While winning money never hurts, the payout for the best hand at most poker runs barely covers fuel costs, much less weekend expenses, for a lot of poker-run enthusiasts, especially those with big, gasoline-hungry power in their high-performance catamarans and V-bottoms. There are exceptions, of course, and one of them is the upcoming Performance Boat Club of Canada’s Sarnia Bay Splash Charity Poker Run July 20-22, which will pay out $5,000 to the participant with the best hand.

The event is returning to the PBCC roster after being cancelled last year because of delayed marina infrastructure construction.

The Canadian organziers of the Sarnia Bay Splash are hoping to attract a healthy fleet of U.S.-based performance boats to the event as well PBCC regulars. Photo courtesy Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.

The event is open to residents of the United States and Canada, and Meghan Brousseau, the president of the nonprofit fundraising club, is encouraging performance-boat owners from the U.S. to sign up.

“It’s easy for U.S. boats to attend but they do have to have a passport and insurance,” said Brousseau.

Proceeds of the event, which is sponsored by Concord Hardware, will go to benefit the Noelle’s Gift charity for children and St. Joseph’s Hospice of Sarnia. Festivities kick off Friday night with a barbecue in the Sarnia Bay Marina Pavilion.

Running in U.S. and Canadian waters on Saturday, the poker run fleet will travel on a course that includes portions of the St. Clair River and Detroit River. The day will include a lunch stop at the Waterfront Grill in Ontario, Canada, followed by an optional raft-up in Bright’s Grove. From there, the boats will return to Sarnia Bay Marina for the awards dinner and fundraising auction.

Interested participants can click here to register. Slips can be reserved at Sarnia Bay Marina (519-332-0533). Rooms at the Guildwood Inn, the host hotel, also are still available (647-448-3448). Participants should mention the Performance Club of Canada when book either slips or lodging.

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