Poker champion Phil Hellmuth will be the host of a tournament in December that not only will demonstrate the ability of poker to be used as a fundraiser but will also serve to aide the heroes of the law enforcement world as well.

On Saturday, December 9th, Hellmuth will join up with the TASER Foundation For Fallen Officers when the Second Annual "Playin' The Hand" Charity Poker Tournament For Fallen Officers takes place at the Fort McDowell Casino outside of Phoenix, AZ. The TASER Foundation is an organization that looks after the families of police officers from the United States and Canada after their loved one is injured or perishes in the line of duty. Each year, over 150 law enforcement men and women are killed while performing their very difficult job and, from the support of such an organization as the TASER Foundation, their families are able to carry on without their loved one.

There will be a series of tournaments that will take place during the day with great prizes for participating in the event. The first tournament, which is a $200 buy in event (with $200 rebuys before the first break and an optional $100 add on) will start off at 3PM. Phil will work this tournament as the emcee for the event, letting the fans and players in on the action as it goes along. A second tournament will start later in the day, the "High Roller" tournament, which will be a $1000 buy in tournament with rebuys (and an optional $500 add on at the break) and players in this event will actually be able to square off on the felt against Hellmuth himself and another former World Champion, Jim Bechtel. This will all lead up to the exciting conclusion of the day of poker with Phil.

Wrapping up the "Playin' The Hand" Charity Poker Tournament For Fallen Officers will be the "Tournament of Champions". Taking the final three players from the $200 tournament and the top three players from the $1000 event, they will play down to a champion who will walk away with the biggest prize of the day; a seat at the Main Event for the 2007 World Series of Poker.

Hellmuth is one of the professionals in the poker world who has attempted to use poker as a charitable outlet. In 2005, a charitable tournament he wanted to hold in Texas to benefit breast cancer research was shut down by local authorities, but this hasn't dampened his desire to help people in all walks of life. He has held other charitable events (both live and online) and is ready to help out the TASER Foundation as well. "Since 9/11, the work of the TASER Foundation has touched my heart. Thus, I am waiving any fees I would normally ask for and am looking forward to attending the event and helping in any way I can," Phil stated on his blog.

Seats are limited for the event, so players wanting to participate in the tournament are encouraged to pre-register for the event. It will be an excellent opportunity to pay tribute to those men and women who defend us on the streets of America and enjoy some poker as well. To learn more about the tournament, and to learn more about the excellent work of the TASER Foundation for Fallen Officers, be sure to look up the tournament's website at taserfoundation.org/playinthehand/main.html.

November 21, 2006
Earl Burton