The 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event winner, Jamie Gold is selling his championship bracelet for reasons best known to him. A Championship bracelet is the most precious possession for any poker player in the world and yet the former champion is ready to give it away. Along with the bracelet, a custom made watch which Gold received after his victory is also to be auctioned. The auction will start from July 13th and the famous ‘Heritage Auctions’ will put these items along with some more on auction.
The pictures of bracelet released by the Auction house shows that the bracelet is in good condition. Also for a seven years old, the wear and tear is negligible. It obviously proves that Jamie Gold has worn the bracelet many a times. The watch to be auctioned with the bracelet is more of a collector’s item. It is very tacky, and the colors on the dial are very loud.
The physical styling of the bracelet as described by the auction is as follows:
‘The bracelet features 259 stones including over seven carats of diamonds and 120 grams of white and yellow gold. Rubies are inset to create the red of the heart and diamond suits, while a sapphire represents the spade and three black diamonds the club. The clasp is stamped “14k” ‘.
In 2006, when Gold grabbed the championship, he received $12 million in prize money which is the highest amount any player has received after winning the WSOP Main event. His decision to auction his bracelet is not the first incident when a player has decided to give up this precious trophy. Earlier in 2010, poker pro Peter Eastgate has auctioned his WSOP bracelet on eBay and donated the money received to UNICEF. And earlier in April this year, Jerry Yang’s bracelet was auctioned by IRS in lieu of some derelict tax bills.