Well, the great Mike Sexton is gone by buddy, by partner, with an exceptional human being you were, and are. What a father to tie and all your family members will not be the same without you. We love you, Mike. Rest in peace, brother. MUSIC Mike was born September 22, 1947 in Shelbyville, Indiana. A midwestern boy to his corps, Mike grew up in Dayton, Ohio, and attended the Ohio State University, where he earned a degree in public recreation, competed in gymnastics, and became a die hard, Buck Eys fan. In 1970, Mike joined the US Army and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division as a paratrooper. While in the Army, Mike not only served his country, but also taught ballroom dancing. A strong lead on the dance floor, Mike brought joy and energy whenever he broke out his impressive ballroom skills. After his enlistment ended, Mike first found work as a salesman. His true calling came, though, when he discovered how well he could do at playing poker, and he took up that game professionally in 1977. In 1985, Mike's love of the game inevitably brought him to Las Vegas. Just four years later, in 1989, he won the coveted World Series of Poker Bracelet in the $1,500 Seven Card stud event. In 1998, long before the poker craze that grew into today's industry, Mike took a page from the PGA and masterminded the WSOP invitation only turn of it at champions, featuring Poker Zoleen, one of his proudest achievements. In 2001, Mike became an original co-founder of Party Poker, and Enterprise of this stood the test of time, and remains one of the top online poker sites in the world today. A year later, Mike started his career with the World Poker Tour. Welcome to the debut of the World Poker Tour. With his can-do spirit, Mike was more than a commentator, playing a major role in convincing casinos to take a chance on the newly formed WPT. We have a sensational group of six pilots for you here today, what a great way to start the season on the World Poker Tour. The World Poker Tour premiered with the WPT-5 Diamond World Poker Classic of the Belagio. The game is no limit holder. It's a game that takes a minute to learn and a lifetime to master. Mike and fellow commentator Vince Van Patten changed the Poker World forever with their patented blend of friendly banter and deep poker knowledge. Ever fall's right rivers doesn't get some health here, Van T's going over the falls in a barrel. This unlikely partnership would grow into a deep friendship, founded on respect, admiration and affection. In 2005, Mike published his first book, Shuffle Up and Deal. In 2006, Mike masterfully won the WSOP Tournament of Champions for $1 million, defeating the two-time WPT champion Daniel LeGron, who heads up. Trudeau is giving major, he donated half of his $1 million purse to charity, including the Bonacante fund to cure paralysis, a cause he continued to generously support for many years. Similarly, along with Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher and Lisa Tenor, Mike created PokerGives.org, a nonprofit organization providing poker players a dedicated platform for philanthropy. I've been interviewed many times during my career, and one question a lot of times I ask is, who do you think is the most respected person, or who do you like most as a poker player? And my answer is always the same, Mike Sixth. He is the man. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. In 2008, Mike received the greatest gift of all, his son Ty. Mike's love for Ty brought a new and meaningful dimension to his life. As a devoted father, Mike loved sharing Ty on at baseball games and proudly shared photos at the table of Ty and their treasured moments together. Ty was truly his world. Later that year, Mike reached a career milestone when he was inducted as the 39th member of the Poker Hall of Fame. In 2016, Mike published Life's a Gamble, a poker autobiography spanning his four decades in the defining game of his life. In November of the same year, Mike with the ladies? Yes, I call. Mike reached his third of four WPT final tables and won WPT Montreal main event. Dush and diamonds, it's over! He's got it! Bust and the field are 648 entries to win nearly $318,000 and making him officially a WPT champion. Let's hear one more time for the great Mike Sexton. Unsurprisingly, he gave his championship belt to Ty. The 15 career caches and WPT tournaments totaling nearly $1 million. Mike has ranked 216th overall in WPT earnings and 39th in WPT final table appearances. In total, Mike amassed more than $6.7 million in live tournament winnings. In 2017, after 15 landmark seasons for the world poker tour, Mike left to rejoin party poker as their chairman, closing out a career with WPT that remains a huge part of his legacy in the industry. So let's shuffle up and deal! That same year, Mike was named a recipient of the WPT Honors. I'm extremely humbled with honor in receiving this award. The WPT's highest distinction awarded to members of the poker industry in celebration and appreciation of exceptional contributions made to the world poker tour and the poker community as a whole. In July, the WPT renamed its iconic WPT Champions Cup the Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup in honor of Mike's unparalleled influence on the organization and the poker world. To his friends, Mike was known as a humble man and a kind and generous soul. Never without a smile on his face and always game for a new adventure, Mike was never too busy to share a laugh, stop, take a picture with a fan or a fact to which many of his friends can attest. Take your money on the golf course. They might only bet $1 or $2 or blunts or beers, but everybody gambles on the golf board, that's the point of it. And Mike was a storyteller, extraordinary. There was nothing he loved more than joyfully regaling eager listeners with boisterous tales from his days coming up in poker. When he was seated at the table with legends like his good friends, Doyle Brunson, Amarillo Slim, Puggy Person, Chip Reese, and Stu Unger at whose funeral Mike spoke and served his Paul Bear. A large of the life personality whose infectious energy enthusiasm and pure love of the game bulged you over when he entered the room. Mike leaves an outsized legacy on and profound hole in the poker world. Everybody who was lucky enough to know Mike will always remember him fondly as a dupland once and forever, first ambassador of poker. One thing that we know is this industry, this wonderful thing that has brought us all together. We're only gonna experience it for so much time. Soon, we'll be gone, we will stop. We'll get older, we'll not be there. Next generation will come and the fact that we can come together celebrate those wonderful people. Like Mike, who have made so much of the contribution, that we can stop and just say, by the grace of God, we had a moment that we all came together and we will never stop appreciate, just how wonderful that together we made each other feel. You next time, you will hear our say-law and your father-in-law,áson