A benefit poker tournament for ladies held over the weekend will help a local woman and her family pay for medical bills.

The Texas Hold 'Em tournament held at Tooele's Moose Lodge Saturday evening raised $700 to help pay for Trish McArthur's hospital stay.

McArthur, 24, underwent neck surgery for a physical disability on July 3 but experienced severe complications, including temporary paralysis and an obstructed airway, according to Steve Bevan, one of the organizers of the poker tournament. She has been at the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City ever since.

Moose Lodge administrator Alex Mondragon said that it was a ladies-only poker game "because the women said so." Despite that, a few men snuck in to play some hands.

Christmas icicle lights hung from the lodge's banquet room ceiling as 16 women -- including several novices -- played poker to help their friend.

"It's gambling for a good cause," Mondragon said.

Each woman paid an entrance fee and played for first-, second- and third-prize slots. A raffle was also held where the players could buy tickets to enter. Some of the prizes included purses, bath essentials, a poker chip set and a crock pot.

Maegan Rollie took home the first prize, a $100 gift card to Wal-Mart. Brianna Buckley walked away with a gift basket for her second-place finish and Candice Shepherd won two free dinners at the lodge for coming in third.

"Everyone seemed to be happy and enjoy themselves," said Bevan, one of the only men in attendance, whose wife Jolene also helped organize the event.

Although some women had never played the game before, the dealers and other, more-experienced players taught them to play as they went along.

The game lasted from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., and the tournament wasn't over "until the last chip was played," Mondragon said.

Many of the players heard about the tournament through word-of-mouth and advertisements.

"It was very successful," Bevan said. "It was a very good cause for the McArthurs."

Trish McArthur is the daughter of Diane and Matt McArthur, of Erda, who are both members of the Tooele Moose Lodge. The lodge also raised $20,000 for Trish with a September golf tournament, according to Bevan.

missy@tooeletranscript.com