Two-time World Series of Poker Circuit ring winner Joe Rice appeared on ESPN this week after a shirtless celebration over a year's worth of free beer.
Rice, who won the Main Event at the 2022 Turning Stone stop, was at the MVP Arena in Albany, New York for his son's basketball game prior to the Siena-Saint Peters matchup on Thursday night.
The New York grinder made a layup, a free throw, and two three-pointers after he was chosen for a half-time shooting contest during the evening Division 1 matchup. Rice did it without missing a shot and won a 30-pack of Miller Lite every month for the next year.
Shirtless celebration makes ESPN
What followed was a shirtless celebration that landed the two-time Circuit champ on ESPN:
“I got caught up in the moment,” Rice told the Times Union. “I’m a super-competitive person. Like all my friends, we used to have a thing called AMBO — Annual Male Beer Olympics — and every time I won an event, I ripped my shirt off. I had a couple of beers last night, too. It’s like when you get caught up in the heat of the moment, you kind of get excited.”
Deeb, Lonis react
Rice was quickly recognized by some of his fellow New York poker players on Twitter/X, starting with Shaun Deeb.
"Haha one of my buddies won [Turning Stone] circuit year before me from rivers he’s a sneaky good athlete that beer won’t go to waste[sic]," Deeb said in a post on Friday night.
Jesse Lonis also gave Rice his flowers on social media, shouting out the "friend I grew up playing cash games with in NY."
Photo courtesy of WSOP
