Footage of Daniel Colman’s victory in the One Drop, which aired on ESPN on August 31, has become an overnight social media sensation, mainly because no one can quite figure out why anyone could look quite so po-faced at the very moment they win $15.3 million.
Colman sailed to victory in the second richest poker tournament in the history of the game, outlasting 42 of the world’s best players and foolhardy businessmen, and defeating Daniel Negreanu heads-up in the final.
Having secured fame, a bracelet and unimaginable wealth, you might expect a natural flood of elation. And yet, instead of fist-pumps and knee-trembling euphoria, our hero looks distinctly underwhelmed.
Reluctant Hero
In fact, the moment of victory appears to come as a minor inconvenience to Colman, who displays a reaction befitting someone who has just been told that they’ve run out of parsley at the local supermarket. As the camera focuses in on his face, you can almost hear him thinking, “I wonder if I can get away with using the dried stuff.”
When you consider that, after tax, that 15.3 million equates to around $9 million, then, if the rumors are correct, he may have “only” taken a circa $900,000 payday.
Of course, as we reported at the time, Colman clearly isn’t into the fame game and has no interest in the kudos derived from winning the One Drop. While his garrulous opponent, Negreanu, spent 30 minutes dutifully talking to reporters, Colman swept out of the room, refusing all interviews after briefly and reluctantly posing with the bracelet and pile of cash. Later, he took to the 2+2 forums to partially explain himself.
“First off, I don’t owe poker a single thing,” said Colman. “I’ve been fortunate enough to benefit financially from this game, but I have played it long enough to see the ugly side of this world … I capitalize off this game that targets people’s weaknesses. I do enjoy it, I love the strategy part of it, but I do see it as a very dark game.”
How Much Did Colman Pocket?
To put his reaction into perspective, there are suggestions that the 23-year-old Bostonian, who made his name playing high-stakes heads up sit and gos, may have only had around 10 percent of himself in the tournament. When you consider that, after tax, that 15.3 million equates to around $9 million, then, if the rumors are correct, he may have “only” taken a circa $900,000 payday.
Colman is unconcerned with promoting poker, but he’s also completely uninterested in promoting himself, which is laudable when you consider the amount sponsorship dollars that might be available to a more “media friendly” One Drop winner, and we praise him for the strength of his convictions.
But with the footage now going viral across social media, and even being picked up by the mainstream press, he has become something of a curiosity, and we suspect that this was not what the shy and retiring Daniel Colman had planned.
