Dan Smith Helps Raise a Whopping $1.7M for Charity

In November 2016, Dan Smith announced his annual charity drive which this year he hoped would raise $350,000 for a range of good causes close to his heart. The idea was that he would match any total donations up to $175,000, but after two months the poker pro has exceeded all expectations with the final tally coming in at an astounding $1.7 million.
Furthermore, it took just 134 people to raise the whopping amount, and amongst the generous donors was one unnamed person who made good on his pledge to contribute an additional $125,000 to the drive after it reached $175,000. As a result, that extra money was directly funnelled to three charities in particular, namely 350.org, Against Malaria and Give Directly.
Yet more huge donations were also made by DFS pros Martin and Tom Crowley, who stumped up a further $1.025 million between them to boost Dan Smith’s second annual charity drive to $1.7 million. Commenting on the DFS brother’s significant contribution to charity, Smith stated:
“The limited details I know of their story are amazing: two guys who plan on making a huge difference in the world by doing the thing they are the best at: fantasy sports. I can’t say enough great things about these two guys who really epitomize the effective altruism movement.”
Elaborating further on the altruism movement, Tom Crowley, a former professional poker player, explained that it involved using rational reasoning to decide the most efficient ways in which to create the greatest positive impact on the world. Dan Smith also added that there was no stigma attached to making any donations public, as he said this in turn would help encourage others to make donations of their own.
This year’s hugely successful charity drive follow’s last year’s effort which saw Smith raise $140,000 for his favorite good causes, with the 27 year-old pro putting up half that amount himself.