Brad Daugherty at Cebu's recent All In Anniversary tournament Along with the news that Brad Daugherty is again trying to sell his 1991 WSOP Main Event gold bracelet on eBay the poker community naturally wondered why. Poker Portal Asia contacted the former WSOP Champion directly to put rest to the speculations.
Daugherty says he first thought about selling his bracelet when he saw Peter Eastgate put his up for auction. “It got me thinking when I saw that Peter Eastgate’s bracelet sell for about USD $150,000 for charity. My bracelet has just been sitting in a safety deposit box for all of these years, just occasionally taking it out to wear to a tournament. Since it has such a high value, I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing it around anymore.”
In December 2010, Daugherty’s first attempt to auction the bracelet came up short. It has been reported that it only reached a highest bid of USD $15,000 at the time but he pointed out to us that this was incorrect: “In December it went to USD $30,000, not USD $15,000. But it never reached the reserve that I put on it – why would I give it away?”
Now residing in the Philippines, Daugherty explained that wanting to help out the region’s less fortunate was the reason behind selling his bracelet, saying, “As anyone that has been here knows, there are lots of homeless kids and people living in poverty. I am always helping kids and families that I see in need. I thought, why not just auction the bracelet off and use it where it could do some good, rather than just let it sit in the US in a safe deposit box.”
He added, “I have heard a lot of stories where a very small amount of the money donated to charities actually reaches those in need. Since I am living over here, I will be able to control where any charity goes from the sale of my bracelet.”
With four days left in the auction, it currently has a highest bid of USD $11,000.
UPDATE (July 11, 2011): Daugherty’s bracelet again failed to meet the hidden reserve price he set for it on eBay. The highest bid it attracted this time was $28,100.
