Thomas James “TJ” Cloutier is an enormously successful professional poker player. Don’t let his stark, straight-forward, “retired athletic coach” appearance fool you; TJ Cloutier is one of the most fierce, calculating poker players on the circuit today. At the age of 69, Cloutier’s professional, live tournament earnings total $9,042,758. TJ has finished in the money 50 times over his career, including 39 1st place wins and 6 World Series of Poker Bracelets. In 2006, TJ Cloutier was rightfully inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame.

Born October 13, 1939, TJ Cloutier hails from Albany, California. Cloutier received a scholarship for football an baseball that saw him attending the University of California at Berkley. During this time, Cloutier could be found playing in the 1959 Rose Bowl - the most prestigious college football championship in the United States. Unfortunately, TJ’s family fell on hard times, and Cloutier was forced to drop out of college before he could graduate.

TJ found himself drafted into the army where he served his time, and coincidentally learned to play poker, before joining the Canadian Football League, playing for Toronto, then Montreal, before an injury ended his athletic career. TJ Cloutier changed his focus, opening a food company, but found it to be unsuccessful. Instead, Cloutier moved to Texas to work on oil rigs. He eventually found himself working as a caddy on a golf course. He spent his time off playing poker, and it wasn’t long before he found himself earning more money at the tables than on the job. Thus, TJ Cloutier made the life altering decision to quit conventional work and pursue a career as a professional poker player.

TJ Cloutier and the WSOP
TJ Cloutier is one of today’s most accomplished WSOP participants, having achieved a very rare position among professional poker players. TJ Cloutier has cashed at least once in every single World Series of Poker tournament since 1987. TJ’s first live tournament win came in the 1985 WSOP, where he earned more than a quarter of a million dollars in his first prize purse. Cloutier finish in 2nd position overall at the ‘85 WSOP Main Event for $280,000.

Two years later, TJ received his first WSOP Bracelet for taking down Event #3 Limit Omaha at the 1987 WSOP, worth $72,000. It wasn’t until 1994 that TJ Cloutier received not only his second, but also his third WSOP Bracelet. Cloutier took down Event #14 Limit Omaha Hi/Lo on April 29, 1994, and Event #15 PL Hold’em the very next day. Cloutier pocketed $135,000 and $163,000 respectively for these back-to-back victories.

The 1998 WSOP rewarded TJ Cloutier with his fourth WSOP Bracelet for skillfully omitting the field of Event #11 PL Omaha for $136,000. Even more notably, however, was TJ’s 3rd place finish overall in the 1998 WSOP, in which he earned $437,500. In May of 2000, TJ came his closest to winning the entire WSOP Main Event, but finished just shy in 2d place, collecting $896,000 for his skilled efforts.

Cloutier’s fifth WSOP Bracelet came in 2004, earning $95,000 for derailing the opposition in a Limit Razz event. TJ went on to receive his sixth and thus far final Bracelet at the 2005 WSOP, claiming an impressive $657,100 for prevailing over Event #13 NL Hold’em.

TJ Cloutier is currently tied with Phil Hellmuth for the most final table finishes at the WSOP with 39.

TJ Cloutier and the WPT
TJ Cloutier has earned a decent portion of his career winnings on the World Poker Tour (WPT). Since it’s inaugural season in 2002, TJ has accumulated nearly one million dollars in WPT tournament winnings. Cloutier has finished in the money 27 times in WPT events, totaling about $860,000 in career earnings.

His first major victory in the WPT cam on April 5, 200 at the WPT Five-Star World Poker Classic Championship, where TJ took down the NL Hold’em event for $98,940. His next notable triumph came as a 3rd place finish in the 2nd season of the WPT, Legends of Poker tournament, for $146,775. That prize purse is thus far Cloutier’s largest single-match WPT cash.

TJ Cloutier’s Other Achievements
In 1990, TJ Cloutier advanced to the final table at the Superbowl of Poker, where he cam out victorious for a 1s place prize of $240,000. Later that same year, Cloutier outwitted the field at the Jim Brady Tournament, earning another $256,000. TJ’s luck continued into December of 1990 when he took down the NL Hold’em tables at the Hall of Fame Poker Classic for $113,400.

In 1991, TJ Cloutier once again prevailed over the Jim Brady Tournament NL Hold’em Championship for $230,000. In 1992, Cloutier took 1st in an early NL Hold’em event at the Jim Brady Tournament for yet another $126,000. side from the WSOP, Cloutier’s next significantly lucrative win came in the 2001 Tournament of Champions, were TJ finished 2nd for $123,885.

Cloutier’s most recent major victory came at the Scotty Nguyen Poker Challenge on November 18, 2007. TJ won the NL Hold’em Championship event outright, pocketing $240,560 in prize winnings.

Steve Brecher does not share the typical story of a professional poker player’s road to fortune and fame. Brecher was not a significant fan of the game as a child; he never used a fake ID to play in a casino, nor did he spend his college weekends around dimly lit, back room poker tables. In fact, Steve Brecher did not turn pro until nearing retirement age from a long and successful career as a computer software developer.

Born in Queens, New York in 1945, Steve Brecher holds a bachelors degree in philosophy. If you check out any of his documented writings, online or in text, you can clearly see how Steve “philosoph-ies” the game of poker. He has even declared that in some situations, he would prefer to hold pocket-5s over pocket-Aces. As ridiculous as it sounds, his philosophy on the matter does make a little sense, depending on the situation.

After moving to California, Brecher played his first game of poker among strangers at the Palo Alto ‘Cameo Club’ in 1966, dealing No Limit Ace to 5 Lowball with a single Joker in the deck. Though he occasionally joined in a game of Lowball in the following years, Steve focused honing his skills in Limit poker games. It wasn’t until August 25, 1993 that Steve Brecher discovered the game of Texas Hold’em.

After many years of a fruitful career as a computer software developer, retirement was looming, and it would seem fate had another path laid out before Steve Brecher. In the mid 1990’s, he began to appear in major poker tournaments. As the years went on, Steve Brecher has become a common face amongst the tables, especially at the World Poker Tour. Steve has earned himself a total of 16 major tournament cashes to date, and professional poker career winnings totalling $668,306.

Steve Brecher and the WSOP
Steve Brecher’s history with the World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a short but momentous one. The WSOP was the first major tournament Brecher finished in the money, first in on April 18, 1998. In the opening event, Limit Hold’em, Brecher took home an 18th place purse of $9,296.

Steve came back the following year to earn his second, and final to date, WSOP cash in Event #7 of the 1999 WSOP, No Limit Hold’em. Against a field of 350 participants, Brecher ate away at the competition to finish in 8th place, pocketing $15,350.

Steve Brecher and the WPT
Brecher is best known around the professional poker community for his multiple appearances, not to mention valuable cashes, along the World Poker Tour (WPT). Steve Brecher’s fortunate career in the WPT began in 2004, during the second season of the tour. The skilled poker player found himself seated at Event #13 of the World Poker Challenge, only to come up short in 10th position for a purse of $1,004. A mere 6 days later, April 1st in fact, Brecher proved that he was no fool on this of all days. He carved a path through the No Limit Hold’em tables to finish in 11th place, earning $19,604.

Pleased with his substantial win, Steve continued on to the Five-Star World Poker Classic - the 2004 WPT Championship, No Limit Hold’em Main Event on April 23rd. With a $20k paycheck in less than a month, Steve Brecher had confidence on his side. Once again, Steve skillfully whittled his way through the opposition, even claiming a seat among the final table of 10. Once again, however, Steve came up short of the big prize; little to complain about however as his 6th place finish earned Steve Brecher his largest single-match cash to date, $232,862.

Having seen such success in the 2nd season of the WPT, it was no surprise that Steve Brecher returned for season 3. His first WPT success of the year came on August 1, 2004, at the Mirage Poker Showdown, where Brecher finished 11th in the No Limit Hold’em tournament, worth $32,401. Brecher followed up that win with another WPT cash in February of 2005 at the LA Poker Classic, earning $30,988 for a 25th place finish in the Main Event. Two months later, Steve Brecher was awarded another $30,000 for finishing 73rd in the WPT Five-Star World Poker Classic Main Event.

In the WPT Season 4, Brecher once again left his stamp on the poker world, taking 15th position on October 21, 2005 at the Doyle Brunson North American Championship, cashing in the No Limit Hold’em event for $34,485.

It wasn’t until the 6th season of the WPT that Brecher’s name was again topic worthy, as he took 37th place in the Legends Of Poker No Limit Hold’em Championship for $16,005, followed by a 27th place finish in the World Poker Finals No Limit Hold’em Championship on November 17, 2007, pocketing a purse of $24,318.

Steve Brecher’s Other Achievements
Steve took part in the Pot of Gold Tournament and Winter Pot of Gold Tournament spanning the months of the year 2000. Though the cashes were small, these came early in his career, helping Steve to further hone his poker skills and boost his confidence t the tables. Brecher placed in the money three times at these events, finishing 6th, 8th and 17th for a total of $2,751.

In December of 2001, Steve Brecher participated in the Eldorado Poker Classic, once again fine-tuning his exceptional abilities, while pocketing a 5th place purse of $994.

Brecher’s most recent substantial earnings came in the 2005 United States Poker Championship, a No Limit Hold’em tournament that saw Steve Brecher carving a path to his closest true victory yet; a 3rd place overall finish worth $218,250 - Steve Brecher’s second largest single-match cash of his career.

As a retired computer software programmer, it is no surprise that Steve Brecher has developed a poker software platform that runs user-inputted poker scenarios to determine probabilities. The software program, entitled Hold’Em Showdown, is specifically designed to give percentage-based probabilities of an All-In Showdown situation involving 2 or more players. Hold’Em Showdown is a public domain download, meaning it is not copyrighted, and anyone can download and/or distribute the software for free.

Steve Brecher and Team Full Tilt
Steve Brecher is a proud member of Team Full Tilt, a remarkable group of professional poker players who can be found exclusively playing online poker at the immensely popular, Internet-based poker community, Full Tilt Poker. Steve sits among some of the most influential names in the poker industry, including Phil Ivey, Chris ‘Jesus’ Ferguson and Howard Lederer, just to name a few.

Steve Brecher Outside of Poker
Steve Brecher currently resides in Nevada, somewhere between Reno and Lake Tahoe. Unmarried and without children, Steve spends his time away from the poker tables hiking, watching movies, surfing the web and greatly enjoys aviation. According to Steve himself, he likes to speak in a “paronomastic” manner, which may sound very intelligent and philosophical, but is actually Steve’s amusing way of stating that he likes to use ‘humorous puns’.

Scott Fischman is a true success story in the ranks of professional poker players. In only his mid-twenties, Scott Fischman has already profited from 71 major poker tournaments, earning more than $2 million over his resplendent career. Fischman is a Full Tilt Pro, the youngest ever to win 2 WSOP Bracelets (at age 23) and currently holds 3 first place finishes.

Born in Langhorne, Pennsylvania in 1981, Scott Fischman was raised in South Jersey, with the same hopes and aspirations of any other little boy - that is, until his family moved to Las Vegas when he was 12. A friend from school introduced Scott to the game of poker, and immediately Scott developed a new dream; a new goal in life. Scott Fischman wanted to play cards.

He continued to learn the game, developing his skills and strategies over the years. As soon as Scott turned 21, he took a job dealing poker at a nearby casino. Fischman worked both for the Sahara and Mirage casinos, but after a year, made his big move to the other side of the poker tables. It was long before Scott Fischman proved himself, earning the respect of his fellow poker pros.

Scott Fischman and the WSOP
Though Scott Fischman has skillfully achieved 71 poker tournament cashes over the last 7 years, it is the World Series Of Poker (WSOP) that saw him rise to stardom. In 2004, Scott earned his first purse from the WSOP, followed quickly by 3 more purses over a period of 10 days, including 2 WSOP Bracelets and more than $400,000 in his wallet. As the story goes, Scott proves the popular theory that “good things come in 3’s.”

It started on April 27, 2004, as Scott Fischman took a small cash in Event #6, Pot Limit Hold’em, claiming 14th place and $5,000. Only 3 days and 3 events later, Fischman entered Event #9, No Limit Hold’em and wiped out the field, pocketing $300,000 and his first WSOP Bracelet. Another 3 days and 3 events later, Scott took down Event #12, Limit HORSE, for his second career 1st-place finish and WSOP Bracelet. Scott earned another $100,200 for that victory. And, you guessed it, 3 days a 3 events later, Scott earned his 4th and final cash of $3,160 in the 2004 WSOP for coming in 19th in Event #15, Limit Hold’em. Scott Fischman currently holds the record for the youngest player to win 2 WSOP Bracelets.

The 2005 WSOP was also kind to Scott Fischman, though he has yet to receive another WSOP Bracelet. On June 3, Scott finished in 2ndd place at Event #2, No Limit Hold’em, earning an impressive $352,125. A few days later, Fischman took 54th in Event #7, No Limit Hold’em, for a smaller prize of $5,285.

Over the next two years of the WSOP, Scott Fischman earned himself three cashes in 2006 and one more in 2007, but none compared to his previous year’s accomplishments. Scott earned about $34,000 from WSOP events in these two years, the most notable being a 16th place finish in the 2007 WSOP Pot Limit Hold’em World Championship, worth $17,771.

Scott Fischman and the WPT
Fischman’s World Poker Tour (WPT) history had a fast start but relatively low profitability in the early years. Scott’s first winning year came in 2004 at the WPT Championship in season 2. He finished in the money 3 times at the Five-Star World Poker Classic, taking 21st, 16th and 19th place prizes of $5,101, $3,395 and another $3,395 respectively.

The following season of the WPT saw Scott Fischman return with a vengeance, entering 7 WPT tournaments for 13 cashes totalling about $240,000. The first came in the Mirage Poker Showdown, ending in 3rd for $47,918. Fischman then cashed twice at the Legend of Poker, finishing Event #15 in 9th and #18 in 13th for a total prize of $3,950. Fischman followed that up with a stop at the 2004 Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship where he landed in 3rd for $$39,936. Next stop - World Poker Finals. Scott Fischman took a 16th and 13th place finish in early events for $5,327. The Five-Diamond World Poker Classic was Scott’s next WPT target, earning 5th place and $9,603 in a 7 Card Stud event, followed by a 2nd place finish in Pot Limit Hold’em for $71,295.

As the WPT Season 3 rolled into 2005, Scott Fischman found himself at the 6th Annual Jack Binion World Poker Open, cashing twice in early events at 26th position in No Limit Hold’em, worth $3,579, and 2nd position in 7 Card Stud hi/Lo, worth $22,393. Fischman’s last 3 cashes in the 3rd season of the WPT came at the LA Poker Classic, finishing 2nd, 4th and 20th in various events for a total prize of $38,213.

Scott Fischman earned another 4 cashes in season 4 of the WPT, first at the 2005 Festa al Lago IV, playing No Limit Hold’em for a 14th place prize of $7,280. In January of 2006, Scott found himself again at the LA Poker Classic, earning a 14th place finish of $1,222 in Omaha Hi/Lo, followed by a 4th place finish of $45,203 in No Limit Hold’em. The WPT Championship, Five-Star World Poker Classic, awarded Scott Fischman a 17th place No Limit Hold’em purse of $6,825.

In previous fashion, Scott Fischman continued his reign of success cashing in WPT events by earning 6 more in the 5th season of the WPT. Among them was an $84,570 purse for ending in 12th position at the Doyle Brunson North American Classic No Limit Hold’em Championship at the Bellagio in December of 2006. The largest WPT Season 5 cash came months later in April of 2007 at the WPT World Championship. Fischman fought a long hard battle, finishing in 8th at the final table of the No Limit Hold’em Championship for a well deserved purse of $247,525.

The WPT Season 6 is currently underway, and has thus far awarded Scott Fischman a single cash at the Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic, earning $8,780 for a 27th place finish in a No Limit Hold’em event.

Scott Fischman’s Other Achievements
Scott’s professional career began with a small cash of $4,015 - though Scott surely didn’t think it small at the time - in the $300,000 Fall Poker Classic, taking a 2nd place No Limit Hold’em event.

Fischman’s 3rd, and thus far final, 1st-place title came at The Orleans Open in 2004, clearing the field in Event #14, No Limit Hold’em, for a 1st-place prize of $40,500.

At the 2005 National Heads-Up Poker Championship, Scott outlasted all but 6 of his opponents, earning the 7th place prize of $75,000.

In July of 2005, Scott finished 6th in two No Limit Hold’em events at the Ultimate Poker Challenge, earning $6,285 and $27,100.

In 2006, Fischman entered the Crown Australian Poker Championship, better known as the ‘Aussie Millions’, winning 2nd place in Event #5, No Limit Hold’em Championship Speed Poker, for a $37,967 purse.

Scott Fischman’s most recent, substantial cash came on October 24, 2007 at The Inaugural Caesars Palace Classic, No Limit Hold’em Championship Event #13. Scott whittled his way through a large field only to come up 2 positions shy of the gold, earning $245,540 for his 3rd place finish.

Scott Fischman and Full Tilt Poker
Scott Fischman is a Full Tilt Pro, an assembly of elite professional poker players who play online poker exclusively at Full Tilt Poker. The online poker room is known for hosting some of the professional poker communities most notable players, where poker enthusiasts can challenge the world’s top player and chat them up for tips at the Full Tilt Poker tables.

Phil Hellmuth Jr. is perhaps one of the biggest names in the world of professional poker for various reasons. First of all, Hellmuth is an absolutely amazing poker player, having skillfully earned 11 WSOP Bracelets over his career, the current world record, followed by the legendary Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan, both tied with 10. Phil Hellmuth is also well known for his boisterous behavior, always managing to draw the attention to himself when he wants it.

Born Phillip J. Hellmuth Jr. in Madison, Wisconsin on July 16, 1964, Phil grew up to attend the local University. It was during his college days that Phil Hellmuth actually started playing poker. It wasn’t long before Hellmuth’s quick mind and instinctual gift developed into a truly skilled poker player. Thus, in 1985, after spending 3 years in college, Phil dropped out to play poker full-time.

The decision turned out to be quite positive for Phil. Only four years into his career, in 1989 at the age of 24, Hellmuth became the youngest player to ever win the World Series of Poker Main Event, also awarding his first of 11 WSOP bracelets.

One of Phil Hellmuth’s most memorable moments, aside from the actual prize purses he’s received, was an incident at the opening of the WSOP Main Event in 2007. Phil decided to celebrate the WSOP’s newfound acceptance of sponsor marking on clothing. To do so, he wanted a racing suite covered in sponsorships - just like a real racecar driver. The online poker room, UltimateBet, jumped on the chance to gain some PR of their own and offered Hellmuth a real NASCAR racing car, repainted with $35,000 worth of logos, sponsorship markings and of course, Phil Hellmuth’s own likeness painted on the hood. Known for his extravagant entrances in the past, Hellmuth decided to make this the grandest of all, pulling up in a black and yellow NASCAR, racing around the parking lot a few times, then entering in his matching racecar get-up. You know what they say about “plans” though, right?

Instead, Phil drove around the parking lot only to crash the quarter-million dollar NASCAR into a pole. Completely embarrassed, and a little bruised up, Hellmuth did not make his entrance until sometime later, but still managed to do it with gusto. He entered the WSOP Main Event doors wearing his jumpsuit, as planned, but with a beautiful lady

Phil, not known for his polite nature, often makes scathing remarks about his opponents during a match, especially when suffering a bad beat. For this behavior, Phil has been frequently termed “The Poker Brat”. Though his personality may grate on his opponents, and perhaps some viewers as well, it is impossible to disregard his incredible talent for playing poker. The numbers speak for themselves - 126 live tournament cashes, 20 first-place finishes, 11 WSOP bracelets and $8,233,916 in live tournament career earnings.

Phil Hellmuth and the WSOP
Phil Hellmuth’s first lucrative experience with the World Series of Poker came at the age of 23 in the 1988 WSOP. Phil took a 5th place purse of $15,450 in Event #6 Limit 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo on May 10th, followed by a 33rd place finish in the NL Hold’em World Championship, earning $7,500.

The 1989 WSOP was a landmark event for Hellmuth, finishing in the money twice before taking down the entire WSOP Championship on May 14. Phil earned his first WSOP bracelet, $755,000, and became the youngest poker player to ever win the WSOP Main Event, at the age of 24.

1990 brought limited success to Phil compared to his previous year, though he did take 5th place in a NL Hold’em event for $32,500. Hellmuth passed right over the next year’s WSOP, but made up for it in 1992, taking 5 purses throughout the tournament. Among these was a 2nd place finish in Event #4 and a 1st place victory in Event #8, both Limit Hold’em, awarding Phil his second WSOP bracelet.

The 1993 marked yet another historical moment in Hellmuth’s WSOP history, not only pocketing 4 cashes worth $544,500, but three of those were 1st place finishes and the other a 2nd place. Phil earned his 3rd, 4h and 5th WSOP Bracelets in the 1993 WSOP. The next year offers a short but lucrative story as Phil Hellmuth worked his way to a single cash in Event #4, NL Hold’em, taking home $93,900 at the 1994 WSOP.

In the 1996 WSOP, Phil earned another small chunk of change for a 6th position finish in Limit Omaha Hi/Lo, worth $12,375. The 1997 WSOP saw Hellmuth once again earn a WSOP Bracelet, his 6th, taking down Event #15 for $204,000 on May 3rd. One week later, Phil finished the World Championship in 21st position for another $21,200.

Hellmuth was relatively quiet in the following years, earning small cashes here and there, until the 2001 WSOP. He cashed 7 more times that year, gaining his 7th WSOP bracelet in Event #5, along with $316,550. He also took 2nd place in Event #23 for $103,785, and finished in 5h at the World Championship table for another $303,705.

Phil Hellmuth earned his 8th and 9th WSOP Bracelet at the 2003 tournament, earning $171,400 in Event #12 Limit Hold’em, and $410,860 in Event #32 NL Hold’em. Hellmuth ended in the money at four other events as well, worth nearly $80,000 combined.

WSOP 2004 saw another 5 cashes for Hellmuth, but none awarding a bracelet this year. His best placement was 6th and 7th in PL Hold’em events. Phil earned a total of about $75,000 in 2004. Another 4 cashes came in the 2005 WSOP, totalling near $95,000, but again no more WSOP bracelets just yet.

Phil Hellmuth was at the top of his game coming into the 2006 WSOP, taking home an amazing 8 purses worth roughly $1,180,000. These included a 2nd place victory in Event #9 NL Hold’em, worth $23,893, and Phil Hellmuth’s 10th WSOP Bracelet for triumphing over Event #34 NL Hold’em for $631,863.

The final, record-breaking 1tth WSOP bracelet was presented to Phil Hellmuth on June 9 at the 2007 WSOP, for clearing the field of Event #15 NL Hold’em. Phil pocketed $637,254 for this victory, plus 5 more purses in other events that year, worth about $105,000.

As the 2008 WSOP approaches, all eyes will be on Phil Hellmuth. It will be interesting to see if he can skillfully maneuver his way to further increasing the record with a 12th WSOP bracelet, or even more…

Phil Hellmuth’s Other Achievements
Though most of Phil’s fortune and fame are linked with the World Series of Poker, he has had significant success in other major poker tournaments as well.

Phil has closely followed the World Poker tour (WPT) since its first season in 2002, taking prize purses here and there throughout the years. Highlights of Phil Hellmuth’s WPT winnings include a 1st place victory at the LA Poker Classic Event #11 Limit Omaha Hi/Lo, held February 9, 2003. Phil earned $55,485 for his win. Later that year, Phil finished 3rd in the World Poker Finals, pocketing $281,700 for his efforts. Most recently, Hellmuth earned $229,820 for a 6th place finish at the LA Poker Classic NL Hold’em Championships, WPT Season 6, held on February 28, 2008. On a final note, Hellmuth also took down the LA Poker Classic in 1998 for $50,400, before it became a part of the WPT.

In the Fall of 2000, Phil had a great run with 1st place finishes, the most lucrative being a $161,920 prize purse for taking down a Limit 7 Card Stud event at the Poker EM 2000.

The 2005 National Heads-Up Poker Championship, held March 5th, brought yet another 1st place victory for Phil Hellmuth, along with a half-million prize.

Phil Hellmuth Outside of Poker
Phil Hellmuth is married with two children, residing in Palo Alto, California. His hobbies including working on his web site, writing and listening to 80’s/90’s rock music. When the opportunity arises, Phil loves to visit Esalen, located to the south of Pebble Beach and Monterey Bay, California.

Phil Hellmuth believes that family should always come first, above anything else. He is also a firm believer that if one truly focuses on it, you can ’see the good’ in anyone.

Men Nguyen has been playing poker quite lucratively since 1985. Over the years, Nguyen has become an extremely accomplished professional poker player, having finished in the money more than 300 times in live poker tournaments; 120 of those prize purses came between 2000 and 2004 alone. Men Nguyen has racked up 53 1st-place wins, 6 World Series of Poker Bracelets, and a whopping $6,869,302 in total live tournament wins.

Nguyen was born in Phan Thiet, Vietnam in 1954. Times were very difficult for his family, causing young Nguyen to drop out of school, helping his family to make ends meet as a bus driver at the age of 13. Nguyen grew up as an avid anti-communist and managed to escape from Vietnam in 1978, traveling by boat with 87 other refugees to Malaysia. That same year, Men Nguyen receive political asylum from the United States, moving to Los Angeles, California to eventually become a US citizen in 1986.

Before becoming an official citizen of America, Men went on a junket to Las Vegas in 1984 where he found the action at the poker tables quite exhilarating. Though his first poker experience was not profitable, Nguyen returned every weekend thereafter, earning the nickname “Money Machine” because he would lose hundreds of dollars at a time. It wasn’t long, however, before Nguyen had developed his own niche for the game and began clearing the tables with success.

In 1987, Men Nguyen won his first poker tournament. With those winnings he opened a furniture store and dry cleaning business, only to sell them in 1990 because he found it took too much time, with hardly enough profit to be worth the effort. During that time, Men met a number of Vietnamese-Americans who he went on to tutor in the ways of winning poker. In fact, Men Nguyen has gained quite the reputation for teaching poker enthusiasts how to play and win at poker.

According to Benny Binion Behnen, grandson of famed casino owner Benny Binion, Men Nguyen is accredited with training more tournament wining poker players than anyone else. In 1991, one of Nguyen’s students gave him the nickname, “The Master”, which quickly evolved to his being labeled, “Men the Master” Nguyen. He reportedly receives a small portion of all his students’ poker tournament winnings.

Men Nguyen and the WSOP
With 305 live tournament cashes under his belt, it is little surprise that Men Nguyen has finished in the money in nearly every World Series of Poker (WSOP) tournament since 1988. His first WSOP cash came on May 5, 1988, taking 9th place in the first event, Limit Hold’em, for a prize purse of $11,190. In 1992, Nguyen earned his first of six WSOP Bracelets in Event #6 Limit 7 Card Stud, pocketing $120,600.

The 1995 WSOP was very kind to Men Nguyen, cashing a total of 5 times, the last two being 1st-place finishes for $96,000 and $186,000 respectively, plus Nguyen’s second and third WSOP Bracelets. In the 1996 WSOP, Nguyen played just as skillfully, earning his fourth WSOP Bracelet among five finishes in the money, totalling near $380,000 in WSOP tournament winnings.

Nguyen’s fifth and sixth WSOP Bracelets did not come until 2003 - Nguyen’s most successful year at he World Series of Poker. Men finished in the money 6 times, four of those being final table finishes - two 1st-place and two 2nd place victories. Men earned more than $400,000 in the 2003 WSOP.

Men Nguyen and the WPT
Men Nguyen has experienced what seems to be countless 1st-place and in-the-money finishes since the first season of the World Poker Tour (WPT) in 2002. Men’s first WPT cash was a 1st-place win in Event #8 of the Legends of Poker tournament on August 7, 2002. Nine days later, Nguyen took down Event #16 as well, followed by a 4th place finish in Event #23, another 1st-place victory in Event #24 and a 4th place finish in Event #26. Needless to say, Men Nguyen took the WPT by storm. He was not yet done with WPT Season 1, earning many more cashes over the tour, including a 1st place finish at the Jack Binion World Poker Open (Event #14 PL Hold’em) in January of 2003, and three 1st place finishes in various events of he World Poker Challenge in March of 2003.

Season 2 of the WPT saw Men Nguyen taking 5 purses in the Legends of Poker tournament, 3 being final table finishes, one a 1st place victory. Two months later, Nguyen took another 1st position finish in the World Poker Finals, worth $54,536. In late February of 2004, Men took $25,000 for a 1st place win in Event #2 of the Shooting Star WPT tournament. Just a month later, Men Nguyen finished 1st in Event #14 of the WPT World Poker Challenge, and 8th overall.

Men’s success carried over into the 3rd season of the WPT, his most lucrative in December of 2004 at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic. Nguyen narrowed the field into heads-up play, but came just shy with a 2nd place win, taking home $156,059. Then again in March of 2005, Men finished 6th in the WPT Shooting Star Main Event for $200,000.

Nguyen has continued to find high profitability in the following seasons of the WPT. In its 4th season, Men Nguyen took 6th overall in the Five-Star World Poker Classic, WPT Championship of season 4, and $292,915 in winnings. Two years later, Ngyuen made his way into 3rd position for $241,193 at the World Poker Open Championship.

Lee Watkinson is one of the fiercest professional poker players you’d never want to go up against. Known for his extreme aggression and quiet, contemplative demeanor, Watkinson looks like average high-school baseball coach when wearing normal attire, accompanied by a “Full Tilt Poker” baseball hat. During a major competition, however, he’s likely to be found in a dark hooded sweatshirt, with the hood up and black sunglasses on, giving him the predatory appearance of an evil mage or a Star Wars “dark side” character.

Don’t let the characteristics fool you; Lee Watkinson is truly as dangerous as he appears! His major poker tournament records may not seem very intimidating - 37 cashes, 2 final table finishes and 1 WSOP Bracelet - but when you look at Lee’s total career earnings thus far - $3,367,268 - you realize what a threat he can be around the rails.

Born in Cheney Washington on October 18, 1966, Watkinson began playing the game of poker at the age of 17. His deep intellectual skills and timely use of intense poker strategies developed quickly, and it was soon apparent that Lee Watkinson was heading for an immensely successful career as a professional poker player.

Lee Watkinson and the WSOP
Lee Watkinson has seen tremendous success in the World Series of Poker over his professional poker career. His total WSOP earning, including 12 cashes, two of which came in WSOP Circuit events, amount to just under $1.3 million, and a single WSOP Bracelet to show for it.

Watkinson’s first, second and third WSOP purses came in the 2004 World Series of Poker. The first was on May 4, 2004 in Event #14 No Limit Hold’em, where Lee made the final table, finishing in 4th position for $83,560. Interestingly enough, the prize was less than $100 over his entire major-tournament career earnings up to that point (5 cashes for $83,474). Watkinson’s second WSOP cash was realized just two weeks later, taking 2nd place in Event #31 Pot Limit Omaha for an impressive $270,000. Lee’s final cash of the 2004 WSOP came in the No Limit Hold’em Championship where he finished 113th for $15,000.

The 2005 WSOP earned Lee Watkinson nearly another quarter of a million dollars, cashing in two events. Watkinson came in 40th in Event #31 No Limit Hold’em, worth $6,790, followed by a 45th place finish overall in the No Limit Hold’em Championship on July 15, awarding $235390 for his skilled efforts.

At a WSOP Circuit Event, the Ballys Las Vegas Poker Tournament, Lee Watkinson whittled his way through the field only t come up two positions short of a total victory. For his 3rd place final table win, Lee pocketed $138,556.

As the 37th Annual World Series of Poker rolled around in 2006, Watkinson came into the tournament with barrels loaded. Going into Event #16 Pot Limit Omaha, he carved a path through each of his competitors to earn his largest single-match cash to date, $655,746 for a 1st place victory, along with his first and only coveted WSOP Bracelet. Watkinson went on to cash again in Event #29, earning a $4,524 for 30th place.

An entire year passed before Lee Watkinson earned another major poker tournament prize at the 2007 WSOP. In the early and middle stages, it did not appear that Lee Watkinson would be nearly so lucky as he had in previous years, earning two small cashes worth about $12,000 collectively - that is, until Event #55, the No Limit Hold’em Championship. Watkinson fought his way to his nearest WSOP overall victory, reaching the final table, only to be derailed in the 8th position.

Johnny Chan is an industrious professional poker player who’s been turning his prolific talent into a highly lucrative career plying cards for the last thirty years. In 2006, Chan earned his 10th World Series of Poker Bracelet, tying him with Doyle Brunson for the second most WSOP Bracelets next to Phil Hellmuth at 11. Johnny Chan has a long and bountiful history in the professional poker community, having accomplished 54 live tournament cashes, 12 1st-place victories and total live tournament career earnings of $4,327,623.

Chan was born in Guangzhou, China (known today as Canton, China) in 1957. He and his family moved to Hong Kong in 1962, then again in 1968 to Phoenix, Arizona, USA. In 1973, Chan’s family moved once more to Houston, Texas, where they owned several successful restaurants. Johnny Chan had every intention of continuing the family business when he got older, but a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada at the age of 16 changed his focus entirely.

Chan did not divert from his intentions just yet. He finished high school and went on to attend the University of Houston, working towards a master’s degree in hotel and restaurant management until the age of 21, when Johnny Chan dropped out of college, moved to Las Vegas and became a professional poker player.

While his family was surely uncertain and perhaps a bit disappointed in Johnny’s choice, it turned out to be an excellent decision in the long run. By 1985, Chan had been awarded his first WSOP Bracelet, and two years later, skillfully earned the title WSOP Champion, taking down the Main Event and a lucrative prize purse of $625,000. The next year, Johnny Chan followed in the footsteps of Doyle Brunson to become one of the very few poker pros who’ve won the WSOP Main Event two years straight - 1987 and 1988.

Johnny Chan and the WSOP
Johnny Chan has an extensive and highly successful history playing in the World Series of Poker (WSOP). In fact, 39 of his 54 live tournament career cashes came in the WSOP. Chan’s first WSOP finish in the money came in 1983, earning $8,000 for a 4th place win at a Heads-Up Limit Hold’em event. Two years later, Chan received his first of 10 career WSOP Bracelets on May 5, 1985 in a Limit Hold’em event worth $171,000.

Johnny Chan cashed twice in the 1987 WSOP, including taking down the entire field to earn the title of 1987 WSOP Champion and receiving his second WSOP Bracelet. In 1988, Chan became one of the rare elite poker pros to win the WSOP Main Event two years in a row; a feat accomplished by only 4 poker players in the history of the WSOP. Chan pocketed $700,000 and his third WSOP Bracelet for his extraordinary efforts.

Johnny Chan almost created a new record in 1989 by taking down his third consecutive WSOP Championship, but fell one seat shy, finishing in 2nd place for $302,000. In the 1991 WSOP, Chan took one small cash in an early event for finishing 16th, followed by two decent sized cashed in 1992, but Chan’s fourth WSOP Bracelet did not come until 1994, when Johnny Chan finished in the money three times, including a 1st place victory in Event #17 Limit 7 Card Stud, earning about $142,000 altogether.

Between 1995 and 1997, Chan finished six times in the money, earning little more than $100,000 for the first five, but the final sixth was Chan’s fifth WSOP Bracelet win, taking down a Deuce to Seven Lowball event in the 1997 WSOP for $164,250. 1998 saw Chan finishing 2nd in a PL Omaha event for another lucrative prize purse of $77,400.

On April 29, 2000, Johnny Chan was awarded his sixth WSOP Bracelet for clearing the tables in Event #6 PL Hold’em, pocketing $179,400. Chan took home another $10,000 for an 11th place finish in a NL Hold’em event nearly two weeks later. The 2001 WSOP was profitable for Johnny Chan, taking a 14th and 2nd place purse totalling about $215,000. However, the 2002 WSOP was even more kind to Chan, cashing 5 times in all for nearly $300,000 combined; one of those being a 1st place finish that awarded his seventh WSOP Bracelet.

Johnny Chan was on a roll, and it followed him all the way through the 2003 WSOP as well. Chan finished three times in the money, and made the most of two of them, triumphing over the field in Event #15 NL Hold’em and Event #24 PL Omaha for $224,400 and $158,100 respectively. Alongside those impressive purses came Chan’s eight and ninth WSOP Bracelets.

Chan’s final (thus far) WSOP Bracelet came on June 25, 2005, taking down

Joe Hachem is a Lebanese-Australian poker player who has earned more than $10,000,000 playing the game, including a $7.5 million purse for taking the 2005 World Series of Poker by storm. Interestingly enough, Hachem cannot truly be called a professional poker player. Joe claims that poker is only a “hobby” he enjoys while seeking another career to pursue.

Joseph “Joe” Hachem, born in Lebanon November 3, 1966, moved to Australia in 1972 where he grew up to become a very successful chiropractor. Unfortunately, a rare blood disorder forced Hachem to leave the business he so loved. While examining his options for a new career, Joe began playing poker very frequently, especially in online poker rooms.

The big debate as to whether Joe Hachem was a “professional poker player” came up in mid-2005, when Hachem defeated the entire field of 5,618 players at the World Series of Poker to become the WSOP Champion. According to the Australian government, since Hachem was only pursuing a hobby - not a career - the $7,500,000 he won from the event would not be taxable. Of course that did not stop the US government from claiming 30% of the prize in taxation, but the whole tax-free issue has caused a great deal of debate and debacle in his home country.

Though not classified as a “pro”, Joe Hachem is certainly an elite poker player who chose one heck of a good hobby! Since 2000, Hachem has accumulated 28 cashes in major poker tournaments, racking up an impressive $10,414,659
in career - I mean “hobby” - winnings.

Joe Hachem and the WSOP
Joe Hachem is best known for his extremely lucrative World Series of Poker (WSOP) Championship at the 2005 WSOP, triumphing over a field of 5,618 players to take down the Main Event and collecting an enormous purse - the largest prize in WSOP history at that time - $7,500,000. Even more memorable was the fact that the 2005 WSOP was Hachem’s first successful year in the tournament, plus he did not win a seat through online poker qualifiers, as most winners usually do. Hachem actually paid the full $10k buy-in.

During most of the final table, Joe found himself short-stacked against the opposition, not taking a chip lead until only 3 players remained. In a very bold move - some might even say ’stupid’ - Hachem called a Pre-Flop raise, costing him $700,000 while holding 7c-3s. His instincts proved dead-on, Flopping 6h-5d-4d, for a complete Straight. Going heads-up against Steve Dannenmann’s A-3, the Turn offered an Ace, giving Dannenmann a Straight draw that could only tie Hachem’s Straight with a 7 on the River. Hachem bet, followed by a raise from Dannenmann. Hachem went all-in, called by Dannenmann. When the River came up a 4, Dannenmann’s 2-pair could not compete, and Joe Hachem took the pot, the tournament and his first WSOP Bracelet.

Earlier in the 2005 WSOP, Joe earned himself $25,850 for a 10th place finish in Event #37 No Limit Hold’em. Prior to the opening of the WSOP Championship tournament, Hachem was also awarded $88,172 for finish in the 5th position in a WSOP Circuit Event at Ballys Las Vegas Poker Tournament.

On a side note, Hachem developed the catch-phrase “pass the sugar”, having stated such prematurely on a hand that he eventually went on to win, but could have lost on a bad river. When Hachem took down the 2005 WSOP, commentator Norman Chad bolstered, “Hachem turned 7-3 offsuit into $7.5 million. Pass the sugar!”

Hachem entered the 2006 WSOP, earning a large cash early on in Event #5. Joe went heads-up against Russ “Dutch” Boyd and, on the final hand, his A-Q could not defeat Boyd’s A-5 on the River, A-K-9-J-5. Hachem took 2nd place and $256,800 for his efforts. Twelve days later in Event #18 PL Hold’em, Joe Hachem managed a 15th place finish for $9,664. In Event #29, also PL Hold’em, Hachem made the final table to finish in 4th, pocketing another $90,482. The 2006 WSOP Main Event saw Joe finish in 238th place overall, taking his final WSOP cash of the year at $42,882.

Hachem’s name was not nearly so prominent in the 2007 WSOP, having earned only one cash for a 100th place finish in Event #52 NL Hold’em for a small purse of $3,227.

Joe Hachem and the WPT
Joe Hachem’s history with the World Poker Tour (WPT) is short but eventful, having cashed only 3 times in a WPT event throughout his poker playing years. On January 6, 2006, during WPT Season 5, Hachem was awarded $12,000 for 67th place at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. Skipping ahead to March 14, 2008 - WPT Season 6, Hachem pocket $20,000 at the Bay 101 Shooting Start tournament for a 20th place finish in the NL Hold’em Championship. However, it was the cash between those two events that put Joe Hachem’s name into the WPT history books.

Jumping backwards a bit to the 5th season of the WPT, it was December 19, 2006. Hachem was playing in the Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic NL Hold’em Championship. From a field of 583, the last three men standing (er, sitting) were Daniel Negreanu, Jimmy Hanna and Joe Hachem. Negreanu was the first to go, leaving Hanna and Hachem in heads-up. Hachem triumphed over Hanna to take his first WPT Title and his second multi-million prize purse of $2,182,075.

Joe Hachem’s Other Achievements
Joe Hachem has played a number of major poker tournaments in his home country of Australia, including several finishes in the money at the Crown Aussie Millions Championship. Hachem’s first cash came in January of 2003, earning $1,344 for an 8th place finish in an early Limit Hold’em event. His next prize came in the 2005 Aussie Millions, again taking a small cash of $1,253 for a 15th place finish in PL Hold’em. Joe’s final, and most lucrative win, came in the 2006 Aussie Millions, pocketing $45,560 finishing 23rd in Event #9 NL Hold’em Championship.

Joe Hachem has been awarded most of his cashes from Australian poker tournaments, including 4 cashes at the Australian Poker Championships, spanning 2000 to 2002, and 4 cashes in the Victorian Poker Championships; twice in 2004 and twice again in 2007. The 2007 Victorian Championships was the most lucrative, awarding $49,205 when Hachem finished 3rd in Event #13 NL Hold’em.

John D’Agostino, at the ripe age of 25, is a profound poker player who has already earned more than $1.5 million during his short but eventful career. D’Agostino has cashed in 15 major poker tournaments, including 2 final-table finishes in the World Poker Tour (WPT), though he has never taken the title.

Born November 3, 1982 in the moderately small town of Seymour, Connecticut, John D’Agostino did not start playing poker until 2001, and it wasn’t long before he discovered just how talented he was at the game. In 2003, John D’Agostino turned pro, entering various major poker events.

It wasn’t long before D’Agostino, known around the tables as “Jdags”, carved his name into the memory of poker fans around the world, beginning with his first major cash at the 2004 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, where he took 5th place in the No Limit Hold’em Championship and nearly $100k in his pocket. John has made his way into the money at several World Series of Poker tournaments and circuit events, though it is the World Poker Tour that brought D’Agostino most of his career earnings.

John D’Agostino and the WPT
John D’Agostino has a relatively short, yet illustrious history with the World Poker Tour, having collected almost $1.25 million of his career earnings at various WPT event tables. His first WPT victory, and first major tournament cash of his professional career, came at the January 2004 PokerStars Caribbean Poker Adventure, during the 2nd season of the WPT. John finished in 5th in the No Limit Hold’em event, awarding $99,450.

Later that year, in WPT Season 3, John D’Agostino entered the Mirage Poker Showdown, another No Limit Hold’em event, where he finished in 14th position for another $27,002. In November of 2004, John took 7th place in Event #12 of the World Poker Finals for $8,875.

WPT Season 4, and the Borgata Casino in particular, were very generous to John D’Agostino. On September 22, 2005, he found himself seated at the final table of the Borgata Poker Open, where he skillfully paved a path into 4th place, earning a tremendous purse of $349,685. If that weren’t enough, 5 months later on February 1, 2006, D’Agostino one-upped himself by going heads-up against Michael Mizrachi at the final table of the Borgata Winter Open. Mizrachi triumphed in the end, but John was not displeased with his largest single-match cash to date, $591,312, and a 2nd place victory.

John D’Agostino would go on to cash once more in the WPT Season 4, earning 43,935 for a 72nd place completion at the Five-Star World Poker Classic WPT Championship in April of 2006.

In it’s 5th season, John cashed only once in the WPT, during the North American Poker Championships. Then again, it’s hard to be disappointed walking away with just under $100k for sitting around a No Limit Hold’em table for a while. John D’Agostino took 8th place in that event.

D’Agostino’s final WPT triumph to date was once again at the Mirage Poker Showdown on May 23, 2007 - in the 6th season of the WPT. Playing event #10 of the No Limit Hold’em Championship, John worked his way into the 14th position for purse of $28,818.

John D’Agostino and the WSOP
D’Agostino has had little luck with the World Series of Poker (WSOP) when compared to his WPT career, but he has managed to cash 4 times. The first came April 30th, in the 2004 WSOP Event #9, No Limit Hold’em, where John finished in 51st position for $2,700.

John’s second WSOP cash did not come until 2 years later in January of 2006 at the WSOP Circuit Limit HORSE Event at the Grand Casino Tunica Poker Tournament. D’Agostino took 2nd place in Event #21 for a prize of $32,010. Later that year in the 37th Annual WSOP, John D’Agostino barely finished in the money, earning $2,794 for a 150th place finish in Event #6, No Limit Hold’em.

John’s most recent WSOP purse-worthy victory came in the 2007 tournament, taking 30th place in Event #16, Limit HORSE, for $6,923.

John D’Agostino’s Other Achievements
Outside the WSOP and WPT poker circuit, John D’Agostino has earned more than a quarter of a million dollars playing professional poker tournaments. On July 14, 2004, D’Agostino earned $250,000 for a 2nd place victory after going heads-up with Phil Ivey during the Championship Poker At Turning Stone Main Event.

In October of that same year, D’Agostino went into the final table at the United States Poker Championship 2004 with a considerable chip lead. A bad beat of pocket-10s going up against Hoyt Corkins Quad-4s left John sitting with a single chip, only to be eliminated in 6th place with a purse of $63,486.

John D’Agostino and Team Full Tilt
Team Full Tilt is an estimable group of professional poker players who can be found playing online poker exclusively at one of the top online poker communities in the world, Full Tilt Poker. John D’Agostino is among this profound group, which also includes Gus Hansen, Jennifer Harman, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, Phil Ivey, John Juanda and many others.

John D’Agostino Outside of Poker
Off the tables, John D’Agostino is a sports enthusiast, movie-goer and loving father to his daughter Isabella. Currently residing in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, John is an avid Boston Red Sox and North Carolina Tar Heels fan.

Xao “Jerry” Yang, winner of the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event, owns an exceptional place in the history books of the professional poker community. Unlike most poker pro success stories, Jerry did not spend years playing the game of poker; did not learn to play as a young boy, developing his talents over the years; did not seek out a professional career playing poker. In fact, Jerry Yang only began playing poker just two years prior to his tremendous victory.

Born in 1968 in Laos, a small mountainous country in Southeast Asia. In the 1970’s, Laos became a communist country, provoking the Yang family to escape to Thailand. Four difficult years were spent in a refugee camp, where Jerry both lost a brother and a sister. In 1979, the family made their way to the United States. Jerry went on to earn a Masters Degree in Health Psychology from Loma Linda University in Southern California, which lead to a fruitful career as a psychologist and social worker.

Married with six children, Jerry had no intention of quitting his day job to play poker professionally. Yang merely played in occasional small tournaments in the California area. Prior to Yang’s 2007 WSOP victory, Jerry had only cashed in four local events.

Jerry Yang currently holds only two live poker tournament cashes and one WSOP Bracelet, yet his poker career earnings total higher than most professional poker players who’ve been studying the game for years - $8,251,324. His 2007 WSOP victory invoked instant fame for this highly aggressive poker player, jumping Yang from unknown and unranked, to world famous and ranking in the 8th position in all time money for live tournaments.

Jerry Yang and the WSOP
There is an amazing history leading up to Jerry Yang’s 2007 WSOP Championship. Yang entered a satellite event at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in his hometown of Temecula, California, investing a mere $225 USD to eventually come out on top, winning a seat in the 2007 WSOP Main Event.

As the final table of the WSOP got underway, Yang sat precariously with the 8th position in regards to chip count. As the match progressed, Yang aggressively sent seven of his eight opponents to the rails, quickly turning his low stack into a chip-lead that was never relinquished.

Eventually - on July 17, 2007 - Yang went heads-up again Tuan Lam, coming down to the final hand - Yang’s 8c-8d versus Lam’s Ad-Qd. Lam caught a Queen on the Flop, but Yang found a 9-high Straight on the River. After lasting nearly 16-hours at the final table, Yang had done it - he won the 2007 World Series of Poker Championship, claiming his first (and thus far only) WSOP Bracelet and a massive prize purse of $8,250,000. The event ended at local time 3:35am, landing Jerry Yang in the 8th ranked position in the all-time money list in live tournaments.

As the Main Event had progressed, before Yang’s victory came full circle, he made a heartfelt decision. As soon as he knew he would finish in the money, Jerry Yang declared that 10% of his winnings - no matter what they turned out to be - would be donated to charity. Yang stayed true to his promise, donating 10% of his multi-million dollar prize money to three charitable organizations - the Ronald McDonald House, the Make A Wish Foundation and Feed The Children.

Jerry Yang’s Other Achievements
Yang has only cashed in one major poker event aside from his 2007 WSOP victory. Three months after his championship, Yang was seated at Binions Poker Open in Las Vegas, Nevada. Yang finished in 14th position playing Event #21 No Limit Hold’em Championship, for a small prize of $1,324.

Jerry Yang Outside of Poker
When he’s not playing poker, Jerry Yang is usually found at his favorite place, home. Yang continues to serve Southern California as a psychologist and social worker. Yang enjoys many hobbies in his spare time, including hiking and camping, water sports, golf, dancing, reading, working for charities and “anything that is fun”. Yang enjoys Jazz and Pop music, and is a huge fan of Oprah Winfrey.

Jerry Yang currently resides in Temecula, California with his wife and six children, whose pictures he makes sure to kiss just before going all-in in a poker hand. It is Yang’s ambition to one day own his own business (or businesses), while also becoming one of the professional poker communities most successful and respected players.

Jamie Gold is a multi-talented individual best known for his skilled victory at the 2006 World Series of Poker, taking down the Main Event for a whopping $12,000,000. Aside from his professional poker career, Jamie Gold is also a television producer with experience as a talent agent. Since his triumphant WSOP Main Event Bracelet win, Jamie Gold now juggles his time between playing poker, mostly in major live tournaments, and heading up the “Buzznation” entertainment company as president.

Born in Kansas City, Missouri on August 25, 1969 as Jamie M. Usher, he and his mother moved to Manhattan when he was just a boy. When Jamie’s mother remarried Dr. Robert Gold, she went through the courts to have his named legally changed to Jamie M. Gold. The family then moved to Paramus, New Jersey, where Jamie grew up and graduated Paramus High School in 1987. While attending the State University of New York in Albany, Gold earned a bachelors degree in 1991 before going on to UCLA to study Entertainment Law.

At this time, Jamie Gold had set his sights on the entertainment industry in California. By the age of 16, Jamie was employed as an intern at a talent agency, becoming a talent agent himself before he turned 21. Gold quickly moved his way up into the production/management industry. Jamie Gold’s impressive list of clientele includes James Gandolfini, Jimmy Fallon, Lucy Liu, Felicity Huffman, Donnie Wahlberg and others.

While in pursuit of such ambitious goals, Jamie Gold never really intended to become such a successful poker player, though he always had a love and strong instinct for the game. Jamie began playing poker as a young boy. His mother was a very skilled poker player herself, and his grandfather was a champion of Gin Rummy. One might say that from birth, a lucrative poker career was “in the cards” for Jamie Gold.

Jamie Gold never really pursued a major poker event until he met former WSOP champions Johnny Chan and Chris Moneymaker while working on a new television series. Ten-time WSOP Bracelet winner Johnny Chan became a poker mentor to Gold and, in 2005, he began entering poker tournaments on a regular basis. By April of the same year, Jamie Gold had earned his first major victory in the Stars and Stripes tournament at Bicycle Casino in California, pocketing $54,225. Gold earned another 7 cashes at California casinos over the following 12 months leading up to his WSOP championship.

Since late 2004, Jamie has finished in the money 15 times at live poker tournaments, including 2 first place victories and numerous final table finishes. With a single WSOP Bracelet under his belt, Jamie Gold has racked up a very impressive total poker career earning of $12,161,719.

Jamie Gold and the WSOP
Jamie Gold entered the 2006 WSOP under the ‘celebrity player’ label, but quickly made waves in the tournament by outwitting opponents one after another, outlasting all of the other ‘celebrity’ entrants. Four days into the Main Event, Gold held a strong chip-lead, which he maintained until the finish. After seven days into the competition, noted for his poise and calm demeanor at the tables, Gold was offered a contract to become a ‘professional’ poker player.

As it came down to the final table, aside from Allen Cunningham, Jamie Gold held more final table casino tournament finishes than any of the other players combined. Using the same aggressive style as he had throughout the WSOP Main Event, Jamie Gold sent 7 out of the 8 remaining players to the rails himself. Gold’s heads-up opponent, Paul Wasicka, removed the final competitor, Douglas Kim.

In the last hand, Jamie’s Qs-9c outlasted Wasicka’s Pocket-10s by pairing the Queen on the Flop, Qc-8h-5h. The Turn and River, Ad and 4c offered no help for Wasicka, giving Jamie Gold his first WSOP championship and Bracelet, along with a record-breaking prize purse of $12,000,000.

Jamie Gold defended his title at the 2007 WSOP, but his luck fell well short of the previous year. Gold cashed twice that year, taking 44th position in Event #45 NL Hold’em Short Handed for $9,238, followed by an 84th place finish in Event #52 NL Hold’em for $4,840.

Jamie Gold’s Other Achievements
Jamie Gold started most of his poker success in California casino poker tournaments. His first major tournament cash came in a World Poker Tour (WPT) event in the Tour’s 3rd Season. The Legends of Poker Limit E.O. World Championship saw Gold finish in 12th position for a small prize of $985.

Gold’s ‘in the money’ finishes simply got larger and larger from that first profitable victory. The Stars and Stripes tournament at California’s Bicycle Casino was Gold’s next lucrative stop, earning 3 cashes throughout the event. The first came as a $1,060 prize for finishing 9th in the early rounds of NL Hold’em competition. Gold then triumphed in 1st place at a later NL Hold’em event, earning him $54,225. Another $240 made it’s way into Jamie’s pocket by finishing 18th in PL Hold’em.

Gold completed a few more in the money finishes leading throughout 2005 and early 2006 leading up to his famed WSOP championship, including two decent cashes at Larry Flynt’s Grand Slam of Poker 2005, and a 2nd place win in the Sport f Kings tournament on April 7, 2006, awarding $18,400.

Jamie Gold’s most recent cash was at the first annual World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) in September of 2007. Gold finish 35th overall in the NL Hold’em Championship, earning a respectable $50,898 for his skilled efforts.

Jamie Gold Goes to Court
There was a huge controversy over Jamie Gold’s $12 million victory, concerning who the prize money belonged to. The ordeal had nothing to do with the WSOP itself, but rather an agreement Gold had made with Crispin Leyser prior to the event.

As the story goes… Gold had made a deal with Bodog Entertainment to help bring celebrities onto the poker site, then made another deal with Crispin Leyser to assist him in this task by giving him half of whatever he won in the 2006 WSOP Main Event. When the tournament ended, Gold backed out of the deal, deciding to keep the entire $12,000,000 for himself.

Leyser took up the issue in court on August 22, 2006, opening a lawsuit against Jamie Gold. The court judge froze the prize money, allowing Gold to pick up only half of his winnings from the tournament. Gold tried to have he injunction lifted in September of 2006, but was denied. The judge instead moved the remaining fund from the Rio-casino to an interest-bearing account until the case was settled.

Bodog Entertainment cut off its working relationship in January of 2005, followed by Gold and Leyser coming to an agreement on February 7th. The amount agreed upon to settle is not known.

Jamie Gold Outside of Poker
At the age of 39, Jamie Gold resides in Malibu, California, unmarried and with no children. Jamie’s hobbies include his television production job, listening to live music and eating great food.

Doyle Brunson, often referred to by his nickname “Texas Dolly”, is arguably the most famous professional poker player today. His label, ‘The Legend’, proceeds him, and rightfully so, having earned a total of $4,946,188 in live tournament wins over his sensational career, and 10 World Series of Poker Bracelets, tied with Johnny Chan for the second most WSOP bracelets held by a single poker player; bested only by Phil Hellmuth with 11. Doyle Brunson is one of only four poker pros to win the WSOP Main Event in consecutive years, 1976 and 1977.

Born August 10, 1933 in the minutely small town of Longworth, Texas - with a population of about 100 - Doyle Brunson grew up with two younger siblings. Doyle was a gifted athlete as a young boy, having made frequent trips to nearby towns simply by running. A member of the All-State Texas basketball team, Brunson kept in shape during the off-season by running, though basketball was his true passion. Doyle entered the Texas Interscholastic Track Meet in 1950, winning the one-mile race with a time of 4:43.

Brunson attended Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas because he wanted to remain close to home, even though he had received offers from numerous colleges around the country, hoping to make use of his gifted athletic abilities. The Minneapolis Lakers were highly interested in acquiring Doyle Brunson, but unfortunately, a devastating injury to his knee ended his hopeful basketball career. Doyle was working at the time, and tried to catch a shifting stack of sheetrock that fell and broke his leg in two places. That fateful injury saw Doyle wearing a cast for two years and to this day sometimes requires a crutch to get around comfortably. Doyle Brunson was forced to re-evaluate his goals, turning from a promising athletic career to focus on education. Brunson went on to earn a master’s degree in administrative education.

Doyle had begun playing poker long before his injury, finding the game of Five Card Draw to be quite “easy”, but it was only a game played for entertainment. Doyle found himself with plenty of time on his hands during recovery, and began playing poker much more often during that time. Still in college, Doyle played poker often, earning enough to cover all of his expenses. In 1954, Brunson obtained his bachelor’s degree, followed by his master’s a year later.

Immediately after graduating college, Doyle took a job as a business machine salesman. His first day on the job, he was invited to play Seven Card Stud with his co-workers and that night, won more than a month’s salary in only three hours. This brought Doyle Brunson to make what became a prolific decision - he quit his job and became a professional poker player.

Traveling with his friend Dwayne Hamilton, Doyle began his poker career by playing in illegal games on Exchange Street in Fort Worth, Texas. The two started traveling across Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma in search of more action and bigger pots, where Doyle met up with poker pros Amarillo Slim and Sailor Roberts. Playing in illegal games, they were often run by organized crime members. This resulted in Doyle’s admittedly being beaten, robbed and even having a gun pulled on him more than once. Doyle’s friend Dwayne returned to Fort Worth, Texas, but Doyle Brunson remained on the road with Sailor Roberts and Amarillo Slim, traveling the country for better poker games.

From these notorious beginnings, Doyle Brunson has become one of the most influential poker players in the world, having written several famous books on the subject, including ‘Doyle Brunson’s Super System: A Course In Power Poker’, published in 1979, which was updated in 2004 as ‘Super System II’.

Doyle Brunson and the WSOP
Doyle Brunson’s history with the World Series of Poker (WSOP) started in 1976, winning his first two WSOP Bracelets while taking down the Main Event to earn his first WSOP Championship, worth $220,000. He also took 1st place in Event #3 NL Deuce to Seven Lowball, worth $80,250. The following year saw Doyle once again awarded two WSOP Bracelets, taking down the Main Event two years straight - the first, and one of only four professional poker players, to have done so - this time pocketing $340,000. Doyle’s other win that year was a 1st place finish in Event #5 Limit Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo, earning $62,500.

In the 1978 WSOP, Doyle claimed his 5th WSOP Bracelet winning 1st place in a Limit Seven Card Stud event worth $68,000. In 1979, Brunson not only won another WSOP Bracelet playing Mixed Doubles NL Hold’em, awarding $4,500, he also finished and published his poker strategy book, Doyle Brunson’s Super System: A Course In Power Poker. Interestingly enough, before the publication of his poker book, Doyle Brunson had always achieved 1st place victories in all of the events he had won in the WSOP. After revealing his poker tournament strategies, he found many cashes in the WSOP, but his bracelets came much less frequently.

In the 1980 WSOP, Brunson earned two 2nd place cashes totalling $221,000; one being a 2nd place overall finish in the WSOP Main Event. Doyle finished 3rd in an early event of the 1982 WSOP, followed by a 4th overall finish in the Main Event, pocketing $66,625 altogether. In 1983, Doyle Brunson again finished 3rd in the WSOP Main Event, earning another $108,000. Brunson’s next WSOP cash did not come until 1986, earning $19,080 for a 4th place finish in Event #2

Charles “Chip” Jett is a tremendously successful poker player who’s been playing the game for most of his life, but didn’t turn pro until 1993. Considered to be one of the top poker tournament players in the world, Chip Jett has earned 91 major tournament cashes over his profound career, including 8 first-place finishes, but has yet to receive a WSOP Bracelet.

Born September 22, 1974 in Scottsdale, Arizona, Charles Jett received the nickname “Chip” as soon as he was born. On the suggestion of a hospital nurse, the alias “Chip” was immediately picked up by his parents and has stuck with him ever since. Jett’s poker career actually began on the other side of the table, working as a poker dealer at an Indian Casino near his home in Scottsdale.

While dealing cards, Chip found himself quickly picking up on the various strategies of the players at his table. Chip decided to put his newfound knowledge to the test, competing at the tables in the same casino where he worked. Over the next 6 years, Jett found himself playing poker for more hours than he spent dealing the game, and quite lucratively at that.

Chip Jett quickly gained a reputation for being one of the strongest, most aggressive poker players in the area, taking down numerous cashes at local poker tournaments. After so many years of success at these small-time events, Chip decided it was time to move on to bigger and better, and substantially more profitable, poker tournaments.

Chip Jett went to Hollywood in 2001 to participate in the LA Poker Classic, where he immediately made name for himself by working his way to 5 final tables. His lasting impression was escalated by the fact that he didn’t just excel in one or two venues, but finished well into the money in a wide variety of poker games, including No Limit Hold’em, Omaha Hi/Lo, 7 Card Stud, 7 Card Stud hi/Lo and H.O.R.S.E.

In the coming years, Chip Jett would earn a current career total of $2,029,443, including 8 1st-place victories and 33 final table finishes. At age 33, Jett’s goal in life is to win enough money that he can kick back on the beach every day, only participating in about 12 tournaments each year.

Chip Jett and the WPT
The World Poker Tour (WPT) has been especially generous to Chip Jett, consisting of 26 career cashes at various WPT events since the very first season. Starting at the World Poker Finals in November of 2002, Chip Jett eliminated the entire field of competition not once, but twice, in Event #9 Limit 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo and again in Event #11 No Limit Hold’em for prizes of $18,870 and $35,700 respectively.

In January of 2003, Chip Jett cashed twice at the WPT Jack Binion World Poker Open, including a 1st place victory worth $129,589, and twice again at the LA Poker Classic in February, including another 1st place finish awarding $47,965. One month later, Chip Jett went heads-up against Howard Lederer at the final table of the PartyPoker Million II. Jett would eventually fall to Lederer, but pocketed $175,900 for the 2nd place victory.

The WPT World Poker Challenge 2003 saw Jett earn another 3 final table finishes, two in 3rd place and one in 6th, worth $9,006 collectively.

In WPT Season 2, Chip Jett claimed another four purses, including a 4th place final table at the Legends of Poker tournament worth just over $100,000, and a $58,196 prize for an 8th position finish at the 2003 Five Diamond tournament. WPT Seasons 3 saw Chip Jett earning another three cashes totalling about $71,000, including an 11th place purse of $50,000 at the Shooting Start Tournament Main Event.

In it’s 4th season, Chip Jett took down another six purses at WPT events, collecting $220,084 for his skilled efforts. The largest WPT cashes of the year came on October 14, 2005 during the Festa al Lago IV, achieving a 2nd place final table finish for $107,900, followed by a 37th place finish of $73,230 at the Five-Star World Poker Classic WPT Championship on April 24, 2006.

Jett cashed once in WPT Season 5, his dullest year on the tour since it’s inception in, earning $27,694 for a 27th place end at the Borgata Poker Classic No Limit Hold’em Championship. Chip Jett has yet to cash in the ongoing WPT Season 6.

Chip Jett and the WSOP
Though not as prolific as Chip Jett’s WPT accomplishments, having won not a single bracelet to date, the World Series of Poker (WSOP) has still had a lucrative impact on Jett’s professional poker career. Jett’s first success with the WSOP came in 2003, cashing in at two final tables with a 9th and 7th place finish worth $6,500 and $6,300 respectively.

The 2004 WSOP was slightly more kind to Jett, again cashing in two events, but no final tables this time. Jett earned $10,360 for a 13th position at a No Limit Hold’em event, and $4,300 coming in 12th playing Limit Razz. At the 2005 WSOP, Jett earned another purse, much more profitable this time, pocketing $99,265 for a final table 3rd place finish playing Event #23, Limit 7 Card Stud.

Jett took home $17,365 for 16th place at a WSOP Circuit event in August of 2005 at the Grand Casino Tunica Poker Tournament, leading up to the 2006 WSOP, in which he accomplished another two cashes, but again no final tables.

Juan Carlos Mortensen, known better as Carlos, is an amazingly talented professional poker player, noted for his unusually artistic chip-stacking designs, frequently successful bluffing techniques a loose play at the tables. Read any Texas Hold’em poker strategy and you’ll find that a loose betting style is commonly associated with inexperienced players. Why? Because they lose a lot! Not Carlos Mortensen, though. He has turned loose poker play into an art, accumulating 65 major tournament cashes, 12 first place finishes, 2 WSOP Bracelets and a whopping $8,339,895 in career earnings.

Born April 13, 1972 in Ambato, Ecuador, Carlos grew up in a farming lifestyle with his 5 siblings. His father was an international diplomat, which gave Carlos the opportunity to study in Paris, where he also entered military school. At the age of 15, he moved to Madrid, Spain, shooting pool and playing chess in his spare time. Mortensen earned a degree in math and physics during his college years, where he met Cecilia Reyes, who he would marry soon after.

While holding a job as a bartender in the same club he often played poker, Mortensen came across a group of men who had recently visited America and learned the game of Texas Hold’em. They were playing poker at one of the tables, which piqued Mortensen’s interest. He decided to play, bringing $100 to the table. Carlos lost it all. That night he contemplated the events of the evening, analyzing how he had lost; so much so that he didn’t even sleep that night. He was so intrigued by the game that poker became his study, his life and his dream.

Carlos made the big move to the United States to enter the 1999 World Series of Poker. His friends from Spain had gathered enough money to pay the buy-in, and Mortensen wasn’t about to miss out on such an opportunity.

Although Carlos was ousted from the tournament about halfway through, too early to finish in the money, he did end up earning about $50,000 in cash games over the coming months. And thus, Carlos Mortensen began his career as a professional poker player. On top of his 2 WSOP Bracelets, Mortensen has claimed 3 World Poker Tour titles, plus the coveted title of World Poker Tour Champion, Season 5.

Carlos Mortensen and the WSOP
though his first appearance at the 1999 World Series of Poker (WSOP) was unsuccessful, Carlos Mortensen was not deterred. He came back the next year on May 12, 2000 to finish in the 7th position in Event #20 No Limit Hold’em for $22,575. Though not a substantial cash when compared to the highest WSOP purses, it was enough to keep Carlos coming back for more.

The 2001 WSOP saw Carlos Mortensen sending opponents, one after another, to the rails in Event #27 No Limit Hold’em until only he was remaining, claiming his first WSOP Bracelet and a prize of $1,500,000.

The following year was profitable, but less glamorous for Carlos, taking one cash in the 2002 WSOP for an 11th place purse of $40,940. In 2003, however, Mortensen once again made his name known, earning a total of 3 cashes that included another WSOP Bracelet, and $251,680, for taking down Event #34 Limit Hold’em.

The name Carlos Mortensen virtually dropped off the WSOP map for the next two years, earning nothing in 2004 and only 3 small cashes in 2005, totaling less than $19,000. Carlos splashed his way back onto the scene at the 2006 WSOP, as if to say “I’m here! Remember me?”

Carlos finished in the money 5 times during the 2006 WSOP, 4 of those at final tables (2nd, 9th, 9th and 10th) and the other just shy at 17th position. Mortensen earned a collective $221,887 for his skilled efforts, also showing his ranged ability for various poker games, taking the 2nd place victory in Razz.

Carlos made an impressive run at the 2007 WSOP, but fell quite short of the championship, finishing 217th overall in the No Limit Hold’em Championship for a prize of $51,398.

Carlos Mortensen and the WPT
Carlos Mortensen’s history with the World Poker Tour (WPT) is simply phenomenal, starting in 2002 with the opening Season of the WPT. Over this time, Carlos has accumulated an enormous WPT collective prize purse of more than $5.5 million; well over half of his current total career earnings.

Mortensen’s first WPT prize came in Season 1 at the Legend of Poker tournament, finishing a No Limit Hold’em event in 6th place for $3,180 in August of 2002. In November of that same year, Carlos cashed twice in the WPT World Poker Finals, the first being a 17th place finish for $1,050, and the second being a 1st place victory in Event #14, awarding a much nicer prize of $53,280.

February of 2003, still in it’s first season, the WPT hosted the annual LA Poker Classic, in which Carlos Mortensen made his way twice into the final table in Events #21 and #24, finishing 7th and 10th for $4,950 and $21,355 respectively. Two months later, Carlos entered the Five-Star World Poker Classic WPT Championship, finish 9th in an early No Limit Hold’em Event to pocket $7,820.

During the WPT off-season, Carlos claimed his second WSOP Bracelet, but turned his attention back to the WPT as Season 2 got underway. On September 22, 2003, the Borgata Poker Open saw Carlos finish at the final table in 4th position, earning $70,500. In December, Mortensen earned a small cash of $3,623 at the Five Diamond poker tournament, but it didn’t compare with what was to come in February of 2004. The LA Poker Classic kicked off again, and Carlos found himself the final man standing - or sitting as it may be - at Event #22 Pot Limit Hold’em. Mortensen was awarded his first WPT Title, along with $117,650.

The 3rd season of the WPT was another big success story for Carlos Mortensen, though it didn’t start out that way. He cashed a total of five times, the first four adding up to about $30,000 with no final table finishes. The fifth prize winning finish, however, delivered Mortensen’s second WPT Title and a massive purse of $1,000,000 - his largest single-cash victory up to this point - for taking down the entire Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship Main Event on October 22, 2004.

WPT Season 4 did not offer any more titles to Carlos Mortensen, but he did manage to finish in the money 6 times spanning the 2005/2006 season, including 2nd place at the Mirage Poker Showdown for $72,844, and a final table 5th place finish in Event #9 No Limit Hold’em at the Bellagio Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $31,330.

Carlos Mortensen achieved his grandest victory in WPT Season 5, totalling 4 purses. The first was at the Mandalay Bay Poker Championships Main Event, ending in 12th position for $33,600. The second and third cashes came at the Festa al Lago tournament for 16th place in a No Limit Hold’em event and 14th place in the No Limit Hold’em Championship, earning $3,730 and $41,745 respectively.

Mortensen’s fourth and final WPT Season 5 victory, however, has carved his name into the history books. Carlos skillfully paved his way to victory, earning the title WPT World Champion by taking down the entire field at the WPT World Poker Championships on April 27, 2007, pocketing a massive prize of $3,970,415.

Carlos Mortensen’s Other Achievements
Carlos has cashed twice in the European Poker Tour (EPT), the most recent being a strong run for the EPT Grand Finals title. His first finish in the money came in September of 2004 at the Barcelona Open. Mortensen finished 3rd at the Heads-Up No Limit Hold’em final table for $19,659.

In March of 2007, Carlos Mortensen almost made the final table of the EPT Grand Final Main Event in Monte Carlo, but was derailed in 11th position by Joshua Prager. Carlos made a Straight on the turn, but Prager’s Flush came on the River, sending Mortensen home with an admirable prize of $86,973.

Carlos Mortensen Outside of Poker
Carlos Mortensen is 35 years old, residing in Las Vegas, Nevada. He often goes by the nickname “El Matador”. Carlos and his wife Cecilia Reyes Mortensen, also a poker player, were divorced in 2006.

Aaron Bartley is widely regarded as one of the world’s best professional poker players - not because he was won any World Series of Poker (WSOP) Bracelets, or World Poker Tour (WPT) Titles, or any live poker events for that matter, but because his name has consistently come up in the prize pool at major poker events, especially in the WSOP, since his start in 2005. In this little time, Aaron Bartley has earned himself $215,577.

Born in 1983, Aaron Bartley hails from Cary, North Carolina, where he grew up in a family of fanatical card players. Many an evening was spent around the table playing various card games like Spades, Hearts, Canasta, Bridge, Gin and Sheepshead. Bartley was introduced to the game of poker at a very early age, and was instantly hooked on the game.

Aaron began honing his competitive poker skills on his computer at online poker rooms. This choice paid off enormously for Aaron when he won a satellite competition that saw him seated in his first live event competition at the 2005 WSOP Circuit Event in Atlantic City. Success came quickly for Aaron, as this became his first professional poker cash, his largest current cash to date, and the start of an interesting professional poker career that includes an honorable Team Full Tilt membership, alongside some of the most successful and influential poker pros in the industry.

Aaron Bartley and the WSOP
Aaron Bartley’s very first major, live poker tournament was experienced at the 2005 World Series Of Poker Circuit Event in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Bartley won his seat at the WSOP table by triumphing over the field in an online poker satellite tournament. Aaron whittled his way through the competition, earning himself a 5th position cash on January 18 in the 2006 WSOP Circuit Main Event, No Limit Holdem, worth $141,930.

Aaron Bartley instantly gained fame with this massive cash. Seeming to come out of nowhere, Aaron was suddenly considered to be a real contender in the upcoming WSOP championship. As expected, this would not be his last ‘in the money’ appearance at WSOP events, but the $141,930 still stands as Aaron Bartley’s largest single-cash prize winning in a major poker event.

The next year, Aaron Bartley entered the 2006 WSOP Circuit Event at Caesars Las Vegas Poker Tournament. The No Limit Holdem competition saw Bartley finish in 10th place for a small cash of $584 on May 3, 2006. Just one month later, Aaron was seated at Harrahs Casino in Las Vegas for WSOP Event #4, Limit Holdem, where he earned his way into the prize pool again for an 18th place cash of $11,663.

The 2006 WSOP had not seen the last of Aaron Bartley just yet. He earned a 10th place finish in Event #29, Pot Limit Holdem, earning another $14,219 on July 19th. At the 2006 WSOP Finals, Event #39 No Limit Holdem Championship, Aaron managed to work his way into the 137th position, far enough into the tournament to cash, pocketing his second largest single-cash winnings of $47,006.

Aaron Bartley’s Other Achievements
On June 23, 2007, Aaron Barley entered the 1st Annual Binions Poker Classic in Las Vegas, Nevada. Playing a mix of Limit and No Limit Holdem, Bartley finished in 19th place for a whopping $175 cash prize - his most recent to date.

Aaron Bartley has cashed a total of 6 times in his 3-year career as a professional poker player, earning a total of $215,577. His style of play has been criticized for being entirely too loose to be a professional poker player, but with many years ahead of him, Aaron Bartley could easily become one of the top ranked poker pros as he continues to build a foundation of experience in the industry.

Aaron Bartley and Team Full Tilt
Aaron Bartley is a member of Team Full Tilt, a remarkable group of professional poker players who can be found playing poker online exclusively at one of the most popular poker sites in the world, Full Tilt Poker. Aaron Bartley finds himself honorably grouped among other members of Team Full Tilt that include such legendary poker players as Gus Hansen, Erik Seidel, Phil Ivey, Chris Ferguson, Clonie Gowen, Howard Lederer, Jennifer Harman, Mike Matusow and many more.

Aaron Bartley Outside of Poker
When Aaron Bartley isn’t honing his skills at live poker tournaments, or playing online at Full Tilt Poker, he enjoys listening to various genres of music, going to the movies and reading books, especially biographies. Aaron Bartley currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.