- O’Connell beats state Sen. Heidi Campbell, among others, in the tournament.
- Mayor designates $5,200 in donations for the Nashville State Community College.
Ya might have caught him DJing a 10-minute hip-hop set on New Year’s Eve.
You definitely saw him beat out 14 challengers for mayor last year.
Now, it seems like Freddie O’Connell can do it all — he beat out 69 others earlier this month in the Nashville Poker Challenge, an annual charity fundraiser affiliated with The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.
But O’Connell’s not saying how he won, choosing to keep his cards close to his chest.
Do you bluff well? a reporter asked recently.
“No comment,” the mayor said.
The truth is, lady luck abandoned O’Connell at first at the Feb. 4 game at Fat Bottom Brewing, where 70 people bought in for $100 each. He got knocked out in the first round.
But, since it’s a fundraiser, players are encouraged to buy back in for another $100, and O’Connell did so and never looked back, organizer Bob Bernstein of Bongo Java said.
“He played like he ran his campaign,” Bernstein said, “aggressive and smart.”
For a time, O’Connell shared a table with state Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville, one of the people he beat out last year to become mayor.
Campbell won one of the hands at that table, Bernstein said, causing Campbell to quip that at least she beat O’Connell in something.
In all, the tournament raised about $12,000 for Nashville charities in the fourth annual tournament, sponsored by Bongo Java and MAFIAoZas, Bernstein said.
And the mayor won some new fans, as he mostly kept his cell phone in his pocket and engaged with fellow players on serious and not-so-serious topics during the seven-hour tournament.
Reach Brad Schmitt at brad@tennessean.com or 615-259-8384.
