News / nono / 09 June 2008 / Leave a comment

The winner was Jimmy Shultz who is originally from Charleston, SC. He now lives in Columbus, OH. Shultz is a 37-year-old mortgage broker who by his own admission is enduring some tough times. He is a part-time poker player.

Shultz collected $257,936 for first place. He also earned his first WSOP gold bracelet. This was Schultz's first time ever to play in a WSOP event.

The champion stated that he will donate 25 percent of his tournament win to a special fund set up for firefighters in the Charleston Fire Department. Throughout the tournament, Shultz wore a CFD hat and shirt in honor of a few friends who died tragically while on duty last year.

Shultz was emotionally moved by his victory. He had several poignant comments about the victory:

This is a dream come true.

This is my second visit to the World Series of Poker. I came here two years ago. I wanted to play in the Six-Handed event (in 2006). I played some satellites but I could not get in. Now, here I am today.

(The firemen) suffered a tragic accident back in June of 2007. This is near a year to the day of the tragedy. All of them perished. In their remembrance and to honor my community, I wear all of their t-shirts and hats all week.

Louis Murkey (who died) was a friend of mine. He played poker with me. I have known him for about five years....I am one-hundred percent privileged to do (make the donation) for Louis and for the other folks and all their families. I can't wait to get back home because this was all for them...This was for a lot of other people rather than just me.

It's not about me. It's all about them. I said that coming in. I prayed about it and I am just thrilled to death that I can do something for my community to make it a little bit better for those folks in Charleston County.

The runner up, Zac played a heck of a tournament. He's a wonderful player. I give him a lot of credit. I was worried about him the most.

Shultz stated that he was never all-in once during the entire tournament.