Allen Cunningham is one of today’s most successful professional poker players, having earned a grand total of nearly $10,000,000 as of 2007 playing poker. A member of Team Full Tilt, Allen Cunningham holds 5 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Bracelets and was named the 2005 ESPN/Toyota Player of the Year. His poker play can be characterized by an unwavering calmness - no matter what is happening to him, or around him, Allen Cunningham remains cool and composed at all times.

Born March 28, 1977 in Riverside, California, Allen grew up playing poker with friends and family at the kitchen table, but held aspirations of becoming an engineer. He attended UCLA where he studied civil engineering, but between his studies, he would travel to Indian casinos to play poker. This activity was not only a fun diversion from his consuming education, but a profitable one at that.

Cunningham eventually dropped out of college to pursue a professional career playing poker. Though he got off to a relatively slow start, the decision has served him well. Allen Cunningham is to date one of the most profiteering poker players of our time. At a mere 30 years of age, Cunningham has cashed in more than 110 major poker events earning in excess of $9,600,000.

Allen Cunningham and the WSOP
Allen got his first cash reward from the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in 1998. Though it wasn’t a spectacular win - those would come later - Cunningham proudly earned 25th place in a Pot Limit Holdem event for $2,748. In the 1999, Allen cashed again in the same event, but this time finishing in 15th place for $5,115.

The 2000 WSOP is where Allen’s true talents came bursting through, cashing an incredible 5 times. The first 4 cashes paled in comparison to the 5th however, taking 17th in Event #3, 13th in Event #10, 10th in Event #14 and 15th in Event #19 for a total of about $18,000. The fifth cash came as a 2nd place Limit Omaha Hi-Lo victory for $113, 850 - Allen’s biggest career purse up to this point.

Allen Cunningham found himself taking another 4 purses home in the 2001 WSOP, one of which came with the coveted WSOP Bracelet for taking down Event #21, Limit 7 Card Stud. Cunningham pocketed $201,760 for the 1st place win.

As the 2002 WSOP came along, Allen Cunningham was ready once again, claiming yet another 5 cashes throughout the event, and his second WSOP Bracelet. In Event #32, No Limit Deuce to Seven Lowball, Cunningham skillfully knocked out his opponents, one by one, to earn the bracelet and $160,200, in addition to the $30,240 he had earned in the previous weeks of the tournament.

Cunningham cashed twice again in the 2003 WSOP, earning about $145,000, but did not take home a bracelet that year. His next WSOP winnings did not come until 2005, when Allen Cunningham claimed his 3rd WSOP Bracelet, placing in the money 5 times. His first victory came in Event #2, No Limit Holdem, fighting his way through the field to take 1st place and an impressive prize of $725,405. While the following 4 cashes did not win Allen a bracelet or championship, they did earn a cumulatively remarkable $371,575, totaling more than $1 million over the duration of the 2005 WSOP. His spectacular performance earned him the title 2005 ESPN/Toyota Player of the Year.

In 2006, Allen Cunningham truly made his mark on the poker circuit, cashing a striking 6 times for more than $4,000,000 in winnings - oh, and another WSOP Bracelet of course! Allen was awarded the bracelet for taking Event #14, No Limit Holdem, worth $625,830, but that wasn’t the highlight of his year. That came one month later at the No Limit Holdem Championship WSOP Main Event final table, as Allen’s stunning abilities earned him a 4th place overall finish, worth a whopping $3,628,513. That win remains the largest single-cash prize of Allen Cunningham’s his career.

Cunningham earned his 5th WSOP Bracelet in the 2007 WSOP, triumphing in the Pot Limit Holdem World Championship for nearly half of a million dollars. Three more cashes were to follow in the coming weeks of the WSOP, totaling about $38,000.

His 2007 victory at the WSOP has put Allen Cunningham on a short list of professional poker players who have earned WSOP bracelets 3 years in a row; Gary Berland, Doyle Brunson, Johnny Moss and Erik Seidel. Even Phil Hellmuth, who currently holds the record for most WSOP bracelets with 11, has not accomplished this amazing feat.

Allen Cunningham and the WPT
When the first season of the World Poker Tour (WPT) kicked off in 2003, Allen Cunningham was right there to get in on the action. His first purse came in the Euro Finals of Poker Main Event, making the final table to end in 3rd position with $104,850. A 5th place Pot Limit Holdem event at the LA Poker Classic gained Allen another $6,600, followed by a 13th place No Limit Holdem cash of $26,664 at the Five-Star World Poker Classic.

Having seen notable success at the first season, Allen was back on board as the second season of the WPT got underway. Cunningham finished in the money 5 times, including two major victories. The first was a 2nd place win at Five Diamond No Limit Holdem, worth $131,575. The second was in April of 2004, earning 1st place in the Five-Star World Poker Classic No Limit Holdem Event #8, earning another $111,494.

Allen Cunningham broke the mold in WPT Season 3, achieving an incredible 11 cashes for a grand total of $170,481. Though the 2005/2006 WPT Season 4 did not reveal nearly as many purses for Allen, the 4 purses he won were much heavier. The World Poker Finals on November 18, 2005 were generous to Allen, taking 4th position for $483,000.

Mike Matusow is a professional poker player who is best known throughout the poker circuit for three things; his sensational talent for playing poker, his loud-mouth trash-talking at the tables - earning him the nickname “The Mouth” - and his uncanny ability to lose everything with a single bad decision. Matusow is so well known for this last attribute that it has been deemed the “Mike Matusow Meltdown”, or “Mike Matusow Blow-Up”.

Born April 30, 1968 in Los Angeles, California, Mike had a hard time in school, being favored by bullies throughout his education. Mike chose not to attend college, but rather to work as an auto mechanic. That fell through when Matusow failed to complete the required schooling. He ended up working at his father’s furniture store instead.

Mike Matusow did not start playing poker until the early 1990’s. His first experience with poker was at the age of 18, playing a Video Poker machine in Maxim Casino. Mike played so often that he actually suffered a repetitive strain injury in both his arms and shoulders. Mike has admitted to stealing money from his mother’s purse to continue playing Video Poker and, at one point, even attended Gamblers Anonymous meetings.

Perhaps it was luck, or even inevitability, that granted Mike a job as a poker dealer, having spent a considerable amount of time in the casinos already. Employed at Sam’s Town Hotel and Gambling Hall in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mike began playing in poker tournaments with the help of an older player who would often stake him in the tournament. Matusow frequently won, or at least cashed in the tournament, but would immediately blow his winnings on sports betting or casino gambling. Even so, his friend would continue to stake him in poker tournaments.

Now that Mike Matusow has achieved both fame and fortune in the poker circuit, he claims he is always willing to help a poker player in need of a stake. Mike firmly attests that his professional career would not be what it is today without the help he received from his backer.

With two World Series of Poker (WSOP) Bracelets under his belt, more than 50 cashes and nine 1st place victories, Mike Matusow has played in poker tournaments all across the globe, earning him a grand total, as of 2007, very near the six million dollar mark ($5,939,921).

Mike Matusow and the WSOP
Mike Matusow’s major poker tournament career began with the 1997 World Series of Poker, where he finished in 2nd place at Event #8, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo, to pocket a purse of $81,700. Just two years later, Mike whittled his way through the field at Event #11, No-Limit Holdem, to earn his first WSOP Bracelet on May 6, 1999, along with a lucrative prize of $265,475. Three days later, Matusow cashed again as the 5th place winner of Event #15, Pot Limit Omaha, for $16,405.

Matusow cashed twice more in the 2000 WSOP, earning a little more than $16,500. Mike followed that up with a 6th place triumph in the 2001 WSOP World Championship Event #27, No Limit Holdem, for another high takedown of $239,765.

The 2002 WSOP saw Mike Matusow awarded his second WSOP Bracelet for a 1st place victory in Event #29, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo, worth $148,520 in cash.

The next year, Matusow took home 3 cashes worth nearly $74,000 combined in the 2003 WSOP. Mike repeated his 3-cash wins in the 2004 WSOP, earning just over $100,000. The 2005 WSOP revealed Mike Matusow’s highest single-cash winnings to date with a 9th place finish at the WSOP World Championship Main Event, worth $1,000,000 in cold hard cash. That same year, only 4 months later, Mike Matusow won yet another $1,000,000 for being the last man standing - er, sitting - at the WSOP Circuit Tournament of Champions.

In 2006, Mike went back to his typical average of 3 cashes, again earning near to $100,000. In 2007, you guessed it, Mike Matusow cashed in three events, finishing 11th in Event #19, 15th in #36 and 16th in #39, pocketing a total of $125,369.

Mike Matusow and the LA Poker Classic / WPT
Mike Matusow was playing successfully in the LA Poker Classic long before it was added to the World Poker Tour (WPT) Season 1 in 2003. Mike’s first LA Poker Classic cash prize came five years prior in 1998 with a mere $960 for finishing in 9th place in an Omaha Hi-Lo event. Ten days later, Mike finished 4th in the Limit Holdem competition for $4,620.

In 2001, Matusow worked his way into the 7th position in the LA Poker Classic Main Event, claiming a purse of $15,150. The 2002 LA Poker Classic saw Matusow taking another relatively small cash of $6,900 for a 4h place finish in Limit Omaha Hi-Lo.

As the February 2003 LA Poker Classic rolled around, it became an official stop on the World Poker Tour Season 1. Mike Matusow received a minimal cash for an 18th place finish in No Limit Holdem, earning $1,530. Two months later, Matusow racked up a 7th place cash of $5,856 in the Five-Star World Poker Classic Limit Omaha H-Lo event.

In it’s second season, Mike pocketed two cashes, including a 15th place finish at the Five-Star WPT Main Event, worth $83,165.

Season 3 of the WPT saw Mike Matusow earning his third largest WPT career cash of $250,000 for a 3rd place No Limit Holdem victory in the 2004 Aruba Poker Classic. Mike received 4 more cashes, but none at the final tables, over the 2006 and 2007 WPT.

Mike earned his largest WPT cash to date at the Bellagio Cup III, WPT No Limit Holdem Championship, after going heads-up at the final table with Kevin Saul to finish in 2nd place with a hefty reward of $671,320. Matusow’s second largest WPT prize came a few months later in September of 2007 at the Borgata Poker Open in WPT Season 6. Mike took 6th place in the No Limit Holdem Championship for a prize of $271,600.

Mike Matusow’s Other Achievements
On January 17, 2000, Mike Matusow triumphed over his opposition to claim his first major poker tournament win at the Carnival of Poker, taking a purse of $49,275 for his skilled efforts. In December of that same year, Mike claimed his second 1st place victory in a major poker event, earning $46,800 at the U.S. Poker Championship. In March of 2007, Matusow finished 9th at the NBC National Heads-Up Championship for $25,000.

Andy Bloch is an exceptional poker player who’s made a career of cashing at major tournaments around the world. Born June 1, 1969, Andy Bloch only played poker as a pastime game for many years before turning his sights to more profitable tournament play.

In his younger years, it was Andy Bloch’s goal to enter law school. Poker was merely a way to pass the time and make a few extra dollars while working his way through college. Bloch did finish his knowledgeable goals, obtaining two degrees in electrical engineering from MIT, as well as a an impressive law degree from Harvard, but not without a few poker-related road blocks.

In 1997, Andy Bloch actually skipped the last week of law school to participate in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, where he played ‘guinea pig’ for a trial run of a low-card cam operation. This being a successful venture, Andy Bloch was featured in a two-part article of CardPlayer Magazine.

Again, in 1999, Andy Bloch put his intended law career on the back burner to pursue professional poker. Though he had only cashed in one major event up to this point, earning a mere $5,558, Andy Bloch felt this was the appropriate choice at the time - and a good choice it turned out to be!

Residing in Las Vegas, Nevada, Andy Bloch has earned more than $2,900,000 over his outstanding professional poker career, cashing well over 50 times with 8 1st place victories in major poker tournaments.

Andy Bloch and the WSOP
In the 1996 World Series of Poker, Andy Bloch made his first cash in a major poker event, finishing in Event #3 Limit 7 Card Stud to pocket $5,558. It wasn’t until May of 2000 that Andy, after putting his law career on hold, skillfully made his way back into a cashing position in the WSOP, this time taking 12th place in Event #8 No-Limit Hold’Em for a $9,505 purse.

In 2001, Andy entered the WSOP again, this time cashing twice in Events #11 (5th place) and #13 (6th place), Limit 7 Card Stud and Limit Razz respectively. Bloch earned a combined total of $26,810.

Andy Bloch virtually fell off the WSOP radar from this point until 2005, when he took 1st place in WSOP Circuit Event #4 at the Rio Las Vegas Poker Tournament. Andy was awarded $25,495 for this victory, and went on to claim a small cash of $1,625 for a 95th position finish in the 2005 WSOP Event #3, Pot Limit Hold’Em, just 3 months later.

In 2006, Andy finished in 7th place in two WSOP Circuit Events, Harrahs Rincon Poker Tournament in March and Caesars Las Vegas Poker Tournament in May, earning $51,775 and $10,000 respectively. Entering the 2007 WSOP one month later, Andy Bloch cashed at five events, including a whopping $1,029,600 for his 2nd place finish in Event #20, No-Limit H.O.R.S.E.

Andy earned another two cashes in the 2007 WSOP worth nearly $100,000 combined, but has yet to take home a WSOP Bracelet.

Andy Bloch and the WPT
Andy Bloch’s World Poker Tour (WPT) achievements started in the first season of the WPT, claiming $42,920 for a 1st place triumph in Event #16, Limit 7 Card Stud, at the World Poker Finals. Two days later, Andy earned $578 for a 12th place finish in event #18, Limit S.H.O.E. That cash paled significantly, however, to the victory Andy Bloch earned 5 days later on November 17, 2002, finishing in 3rd place at Event #19, No-Limit Hold’Em, for a prize of $102,350. Andy cashed twice more in WPT Season 1, claiming two 3rd place purses, first at the Euro Finals of Poker for $60,184, then again at the L.A. Poker Classic for $125,460.

In 2003, Bloch earned 7 cashed in the second season of the WPT, including two WPT Championship cashes at the Five-Star World Poker Classic. The next year, Andy Bloch earned 3 cashes in the WPT, the most significant being a $46,498 purse for 13th place finished in the L.A. Poker Classic, WPT Main Event of No-Limit Hold’Em.

Andy’s last WPT wins came in 2005 during the 4th season of the World Poker Tour. Neither wins were particularly significant, earning a grand total of under $20,000.

Andy Bloch and the Ultimate Poker Challenge
Andy placed for the money in the Ultimate Poker Challenge 6 times spanning the ‘04 and ‘05 seasons. In the 2004 Plaza Ultimate Poker Challenge, Andy took a 1st place prize of $13,500, followed by $1,800 for 4th place finish, and another $8,000 for finishing in 6th. All three events were No Limit Hold’Em.

The 2005 Ultimate Poker Challenge saw Andy Bloch once again earning 3 cashes, but this time he was playing with lady luck on his shoulder. On July 13th, Bloch took 7th place for $6,425. Twelve days later, Andy skillfully took down the table for a 1st place, $167,500 victory. At the Ultimate Poker Challenge No Limit Hold’Em Championship held in November, Andy worked his way into 8th place, earning a purse of $21,340.

Andy Bloch’s Other Achievements
October 1, 2004, Andy Bloch found himself the 1st place victor of the Hot Tex, No-Limit Poker tournament, awarding $102,750.

March 4, 2007 set the scene for the NBC National Heads Up Championship, a No Limit Hold’em event, where Andy Block took the 5th position for a prize of $75,000.

The Pro-Am Equalizer, broadcast on ESPN in early 2007, saw Andy Bloch going head to head with the amazing poker skills of Phil Laak. Andy’s talents eventually prevailed, sending Laak to the rails and Bloch home with the grand prize of $500,000. Bloch donated $100,000 of his Pro-Am Equalizer winnings to charity.

Andy Bloch and Full Tilt Poker
Andy Bloch is a proud member of Team Full Tilt, a group of outstanding poker players who can be found playing poker online exclusively at Full Tilt Poker. Andy Bloch stands out from the crowd of Team Full Tilt as he has made the generous decision to donate 100% of his winnings derived from the online poker room to various charity organizations.

Andy Bloch the Blackjack Player
Andy Bloch was playing Blackjack long before he began playing poker. He was featured in “The Hot Shoe”, a documentary focused on Blackjack and Blackjack players. Andy also starred in his own DVD production of “Beating Blackjack”, an instructional video that explains Blackjack card counting. Bloch was also featured in the book “Bringing Down The House”, as a member of the MIT Blackjack Team.

Cycalona ‘Clonie’ Gowen is a professional poker player known for her poise, beauty and strategic poker play. Born in Florida on November 30, 1971, but grew up in the tiny town of Kiowa in Pittsburg County, Oklahoma. Gowen’s first name, ‘Cycalona’, was inspired by a terrific storm that occurred during her birth.

At the age of fifteen, Clonie’s admirable good looks and graceful elegance won her the Miss Teen McAlester, Oklahoma pageant, shortly before her family moved to Corsicana, Texas. Gowen was an athletic teenager and member of the varsity basketball team at her high school, placing 7th in the in the state ‘high jump’ competition.

Playing poker as a profession was certainly not in Clonie Gowen’s thoughts growing up. It wasn’t until 1986 when her boyfriend’s father introduced her to the game of poker that she even realized how much talent she had for the game. While living in Dallas, Texas, Clonie found herself profitably hooked on the game of poker, making the near 3 hour drive to Shreveport, Louisiana on the weekends to play.

Clonie Gowen first gained recognition by coming in 10th place at the 2002 World Poker Tour (WPT) Season 1 Costa Rica Classic, followed by an 11th place finish in the WPT Season 2 Legends of Poker tournament. Though she has no WSOP Bracelets or championship titles in major poker circuit events, Clonie Gowen’s reputation as a professional poker player - and a beautiful one at that - has grown exceptionally.

Over her long and tenuous career, Clonie has racked up more than 20 live tournament cashes, earning in excess of $690,000 since late 2007.

Clonie Gowen and the WPT
Clonie’s professional poker career started with the 2002 WPT Season 1, cashing twice during the tour, including a 10th place finish at the Costa Rica Classic. Clonie cashed again with an 11th place win at the 2003 Legends of Poker tournament in WPT Season 2. In its 4th season, Clonie was awarded just over $14,000 for another 11th place finish at the WPT Borgata Poker Open.

Clonie Gowen earned another two cashes in the WPT Season 5. The first came as Gowen worked her way into 25th position at the WPT World Poker Finals during the No Limit Hold’em Championship, Event #12, awarding her $25,757 in November of 2006. Then again in April of 2007, Clonie finished 12th in the WPT World Poker Championship No Limit Hold’em event, worth $11,045.

Clonie Gowen and the WSOP
Clonie Gowen achieved her first WSOP cash in the 36th Annual World Series of Poker in 2005, placing in the 459th position of the WSOP World Championship to earn $14,135. Clonie cashed twice in the 2006 WSOP, earning a combined total of just over $5,000. Her efforts were doubled in the 2007 WSOP, cashing twice again, but for a total of $11,300 combined.

Clonie Gowen’s Other Poker Achievements
Until mid-2007, Clonie’s largest single-game cash was $42,285, pocketed after a 36th place finish at the Bellagio Five-Diamond World Poker Classic WPT event in 2006. However, an appearance on the NBC series ‘Poker After Dark’, as a member of Team Full Tilt, saw Clonie take down the ‘Ladies Week’ competition during the week 10, and again in week 17, both times earning a first place prize of $120,000. Clonie Gowen, along with fellow professional poker players Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey and Howard Lederer, are the only poker pros to earn two or more Poker After Dark first place victories.

A regularly featured columnist for the poker magazine ‘All In’, Clonie is also a partner in a poker school. She is on the Board of Directors for the non-profit organization ‘United States Poker Alliance’, hosting frequent charity tournaments and events.

Clonie has made numerous appearances as a guest commentator for live poker tournaments, including the 888.com Women’s Poker UK Open, Ultimate Poker Challenge and The Gaming Club World Poker Championship.

Clonie Gowen and Full Tilt Poker
As a member of Team Full Tilt, Clonie Gowen can be found playing online poker exclusively at Full Tilt Poker. The online poker room is known worldwide for it’s sponsored team of the most successful, skilled poker pros in the world. It is Clonie’s desire to help new poker players and poker enthusiasts to gain a better understanding of poker tournament play so that they too may become gifted poker professionals.

Clonie Gowen Outside The Tables
Clonie is a single mother of two children, currently residing in Dallas, Texas. Aside from playing poker, Clonie’s favorite hobbies include hiking and scuba diving. Gowen’s favorite poker game is Pot Limit Omaha. Her true ambition in life is to own a riverside cabin in the mountains.

Erik Seidel is one of the most prolific professional poker players of our time, winning 8 WSOP Bracelets, with 14 1st place tournament victories, 114 cashes and a career earning total of more than $7,000,000 as of 2007. However, Erik does not share the typical story of a professional poker player - growing up with the game and dreaming of playing high-stakes poker in Las Vegas from an early age. No, Erik has a different story.

Born and raised in New York City, young Seidel grew up with a passion for the game of Backgammon. Erik spent 8 long, successful years on the backgammon tournament circuit. After that, he decided to play the stock market, another successful venture for Erik Seidel. During his stock trading days, Erik began playing poker on the side, just for the fun of it.

Erik eventually tired of Wall Street and turned his attentions fully to poker, having realized that he was not just good at the game, he was exceptionally skilled - or amazingly lucky!

Erik Seidel and the WSOP
The World Series of Poker (WSOP) was the beginning of Erik Seidel’s fame and fortune, in regards to poker anyway. In his very first major tournament, the 1988 WSOP, Erik whittled his way through the competition to land at the final table, going heads-up against the impeccable Johnny Chan. The hand became even more famous as it was featured in the blockbuster movie ‘Rounders’. Chan eventually triumphed over Seidel to take the championship, but not before Erik took his 2nd place victory and cash prize of $280,000.

Erik Seidel cashed again at the 1991 WSOP, earning more than $100,000, but it wasn’t until April of 1992 that he claimed his first WSOP Bracelet in the Limit Hold’em Event #4, pocketing $168,000 along the way. Erik repeated his 1st place WSOP Bracelet win in the 1993 WSOP, this time in Event #3, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo, worth a $94,000 purse. Seidel went on to cash twice more in the 1993 WSOP, taking 15th place in both Events #17 and #19.

Again in the 1994 WSOP, Erik cashed in three events, including a first place Bracelet winner, earning a total of just over $228,000. In fact, Erik Seidel has cashed at least once - usually multiple times - in every single WSOP since 1991. Up until 2008, Erik Seidel’s largest cash, awarding yet another WSOP Bracelet, came in the 2005 WSOP Event #9, No Limit Hold’em. The insatiable Erik Seidel pocketed a whopping $611,795 for that 1st place win.

To date, Erik has earned himself a total of 8 WSOP Bracelets; one in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007. Having earned so many cashes in the World Series of Poker over Seidel’s amazing career, it is somewhat surprising that he has never taken the championship, coming so close in 2nd, but never on top. It will be interesting to see what the 2008 WSOP reveal this coming summer.

Erik Seidel and the Aussie Millions
Once again, Erik Seidel has come so close, but one spot shy of taking down a championship tournament. In both 2007 and 2008, Erik skillfully took down his opponents to initiate heads-up play in the Crown Casino Aussie Millions Championship tournament. In 2007, he went one-on-one with Erick Lindgren at the final table, but finished in 2nd place with a cash prize of $550,000 AUD ($417,637 USD).

In 2008, the story repeated itself. Erik found himself at the final table across from Australian native Alexander Kostritsyn. After a long, tiresome battle, Erik Seidel eventually gave over to Kostritsyn to take the second place purse of $1,000,000 in cold, hard, Australian cash ($759,340 USD). This victory, though just shy of a championship, is Erik Seidel’s largest single cash to date.

Erik Seidel and the WPT
Erik Seidel has a lucrative history with the World Poker Tour (WPT), starting in August of 2002. Erik cashed 7 times in WPT Season 1, his largest cash being $80,236 for a second place victory at the Euro Finals of Poker WPT Event, Pot Limit Omaha, in February of 2003. In season 2, Erik cashed in 4 WPT events, including a 1st place, $95,059 triumph at the Five-Diamond Limit Hold’em event.

Another 7 tournament cashes came the following year as Erik progressed his way through WPT Season 3. The 2004 Festa al Lago III /Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship - the WPT Main Event - saw Erik Seidel at the final table for a 4th place finished and another $165,000 added to his career earnings.

The pattern continued as Erik cashed four times in WPT Season 4, once in WPT Season 5, another four times in WPT Season 5, and twice in WPT Season 6 thus far (as of Feb. 14, 2008). In all, Seidel racked up 29 cashes in World Poker Tour tournament play.

Erik Seidel and Team Full Tilt
Erik Seidel is a member of Team Full Tilt, alongside many of the world’s most famous and lucratively skilled professional poker players. Full Tilt Poker is an online poker room that sponsors the finest poker players and numerous major poker events around the world. Erik can be found at the Full Tilt Poker tables, chatting it up with fellow poker fanatics and offering his advice to new players.

As a member of Team Full Tilt, Erik Seidel plays online poker exclusively at Full Tilt Poker. He is also a member of the Full Tilt Poker design team. When he’s not in the throws of heated competition at the world’s biggest poker tournaments, or playing online at Full Tilt Poker, Erik enjoys playing tennis and listening to music from his home in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Erick Lindgren was born in the very small town of Burney, California on August 11, 1976. His phenomenal poker fame was first established in 2002 when Lindgren won his first major tournament at the Bellagio. From there, Erick Lindgren began swiping cash after cash at major poker events around the circuit. As of 2007, Erick Lindgren has earned himself in excess of $5,900,000 in poker winnings.

Erick Lindgren’s Early Years
Erick had a fairly normal childhood, growing up in a small California town with a population of only 3,000. Lindgren was an All League Quarterback and MVP player on his high school basketball team. As a young boy and teenager, Erick never intended or even prospected the idea of playing poker professionally. It wasn’t until Erick Lindgren went off to a junior college in Chico, California to play basketball that he got sidetracked from his previous goals.

Lindgren was playing at a local Indian Casino just for the fun of it when he found himself securing a job as a Blackjack Dealer at the casino. His poker skills became more and more prevalent and he applied them with strong results. By the age of 21, Erick was playing poker full-time, employed as a ‘proposition player’ by a casino in San Pablo, California. It was Lindgren’s job to play poker at the tables and keep the games lively.

It was only a matter of time before Erick Lindgren turned pro, putting his advanced skills to the test in regular poker tournaments and major events.

Erick Lindgren and the WPT
Erick Lindgren won his first WPT event in 2003, just ten months after finishing in 1st place in the 2002 Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic. In February of 2003, Lindgren took the 24th position in Event #10 of the WPT Season 1 - L.A. Poker Classic, followed by a 7th place finish in the WPT PartyPoker Millions II event just one month later. The very next month, Erick found himself in 16th place at the Five-Star World Poker Classic - WPT Season 1 Championship.

In the second season of the WPT, Erick Lindgren was found at several final tables, including a 1st place finish at the Ultimate Poker Classic, awarding young Erick half a million dollars in October of 2003. Lindgren followed up that win most skillfully at the 2004 PartyPoker Millions III Main Event, taking first place and a cool million in cash. Erick was also honored with the WPT’s first ‘Player of the Year’ awarding 2004.

Erick Lindgren won his second WPT title in Season 4 at the 2006 Five-Star World Poker Classic WPT Championship. Playing No Limit Hold’em, Erick patiently played out his cards as each of his opponents were sent to the rails. The young American poker pro came out on top once again, earning him another $261,555 to add to his impressive cash winnings.

Erick Lindgren and the WSOP
Lindgren’s first WSOP cash came in the 2003 World Series of Poker, Event #30 Pot Limit Hold’em. Erick Lindgren finished in 6th place for a cash of $21,280. In the 2004 WSOP, Erick Lindgren cashed 3 times in Events #2, #8 and Main Event #22, placing 10th, 17th and 6th respectively and earning about $50,000 total.

Erick Lindgren’s WSOP earnings jumped significantly in 2005, finishing 2nd in a WSOP Circuit Event at Harrahs Atlantic City Poker Tournament. Erick pocketed $430,521 for the final table victory. He won a few small cashes at the 36th Annual WSOP in 2005, grabbing a few thousand here and there, but nothing out of the ordinary for Lindgren.

As the 2006 WSOP rolled around, Erick Lindgren was ready for action, going heads up in Event #30, No Limit Hold’em Short Handed, to finish in 2nd place with a purse of $375,435. Erick cashed 4 more times in the 2007 WSOP, but has yet to win his first WSOP Bracelet.

Erick Lindgren and the Aussie Millions
2007 was a great year for the prolific young poker pro, taking down the entire field in the 2007 Crown Aussie Millions Championship. Erick Lindgren’s first place finish won him a staggering $759,340, not to mention bragging rights. Erick Lindgren entered the Aussie Millions again in 2008, but his luck fell short, finishing in 73rd place for a cash prize of $11,390.

Erick Lindgren the Author
Erick Lindgren has written one book over his professional poker career, “World Poker Tour: Making the Final Table”. The book covers Erick’s own poker strategies that have helped him make the final table. Lindgren gives the reader a walk-through of tournament rounds, describing how to handle each situation that a player will likely encounter throughout the tournament.

Published in 2005, “World Poker Tour: Making the Final Table” consists of 191 pages of poker related strategies and other information. However, Erick’s book has received mixed reviews, some stating it’s too short, not allowing for enough detail, while others swear by it’s valuable information.

Erick Lindgren and Full Tilt Poker
Erick has been a long time member of Team Full Tilt, a group of highly skilled professional poker players who play poker online exclusively at Full Tilt Poker. Lindgren can be found on occasion at the tables, chatting it up with fellow poker enthusiasts.

Just before the 2006 WSOP, Erick Lindgren was spending his time at the FullTiltPoker.Net Pro Showdown at the Red Rock Casino. Erick was greatly rewarded for his efforts, winning the $120,000 No-Limit Hold ‘em event for a quick $600,000 cash prize.

In 2007, Erick Lindgren made a proposition bet with Gavin Smith, Phil Ivey and other fellow members of Team Full Tilt. Erick was required to play four rounds of golf between sunrise and sunset at the Las Vegas “Bear’s Best” golf course. Carrying his own golf bag, Lindgren had to shoot under 100 in each of the four golf rounds. Though temperatures reached as high as 106 degrees, and he himself claimed to have lost 12 pounds that day, experiencing symptoms of heat exhaustion, Erick Lindgren won the bet.

Phil Gordon, born July 6, 1970, did not originally intend to become a professional poker player. His extreme intelligence and chosen career path led him to become a millionaire before ever entering the professional poker circuit. Since then he has earned himself more than $1.6 million in tournament cashes and authored a number of books on the subject of professional poker and winning poker strategies.

Phil Gordon’s Early Years
In 1991, Phil Gordon graduated from Georgia Tech, earning a degree in Computer Science. Phil spent a short period of time working for Santa Cruz Operations and Lockheed before becoming the first hired employee of start-up company Netsys Technologies. Cisco Systems acquired Netsys Technologies in 1996, turning Phil Gordon into an instant millionaire.

In 1997, before Phil Gordon had even reached the ripe age of 30, he retired from the world of technology to travel the world and play professional poker. It wasn’t until 2001 that Phil made a name for himself, finishing 4th in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event.

Phil Gordon and the WSOP
Phil Gordon earned his first major tournament cash in May of 2008, finishing 14th place in WSOP Event #16, Limit Omaha Hi/Lo, and 26th in Event #18, Pot Limit Hold’em, earning $4,400 and $3,600 respectively. The next year, Phil made his way into his first 2001 WSOP World Championship Main Event, a No Limit Hold’em match, where he finished in 4th place and pocketed $399,610.

The 2002 WSOP saw Phil Gordon finishing in two final tables, taking 6th place in a $2,000 Pot Limit Hold’em event and 3rd place in $2,500 Omaha Hi/Lo Split. Gordon cashed three more times in the 2005 WSOP, earning $66,055 for an 8th place finish in Event #7, No Limit Hold’em; $4,970 for finishing in 27th place of Event #11, Pot Limit Hold’em, and $75,350 for a 3rd place win at Event #16, Texas Hold’em Shootout.

Phil Gordon cashed another four times in the 2006 WSOP, and again in the 2007 WSOP, the highest being a 4th place finish in the No Limit Hold’em Championship at Harrah’s New Orleans Poker Tournament, a WSOP Circuit Event.

Phil Gordon and the WPT
Phil Gordon made history at the World Poker Tour (WPT) 2004 Bay 101 Shooting Star Tournament by sending two players to the rail in a single hand to win 1st place in the WPT No Limit Hold’em event, earning Phil $360,000.

Phil Gordon’s Other Achievements
Gordon took down the 2006 Full Tilt Poker Championship at Red Rock on Thanksgiving Day, beating out Roland De Wolfe in a heads-up showdown. This 1st place finish earned Phil his biggest single cash prize to date, $600,000.

In 2007, Gordon entered the NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. He defeated both Scotty Nguyen and Jamie Gold, champion of the 2006 WSOP Main Event, to advance through the tournament, but came up short of the final table. Gordon finished in 16th place, pocketing a purse of $25,000.

Phil Gordon the Author
Phil Gordon has penned a number of books related to playing professional poker. His first publication, “Poker: The Real Deal” sold more than 100,000 copies within the first 4 months. Phil pushed the envelope with the release of his next book, titled “The Little Green Book of No-Limit Hold’em”, which to this day is regarded as a definitive no-limit hold’em strategy guide. Phil contributed to the book “Tales From the Tiltboys”, authored by Team Full Tilt members Phil Gordon and Kim Scheinberg.

Phil Gordon’s works were made available in a box set in late October of 2006. ‘Phil Gordon’s Poker Box Set’, which has received phenomenal reviews from readers and poker enthusiasts, includes “Phil Gordon’s Little Green Book”, “Phil Gordon’s Little Blue Book” and “Phil Gordon’s Little Black Book”, which is actually a renamed version of his first published works, “Poker: The Real Deal”.

In addition to his authored books, Phil Gordon also produced a poker strategy DVD, “Expert Insight: Final Table Poker”. Phil hosts a podcast for ESPN.com titled “The Poker Edge”, airing since April of 2006. He also writes a regular column for ESPN.com.

Phil Gordon the Commentator
Phil Gordon has made many appearances as a commentator for various poker programs. His most notable commentating was a seven-year stint, on Bravo’s “Celebrity Poker Showdown”. Gordon stepped down from his position in 2006. Gordon also provided commentary for Binion’s live Internet broadcast of the 2003 WSOP Championship Event, along with daily, national radio reports.

In 2006 and 2007, Phil Gordon was a commentator for ESPN during the live pay-per-view broadcast of the WSOP Main Event Championships. ESPN’s “Pro-Am Poker Equalizer”, first aired in January of 2006, also saw Phil Gordon providing lead expert commentary.

Phil Gordon and the CRFP
At a young age, Phil’s aunt taught him to play the game of poker, before her life was claimed by cancer. Gordon has put a great deal of effort into fundraising for the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation (CRFP), a charity organization of which Phil Gordon is a Board Member.

Phil has facilitated multiple charity events, including $200 buy-in tournaments awarding entry to the WSOP Main Event and Celebrity Poker Tournaments. Gordon has also sold tip booklets to raise funds, as well as donating private lessons and autographed books for donations of $500 and $50 respectively (available at the CRFP web site). All proceeds went to the Cancer Research and Prevention foundation.

Jennifer Harman was born November 29, 1964 in Reno Nevada. Perhaps it was the location pf her up-bringing that imbedded the poker skills into her very core, as by the age of 8 years old, Jennifer was not only playing poker for real money, she was winning! Jennifer Harman turned her attentions to a professional poker career in the mid-80’s, playing for progressively higher stakes to earn a well deserved reputation as one of today’s most prolific poker players.In her early years, Harman began suffering from kidney problems - an illness shared by both her sister and mother, who passed away from the illness when Jennifer was only 17 years old. Jennifer was forced to undergo a kidney transplant as well. But that didn’t stop her from enjoying her greatest passion, playing poker.

After graduating from the University of Nevada, Reno, Jennifer Harman made the weighted decision to play poker professionally - a decision that caused a large rift between herself and her father. Fortunately, after suffering through years of little or no contact, Jennifer and her father have reconciled and now enjoy a healthy relationship.

While on the subject of relationships, Jennifer Harman is happily married to her husband, Marco Traniello. They have two twin boys together. A stylist by profession, after marrying Jennifer Harman (now officially Jennifer Harman Traniello), Marco himself has joined the professional poker circuit.

Over her highly successful career, Jennifer has made a huge name for herself. Commonly miss-dubbed as the best ‘female’ poker player, Harman is actually one of the best poker players in the world, regardless of gender. She has racked up an impressive cash total of $1,850,000 (as of Sept. 2007), including more than 40 cashes, two 1st place finishes and two World Series of Poker (WSOP) Bracelets.

Jennifer Harman and the WSOP
Jennifer Harman earned her first WSOP bracelet in 2000, winning the $5,000 No Limit Deuce-to-Seven Draw against such final-table opponents as Lyle Berman and Steve Zolotow. What made this win so memorable for Jennifer was the fact that she had never even played Deuce to Seven Draw. Jennifer finished in first place and cashed $146,250 after receiving a 5-minute tutorial from Howard Lederer just before the start of the game.

At the 2002 WSOP, Harman was awarded her second WSOP Bracelet for taking down the $5,000 Limit Hold’em, cashing in for $212,440. Jennifer Harman really worked her poker magic in this tournament, going up against a field that included Humberto Brenes, Allen Cunningham and Mimi Tran. Harman is currently the only female poker professional to claim two bracelets in WSOP open events.

Harman’s biggest cash to date came in a WSOP Circuit Event, the Rio Las Vegas Poker Tournament. Jennifer finished in 2nd place in Event #8 No Limit Hold’em, pocketing her biggest single prize of $383,840 on March 23, 2005.

Jennifer Harman and the WPT
Harman has participated in a multitude of World Poker Tour (WPT) events, though she has never outright won the Main Event. Her closest victory was 4th place at the WPT Five-Diamond World Poker Classic in 2004. Jennifer has cashed in 11 WPT events including WPT Seasons 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Jennifer Harman the Poker Author
Jennifer Harman contributed her professional genius to one of the top selling ‘Hold’em Poker Strategy’ books on the market - “Doyle Brunson’s Super System II”. Jennifer penned the entire chapter on Limit Hold’em. Super System II, published in 2004, is an updated and revised sequel to the original 1979 publication of “Doyle Brunson’s Super System: A Course in Power Poker”.

Jennifer Harman’s Other Achievements
Jennifer is known for being one of the regulars - and the only female regular - in the high-stakes cash games at the Bellagio “Big Game”. She has made appearances on the NBC network series, “Poker After Dark”, winning the tournament held on Week 8. She also appeared on “High Stakes Poker”, on series on GSN.

Harman went heads-up with Thomas Bihl in the 2007 WSOPE, (the inaugural year of the ‘World Series of Poker Europe’) H.O.R.S.E. event, finishing in 2nd place for a cash prize of $73,160.

Jennifer Harman is a proud member of Team Full Tilt, a vast group of highly skilled professional poker players who participate exclusively in online poker at the Full Tilt Poker site. Harman can be found at the online poker room’s tables, especially in her favorite venue, No-Limit Hold’em cash games.

Jennifer Harman - Other Information
Jennifer Harman enjoys her favorite hobbies, hiking and skiing, and listens to all varieties of music. Harman’s number one goal in life is to be a good mother, raising twin boys, and good wife to her husband, Marco. Harman is good friends with Daniel Negreanu.

Harman was forced to take a year away from the poker circuit in 2004 to undergo her second kidney transplant via organ donation. After the surgery and a long recovery process, Harman founded the non-profit charity organization, Creating Organ Donation Awareness (CODA), to raise money and public awareness for organ donation.

Chris Ferguson is a celebrated poker professional born in Las Angeles, California April 11, 1963. Chris is perhaps best known for his cowboy fashions, sporting impenetrable black sunglasses, long dark hair capped by a sable cowboy hat, and anything from a clean-cut goatee to rugged full beard.

Ferguson’s phenomenal poker skills must come from his parents. Both of his parents have doctoral degrees in mathematics, while his father, Thomas Ferguson, is a UCLA teacher of game theory and theoretical probabilities. Game theory and mathematics make up much of Chris Ferguson’s poker playing style.

Chris has been playing poker since before he was 10 years old. At the age of 18, he enrolled in UCLA, where he spent the next half of his life - 5 years as an undergraduate, another 13 as a graduate student. It was during this time that Ferguson hones his poker skills playing for fun on the computer in IRC chats. Ferguson earned his Ph.D. in Computer Science before reluctantly moving on from college life.

Chris Ferguson - “Jesus”
Chris Ferguson quickly picked up his famous poker-playing nickname, “Jesus”, due to his famously characteristic appearance - long dark-brown hair, inconsistent but ever-present beard and calm, collected demeanor. Ferguson is known for developing a motionless pose to prevent his opposition from “reading” him. Chris intentionally took on the trademark cowboy hat and sunglasses to disguise his college student status.

Chris Ferguson and the WSOP
Ferguson began his poker tournament career in 1994, entering poker tournaments in California while still attending college as a graduate student. In 1995, Chris made his first entry to the World Series of Poker (WSOP). It wasn’t until 2000 when Chris Ferguson went on to place first in the WSOP Main Event, sending T. J. Cloutier to the rails and pocketing his first major cash of $1.5 million.

Over the years, Chris Ferguson has earned himself 5 WSOP bracelets - 2 in the 2000 WSOP, including his first place Main Event finish, another in 2001, and the final 2 WSOP bracelets in 2003. Ferguson is the only professional poker player to have won 3 WSOP poker circuit events in addition to his WSOP bracelets.

Chris Ferguson - Full Tilt Poker
Chris Ferguson was the driving force behind the immensely successful online poker room, Full Tilt Poker. Having spent several years honing his skills playing poker over the Internet, Chris felt it was time to innovate the online work industry.

Gathering a team of skilled poker players and expert software programmers, Ferguson launched Full Tilt Poker in 2004. Ferguson spends much of his time finding ways to improve the online poker room in an effort to give its members the highest quality online poker experience. To date, Full Tilt Poker is the second largest online poker room in the world in regards to player traffic.

Chris Ferguson’s Other Achievements
In 2005, Chris Ferguson entered the National Heads-Up Poker Championship, finishing in second place to Phil Hellmuth. In 2006, Ferguson entered once more and again fell just short, finishing in second under Ted Forrest.

According to Chris, he took on a personal challenge, painstakingly turning a single $1 into $20,000 at an online poker room in a period of 6 months. He then took it upon himself to turn $0 into $10,000 at Full Tilt Poker, starting with freeroll tournaments and wagering the prize money. The total has surpassed $10,000 and continues to grow and fluctuate, at one time reported to exceed $20,000.

Chris Ferguson has made a few admissions on television since gaining fame as one of the world’s top professional poker players. The most interesting would be his ability to throw playing cards so fast that he can slice through a banana, carrot and even a melon. Ferguson also revealed that he was once the president of the swing dancing club at UCLA.

Over his long, impressive poker career, Chris Ferguson has racked up 105 cashes, 10 first-place finishes and 5 WSOP bracelets. His total cash earnings to date equal $5,795,898. His favorite poker games are No-Limit Hold’em and No-Limit 5 Card Stud. It is Ferguson’s dream to join a major university as a professor of game theory. His charming demeanor and trademark fashions, combined with an impeccable skill at playing poker, have turned Chris Ferguson into a living legend among the poker world.

Howard Lederer was born in the capital city of Concord, New Hampshire October 30, 1964. A certain level of intelligence and a keen sense of observance must have been running through the Lederer family blood. Howard himself is a highly successful, professional poker player, as is his sister Annie Duke. Howard’s other sister, Katy Lederer, is an author and a poet. Howard’s father, Richard Lederer, was also a writer and linguist, teaching at the New Hampshire St. Paul’s School.

As a young boy, Howard was a phenomenal chess player. After finishing high school, Howard went on to New York City where he attended Columbia University and frequented the many chess clubs around the city. It was during his chess club gaming that Howard Lederer discovered the game of poker. He eventually began visiting the Mayfair Club on a regular basis, taking on other poker talents like Erik Seidel and Dan Harrington, before they became well-known professionals.

In 1993, at nearly 30 years of age, Howard made the big move to Las Vegas, seeking high stakes games and a professional poker career. His story has been nothing short of success ever since. Lederer has totaled 58 cashes, 9 first place finishes and earned himself a cumulative bankroll of $3,921,603 over his impressive poker career.

Howard Lederer - “The Professor”
Over the years, Howard Lederer gained the nickname, “The Professor”, termed so for his cool, calculating demeanor, analytical expressions and perpetual calmness. According to Howard, his extreme focus at the poker tables is achieved by entering a state of ‘zen wisdom’ while playing poker.

Lederer’s exterior shell has been cracked on several occasions, however. In 2002, Daniel Negreanu made distasteful comments about Lederer’s sister, Annie Duke, bringing about a public display of criticism from Howard. Negreanu was quick to apologize and the two men are reportedly good friends.

Howard Lederer and the WSOP
Howard Lederer has skillfully earned himself 2 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets. His first WSOP bracelet came at the 2000 WSOP $5,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo event, awarding Lederer $198,000 for a first place finish. The second bracelet came only a year later at the 2001 WSOP $5,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event, where Howard pocketed another $165,870. All told, Lederer has placed well enough to cash in the WSOP more than 30 times since 1987. For years, it has been Howard’s ambition to win the WSOP Main Event - the big one!

Howard Lederer and the WPT
Howard has earned himself 2 World Poker Tour (WPT) titles over his extensive career. The first came in November of 2002 at the WPT Championship at Foxwoods. Only a few months later in March of 2003, Howard Lederer earned his second WPT title on The Poker Million cruise in a $5,000 Limit Hold ‘em event. That same year, Howard Lederer was named 2003 WPT Player of the Year.

Howard Lederer’s Other Achievements
In 1994, just after moving to Las Vegas, Lederer won his first Hall of Fame Poker Classic title in a $2,500 No-Limit Deuce to Seven Draw event. He defended his Deuce to Seven Draw title, winning his second Hall of Fame Poker Classic title in 1995.

The 2003 Bellagio Five-Star World Poker Classic saw Lederer displaying his intensive poker skills to take down the $2,500 No-Limit Hold ‘em event and his first Bellagio title. In April of 2004, Lederer won his second Bellagio title in a $2,500 No-Limit Hold ‘em event. A short 13 days later, Lederer earned yet another Bellagio title in the $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event.

Lederer’s most recent major victory came in January of 2008 when he wiped out a massive field of players at the Aussie Millions $100,000 buy-in tournament, awarding him $1.25 million - the largest cash in Howard’s esteemed career.

Howard Lederer is a long-time member of Team Full Tilt, an immensely popular online poker room established in 2004. He heads up the “Howard Lederer Fantasy Poker Camp”, and has produced his own instructional video, “Secrets of No-Limit Hold’em”. Lederer is the co-host of the Fox Broadcasting Company’s “Poker Superstars” and “Poker: Learn From the Pros”.