Who says superheroes always have to wear capes? Of course, the ones in the movies wear the costumes suitable for their characters, but here, I’m talking about everyday superheroes who go above and beyond to help those in need in their very own community.
There are so many stories of good-hearted people that go around; these people help reinvigorate our faith in humanity, that’s for sure! So, today, adding to that list of good-willed people doing good things for those less fortunate, we’re sharing the story of Scott Wellenbach.
Scott is a Buddhist poker player and he hails from Canada. Now, you may be thinking that it’s incredibly weird to pair a Buddhist with poker-playing, right? But, it’s completely normal and poker happens to be one of Scott’s favorite hobbies. The 67-year-old learned how to play when he was a lot younger, but he really got into the game after he visited Las Vegas back in 2010.
Now, let’s get into the reason that Scott is being labeled “the people’s hero.” After winning an online poker tournament, Scott was sent to the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure tournament which was being held in the Bahamas. Sounds about ideal right? An avid poker player going out to the beautiful Caribbean to just play some more poker? One would think that life doesn’t get any better than this, but it does—it did for Scott!
Scott managed to place third in this tournament in the Bahamas; he walked away with $671,240. That’s a lot of cash! It’s reported that before this win, the man’s biggest earning (through poker) was $72,176. According to the BBC, Scott is slightly disappointed with placing in third. When asked to comment on his experience, he told the news outlet: “I have a lot to learn about how to play poker at this level, with these guys who are so, so good.”
A lot of people may frown upon the fact that Scott is a practicing Buddhist, who meditates for an hour a day but still indulges in poker. But, the man isn’t doing anything wrong with the money he’s winning, nor is he indulging to the point that he is losing control over his habit. Till date, Scott has donated all his winnings to charity—this means he is giving all of the $671,240 away for a good cause, without keeping a penny; this reason is why everyone is hailing him as a hero. I don’t blame them!
When Scott isn’t playing poker or meditating, he is busy working as a translator of Sanskrit Buddhist and Tibetan texts for a religious charity.
Learn more about Scott and his life in the quick video below!
How can you not love this guy? Scott Wellenbach explains why he will be giving all of his winnings away. Watch that and then check our live #PCA updates as Wellenbach continues to compete for $1.5 million.
Updates: https://t.co/kuymOUG1Mf pic.twitter.com/S3WA9YFPkT
— PokerStarsBlog (@PokerStarsBlog) January 16, 2019
