Tiffany Michelle spent the past three years as part of the large contingent of poker media covering the World Series of Poker. Only this year she decided to get into the game.
Michelle didn't achieve her goal of becoming the first woman to ever win the World Series of Poker's main event, the $10,000 buy-in No Limit Texas Hold'em World championship at the Rio. But the 24-year-old aspiring actress from Los Angeles still made poker history on Monday.
Michelle got eliminated in 17th place, winning $334,534, which is the most money a woman has ever won in what is considered poker's signature event.
Michelle started Monday in third place in the chip count and the only woman out of the field's remaining 27 players. Contenders were vying for one of nine seats at the main event's final table, which will be played in November at the Rio. The winner will take home US9.12 million. Michelle said a sponsor paid her US 10,000 entry fee.
Michelle is well-known on the poker circuit. She worked as a media representative covering the tournament for various outlets. Last year, Michelle was the on-camera poker hostess for PokerNews.com, interviewing players.
As an actress, her most recent role this year was as a ballgirl in "Semi-Pro," a movie about the American Basketball Association that starred Will Ferrell.
The 2008 World Series of Poker is officially the largest and richest in the tournament's 39 years. A record 58,720 entries, an 8 percent increase from 2007, were taken for the 55-event, 47-day poker tournament at the Rio. The total prize pool was a record $180.7 million, a US 20.8 million increase from a year ago.
Players of the final table will return to the Rio on Nov. 9 and pare down to the final two players, who will play head-to-head starting late Nov. 10. The winner will be determined in the early morning hours of Nov. 11, and ESPN will broadcast the final table in a two-hour special that evening.
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