 Name: Barry Greenstein Date of Birth: 30/12/1954 Place of Birth: Chicago Profile
What do you do to celebrate when you win $1,278,370 and outlast more than 367 superior poker players over four days, to emerge victorious in one of the top tournaments on the WORLD POKER TOUR? Take a European vacation? Buy a Lamborghini? Invest in mutual funds? Not if you’re Barry Greenstein. The winner of the The 2004 Jack Binion World Poker Open, held at the Horseshoe Casino Hotel and the Gold Strike Casino in Tunica, Mississippi, is donating all of his $1.2 million first prize to charities. And this isn’t the first time he’s contributed his million-dollar winnings!Greenstein, of Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, is a high-limit cash game pro who is one of the most successful players in the world. While he’s played only a limited number of tournaments annually until recently, Greenstein has stepped up his tournament play with the advent of the World Poker Tour and the increase in visibility for tournament poker. He’s won more than $1 million in tournament prize money each of the last two years.Greenstein, 49, began playing at the age of four with his family and then graduated to playing for money at 13 with friends. He played poker through his high school and college years, graduating from the University of Illinois in computer science and then spent 10 years in the PhD program in mathematics.Greenstein became an initial employee of the enormously successful software company Symantec, but left to play poker because he could make more money and control his own fate. So successful has he been, that Greenstein no longer feels compelled to play cash games. He now limits most of his play to tournaments. “I compete in the World Poker Tour to attract attention for my favorite charities, and encourage others to give,“ says Greenstein.Greenstein has made it a mission to donate every penny of his tournament wins to various charities. His favorite charity is “Children, Incorporated,” a child sponsorship program which is affiliated with schools, orphanages, and welfare centers around the world and in the United States, helping to provide food, clothing, and educational needs to children deep in poverty. The $600,000 from Tunica will be committed to rebuilding shelters and supporting disaster relief programs for children in countries around the world.The other half will be divided among a number of other programs, including “Guyana Watch,” which flies doctors to the remote nation to perform surgeries.Greenstein will cover the cost of key medications and help personally direct the effort on site. That donation is a result of a reciprocal commitment with Guyanian poker player, Victor Ramdin, who donated to “Children, Incorporated” when he did well in a tournament. Greenstein is returning the favor. | |
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