement said that cashing at tournaments like these is no small feat.
"It's a great feeling for everyone in the room, and everyone feels a little bit better after hours of nonstop poker," Authement said. "But that's certainly not the end all be all. We all do this to win, but cashing for your first time is certainly a special feeling."
While Darby said that cashing in at his first WSOP event was a dream come true, the friends he made during the tournament was just as satisfying.
"I sat next to a professional (poker player) at one of my tables," Darby said. "He let me watch the British Open with him on his iPad. That table was really rowdy. Everyone was joking around and having a good time."
Darby also met some Auburn fans during his time in Las Vegas.
"I met a fellow Auburn fan at my second to last table. He kind of mentored me on a couple of our breaks and texted me the next day to wish me luck because he didn't make it," Darby said. "I met another Auburn fan later and we talked about Auburn football. He was telling me about some poker games in Atlanta and invited me to drive over from Auburn to play in an American Legion game there. I met some really good people on my trip."
Darby's road from his hometown of Andalusia to playing beside professional card players in Las Vegas started at an early age.
"Ten years ago they started playing the World Series Main Event on TV and I was just instantly mesmerized. We set up a game that weekend at a friend's house, and we would play no-limit tournaments with nickels and dimes," Darby said. "After that, the games became a lot more frequent. We moved from dimes to quarters and quarters to dollars pretty quickly."
When Darby reached the age to legally gamble, he started playing in casinos.
"When I turned 18 I started going to the dog tracks in Florida, because you can (legally) play poker at dog tracks down there. I would play the $200 buy-in games," Darby said. "Then I started playing online, where I won back to back tournaments one night for $1500 a piece."
Darby plans on playing in three WSOP events next year. Meanwhile, he will enter in tournaments around the South to prepare himself.
"I hope to play in a tournament in Hollywood, Fla. at the beginning of August. They also have a big series in Biloxi (Mississippi) in January that I plan on entering, and I plan on going to a World Series of Poker circuit event in New Orleans next year right before the World Series starts," Darby said.
Darby is pursuing a double major in political science and economics with a minor in psychology. After graduation in May 2014, he hopes to begin a career practicing law.
"I hope to get into law school in the D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area," Darby said. "As far as long term, I want to work for a big law firm for a couple of years, and then dedicate my service to people who cannot afford adequate representation."
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