1.
Las Vegas Valley
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The Las Vegas Valley is a major metropolitan area located in the southern part of the U. S. state of Nevada. The largest urban agglomeration in the state, it is the heart of the Las Vegas–Paradise-Henderson, the Valley is largely defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a 600 sq mi basin area surrounded by mountains to the north, south, east and west of the metropolitan area. The Valley is home to the three largest incorporated cities in Nevada, Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas, six unincorporated towns governed by the Clark County government are part of the Las Vegas Township and constitute the largest community in the state of Nevada. Since the 1990s the Las Vegas Valley has seen exponential growth, in 2014, a record breaking 41 million visited the Las Vegas area, producing a gross metropolitan product of more than $100 billion. The first reported non-Native American visitor to the Las Vegas Valley was the Mexican scout Rafael Rivera in 1829. Las Vegas was named by Mexicans in the Antonio Armijo party, including Rivera, in the 19th century, areas of the valley contained artesian wells that supported extensive green areas, or meadows, hence the name Las Vegas. The area was settled by Mormon farmers in 1854 and later became the site of a United States Army fort in 1864. Since the 1930s, Las Vegas has generally been identified as a center as well as a resort destination. Nellis Air Force Base is located in the northeast corner of the valley, the ranges that the Nellis pilots use and various other land areas used by various federal agencies, limit growth of the valley in terms of geographic area. Businessman Howard Hughes arrived in the late 1960s and purchased many casino hotels, as well as television, legitimate corporations began to purchase casino hotels as well, and the mob was run out by the federal government over the next several years. The constant stream of tourist dollars from the hotels and casinos was augmented by a new source of money from the establishment of what is now Nellis Air Force Base. The influx of personnel and casino job-hunters helped start a land building boom which is now leveling off. The Las Vegas area remains one of the top entertainment destinations. The valley is contained in the Las Vegas Valley landform and this includes the cities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, and Henderson, and the unincorporated towns of Paradise, Spring Valley, Sunrise Manor, Enterprise, Winchester, and Whitney. The valley is located within the larger metropolitan area, as the metropolitan area covers all of Clark County -including parts that do not fall within the valley. The government of Clark County has an Urban Planning Area of Las Vegas and this definition is a roughly rectangular area, about 20 mi from east to west and 30 miles from north to south. Notable exclusions from the Urban Planning Area include Red Rock, Blue Diamond, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department is the largest police department in the valley and the state and exercises jurisdiction in the entire county. The department does not exercise jurisdiction in areas with separate police forces such as North Las Vegas, Henderson, Boulder City, Nellis Air Force Base
2.
Nevada
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Nevada is a state in the Western, Mountain West, and Southwestern regions of the United States of America. Nevada is the 7th most extensive, the 34th most populous, nearly three-quarters of Nevadas people live in Clark County, which contains the Las Vegas–Paradise metropolitan area where three of the states four largest incorporated cities are located. Nevada is officially known as the Silver State because of the importance of silver to its history and economy. It is also known as the Battle Born State, because it achieved statehood during the Civil War, as the Sage-brush State, for the plant of the same name. Nevada borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, Nevada is largely desert and semi-arid, much of it located within the Great Basin. Areas south of the Great Basin are located within the Mojave Desert, while Lake Tahoe, about 86% of the states land is managed by various jurisdictions of the U. S. federal government, both civilian and military. Before European contact, Native Americans of the Paiute, Shoshone, the first Europeans to explore the region were Spanish. They called the region Nevada because of the snow covered the mountains in winter. The area formed part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, the United States annexed the area in 1848 after its victory in the Mexican–American War, and it was incorporated as part of Utah Territory in 1850. The discovery of silver at the Comstock Lode in 1859 led to a boom that became an impetus to the creation of Nevada Territory out of western Utah Territory in 1861. Nevada became the 36th state on October 31,1864, as the second of two added to the Union during the Civil War. Nevada has a reputation for its libertarian laws, in 1940, with a population of just over 110,000 people, Nevada was by far the least-populated state, with less than half the population of the next least-populated state. However, legalized gambling and lenient marriage and divorce laws transformed Nevada into a major tourist destination in the 20th century, Nevada is the only U. S. state where prostitution is legal, though it is illegal in Clark County, Washoe County and Carson City. The tourism industry remains Nevadas largest employer, with mining continuing as a sector of the economy. The name Nevada comes from the Spanish nevada, meaning snow-covered, most Nevadans pronounce the second syllable of their state name using the vowel of trap. Many from outside the Western United States pronounce it with the vowel of father, although the latter pronunciation is closer to the Spanish pronunciation, it is not the pronunciation preferred by most Nevadans. State Assemblyman Harry Mortenson proposed a bill to recognize the alternate pronunciation of Nevada, though the bill was not supported by most legislators, the Nevadan pronunciation is the de facto official one, since it is the one used by the state legislature. Nevada is almost entirely within the Basin and Range Province, and is broken up by many mountain ranges
3.
Adairville, Kentucky
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Adairville is a home rule-class city in Logan County, Kentucky, in the United States. Established on 31 January 1833, it was named for Governor John Adair, the population was 920 at the 2000 census. Future president Andrew Jackson killed Charles Dickinson as the result of a duel here in 1806, according to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.3 square miles, all land. As of the census of 2000, there were 920 people,398 households, the population density was 704.8 people per square mile. There were 431 housing units at a density of 330.2 per square mile. The racial makeup of the city was 79. 13% White,18. 70% African American,0. 43% Native American,0. 87% from other races, hispanic or Latino of any race were 2. 61% of the population. 31. 4% of all households were made up of individuals and 16. 3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.79. In the city, the population was out with 23. 5% under the age of 18,7. 4% from 18 to 24,26. 4% from 25 to 44,26. 1% from 45 to 64. The median age was 40 years, for every 100 females there were 85.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.6 males, the median income for a household in the city was $27,266, and the median income for a family was $40,139. Males had an income of $26,618 versus $20,568 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,490, about 9. 6% of families and 13. 9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14. 9% of those under age 18 and 21. 1% of those age 65 or over
4.
Las Vegas
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The city anchors the Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area and is the largest city within the greater Mojave Desert. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city known primarily for its gambling, shopping, fine dining, entertainment and it is the leading financial, commercial, and cultural center for Nevada. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World and it is a top three destination in the United States for business conventions and a global leader in the hospitality industry, claiming more AAA Five Diamond hotels than any city in the world. Today, Las Vegas annually ranks as one of the worlds most visited tourist destinations. The citys tolerance for numerous forms of adult entertainment earned it the title of Sin City, and has made Las Vegas a popular setting for literature, films, television programs, Las Vegas was settled in 1905 and officially incorporated in 1911. At the close of the 20th century, it was the most populated American city founded within that century, population growth has accelerated since the 1960s, and between 1990 and 2000 the population nearly doubled, increasing by 85. 2%. Rapid growth has continued into the 21st century, and according to a 2013 estimate, perhaps the earliest visitors to the Las Vegas area were nomadic Paleo-Indians, who traveled there 10,000 years ago, leaving behind petroglyphs. Anasazi and Paiute tribes followed at least 2,000 years ago, a young Mexican scout named Rafael Rivera is credited as the first non-Native American to encounter the valley, in 1829. Trader Antonio Armijo led a 60-man party along the Spanish Trail to Los Angeles, the area was named Las Vegas, which is Spanish for the meadows, as it featured abundant wild grasses, as well as desert spring waters for westward travelers. The year 1844 marked the arrival of John C, frémont, whose writings helped lure pioneers to the area. Downtown Las Vegas Fremont Street is named after him, eleven years later members of the LDS Church chose Las Vegas as the site to build a fort halfway between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles, where they would travel to gather supplies. The fort was abandoned several years afterward, the remainder of this Old Mormon Fort can still be seen at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Washington Avenue. Las Vegas was founded as a city in 1905, when 110 acres of adjacent to the Union Pacific Railroad tracks were auctioned in what would become the downtown area. In 1911, Las Vegas was incorporated as a city,1931 was a pivotal year for Las Vegas. At that time, Nevada legalized casino gambling and reduced residency requirements for divorce to six weeks and this year also witnessed the beginning of construction on nearby Hoover Dam. The influx of workers and their families helped Las Vegas avoid economic calamity during the Great Depression. The construction work was completed in 1935, in 1941, the Las Vegas Army Air Corps Gunnery School was established. Currently known as Nellis Air Force Base, it is home to the team called the Thunderbirds
5.
World Series of Poker
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The World Series of Poker is a series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Caesars Entertainment Corporation. The winner of each event receives a World Series of Poker bracelet, over the years, the tournament has grown in both the number of events and in the number of participants. Each year, the WSOP culminates with the $10,000 no-limit holdem Main Event, the victor receives a multi-million dollar cash prize and a bracelet, which has become the most coveted award a poker player can win. The winner of the World Series of Poker Main Event is considered to be the World Champion of Poker, as of 2014, the WSOP consists of 65 events, with most major poker variants featured. However, in recent years, over half of the events have been variants of Texas hold em, Events traditionally take place during one day or over several consecutive days during the series in June and July. However, starting in 2008, the Main Event final table was delayed until November, the 2012 Main Event final table commenced in October because of the United States presidential election. Since 1971, all WSOP events have been tournaments with cash prizes, in 1973, a five-card stud event was added. Since then, new events have added and removed. Since 1976, a bracelet has been awarded to the winner of every event at the annual WSOP, later on, the tournament grew slowly for over a decade, reaching 52 participants in 1982. In the early 1980s, satellite tournaments were introduced, allowing people to win their way into the various events, by 1987, there were over 2,100 entrants in the entire series. At the 2006 World Series of Poker, there were 45 events, participation in the Main Event peaked that year, with 8,773 players. Currently, Texas hold em, Omaha hold em and Seven-card stud, H. O. R. S. E. has been played in the past and returned in 2006. Also, S. H. O. E. has been played in the past, other events played in the past include Chinese poker, Five card stud, and many others. Like most tournaments, the sponsoring casino takes a fee and distributes the rest. In the 2005 Main Event, US$52,818,610 in prize money was distributed among 560 players, with US$7.5 million as the first prize. The 2006 Main Event, won by Jamie Gold, is the largest single poker tournament by prize pool or by entrant numbers in history, in July 2010, it was announced that the winner of the 2010 Main Event would receive just under US$9 million. 11% of the went to Lalibertés charity, the One Drop Foundation. At the time of the announcement,15 of the maximum 48 seats had been taken
6.
World Series of Poker bracelet
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The World Series of Poker bracelet is considered the most coveted non-monetary prize a poker player can win. Since 1976, a bracelet has been awarded to the winner of every event at the annual WSOP, even if the victory occurred before 1976, WSOP championships are now counted as bracelets. During the first years of the WSOP only a handful of bracelets were awarded each year, in 1990, there were only 14 bracelet events. By 2000, that increased to 24. As the popularity of poker has increased during the 2000s, the number of events has likewise increased, in 2011,58 bracelets were awarded at the WSOP, seven at the World Series of Poker Europe, and one to the WSOP National Circuit Champion. This brought the number of bracelets awarded up to 959. Five additional bracelets were awarded for the first time in April 2013 at the inaugural World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific in Melbourne, Australia. Since Chris Moneymaker won the 2003 Main Event, only two players have won and followed it up with a win in another event, Jonathan Duhamel. The 1976 bracelet looked like gold nuggets kind of hammered flat, the bracelet in 1976 cost approximately $500. In the 1980s, Las Vegas jeweler Mordechai Yerushalmi became the manufacturer of WSOP bracelets until Harrahs Entertainment bought the rights to the WSOP in 2004. According to 2003 WSOP Champion Chris Moneymaker, the design of the bracelet remained relatively unchanged under Yerushalmi, in 2005, Gold and Diamond International based in Memphis, TN won the bid from Harrahs Entertainment to manufacture the 2005 World Series of Poker bracelets. The company also manufactures the WSOP circuit rings, in 2006, Frederick Goldman, Inc. made the WSOP bracelets while luxury watch maker Corum introduced some commemorative watches as part of the prize package. In 2006, the Champions bracelet had 259 stones including 7.2 carats of diamonds,120 grams of white and it also used rubies to represent the heart and diamond suits, a sapphire to represent the spade and three black diamonds to represent the clubs. In 2007, Corum became the official bracelet manufacturer for the WSOP, some of the 2007 World Series of Poker champions received both a watch and a bracelet from Corum. Corum designed four variations for the 2007 World Series of Poker Bracelets, the standard version that is presented to 53 winners features 53 diamonds. The Ladies World Champion receives a bracelet that is adorned with four black diamonds, the $50,000 HORSE Champion Bracelet has 91 black diamonds and two rubies. The World Series of Poker Main Event Bracelet has 120 diamonds on 136 grams of 18 carat white gold, the value of the 2007 bracelets have not been released, but the typical price of a Corum watch ranges from $1, 500–$30, 000+. In 2008, the Main Event Bracelet had 291 diamonds, totalling 2.81 carats set in 168 grams of 18kt white gold, the other 54 event bracelets consisted of 55 diamonds, totalling 0.25 carats set in 80 grams of 14kt yellow gold
7.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
8.
Poker
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Poker is a family of card games that combine gambling, strategy, and skill. Poker games vary in the number of cards dealt, the number of shared or community cards, the number of cards that remain hidden, and the betting procedures. In most modern games, the first round of betting begins with one or more of the players making some form of a forced bet. In standard poker, each player bets according to the rank they believe their hand is worth as compared to the other players. The action then proceeds clockwise as each player in turn must either match, or call, a player who matches a bet may also raise, or increase the bet. The betting round ends when all players have called the last bet or folded. If all but one player folds on any round, the player collects the pot without being required to reveal their hand. If more than one remains in contention after the final betting round, a showdown takes place where the hands are revealed. By the 1990s some gaming historians including David Parlett started to challenge the notion that poker is a derivative of As-Nas. There is evidence that a game called poque, a French game similar to poker, was played around the region where poker is said to have originated. The name of the game likely descended from the Irish Poca or even the French poque, yet it is not clear whether the origins of poker itself lie with the games bearing those names. It is commonly regarded as sharing ancestry with the Renaissance game of primero, the English game brag clearly descended from brelan and incorporated bluffing. It is quite possible that all of these earlier games influenced the development of poker as it exists now, the unique features of poker have to do with the betting, and do not appear in any known older game. In this view poker originated much later, in the early or mid-18th century and it was played in a variety of forms, with 52 cards, and included both straight poker and stud. 20 card poker was a variant for two players, the development of poker is linked to the historical movement that also saw the invention of commercial gambling. English actor Joseph Crowell reported that the game was played in New Orleans in 1829, with a deck of 20 cards, and four players betting on which players hand was the most valuable. As it spread north along the Mississippi River and to the West during the gold rush, soon after this spread, the full 52-card French deck was used and the flush was introduced. The draw was added prior to 1850, during the American Civil War, many additions were made including stud poker, and the straight
9.
Tennessee
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Tennessee is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th largest and the 17th most populous of the 50 United States, Tennessee is bordered by Kentucky and Virginia to the north, North Carolina to the east, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi to the south, and Arkansas and Missouri to the west. The Appalachian Mountains dominate the eastern part of the state, Tennessees capital and second largest city is Nashville, which has a population of 654,610. Memphis is the states largest city, with a population of 655,770, the state of Tennessee is rooted in the Watauga Association, a 1772 frontier pact generally regarded as the first constitutional government west of the Appalachians. What is now Tennessee was initially part of North Carolina, Tennessee was admitted to the Union as the 16th state on June 1,1796. Tennessee was the last state to leave the Union and join the Confederacy at the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861, occupied by Union forces from 1862, it was the first state to be readmitted to the Union at the end of the war. Tennessee furnished more soldiers for the Confederate Army than any other state besides Virginia and this sharply reduced competition in politics in the state until after passage of civil rights legislation in the mid-20th century. This city was established to house the Manhattan Projects uranium enrichment facilities, helping to build the worlds first atomic bomb, Tennessees major industries include agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism. Poultry, soybeans, and cattle are the primary agricultural products, and major manufacturing exports include chemicals, transportation equipment. In the early 18th century, British traders encountered a Cherokee town named Tanasi in present-day Monroe County, the town was located on a river of the same name, and appears on maps as early as 1725. The meaning and origin of the word are uncertain, some accounts suggest it is a Cherokee modification of an earlier Yuchi word. It has been said to mean meeting place, winding river, according to ethnographer James Mooney, the name can not be analyzed and its meaning is lost. The modern spelling, Tennessee, is attributed to James Glen, the governor of South Carolina, the spelling was popularized by the publication of Henry Timberlakes Draught of the Cherokee Country in 1765. In 1788, North Carolina created Tennessee County, the county to be established in what is now Middle Tennessee. When a constitutional convention met in 1796 to organize a new out of the Southwest Territory. Other sources differ on the origin of the nickname, according to the Columbia Encyclopedia. Tennessee ties Missouri as the state bordering the most other states, the state is trisected by the Tennessee River. The highest point in the state is Clingmans Dome at 6,643 feet, Clingmans Dome, which lies on Tennessees eastern border, is the highest point on the Appalachian Trail, and is the third highest peak in the United States east of the Mississippi River
10.
United States Navy
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The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U. S. Navy is the largest, most capable navy in the world, the U. S. Navy has the worlds largest aircraft carrier fleet, with ten in service, two in the reserve fleet, and three new carriers under construction. The service has 323,792 personnel on duty and 108,515 in the Navy Reserve. It has 274 deployable combat vessels and more than 3,700 operational aircraft as of October 2016, the U. S. Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which was established during the American Revolutionary War and was effectively disbanded as a separate entity shortly thereafter. It played a role in the American Civil War by blockading the Confederacy. It played the role in the World War II defeat of Imperial Japan. The 21st century U. S. Navy maintains a global presence, deploying in strength in such areas as the Western Pacific, the Mediterranean. The Navy is administratively managed by the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Navy is itself a division of the Department of Defense, which is headed by the Secretary of Defense. The Chief of Naval Operations is an admiral and the senior naval officer of the Department of the Navy. The CNO may not be the highest ranking officer in the armed forces if the Chairman or the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression, the United States Navy is a seaborne branch of the military of the United States. The Navys three primary areas of responsibility, The preparation of naval forces necessary for the prosecution of war. The development of aircraft, weapons, tactics, technique, organization, U. S. Navy training manuals state that the mission of the U. S. Armed Forces is to prepare and conduct prompt and sustained combat operations in support of the national interest, as part of that establishment, the U. S. Navys functions comprise sea control, power projection and nuclear deterrence, in addition to sealift duties. It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day, that without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, the Navy was rooted in the colonial seafaring tradition, which produced a large community of sailors, captains, and shipbuilders. In the early stages of the American Revolutionary War, Massachusetts had its own Massachusetts Naval Militia, the establishment of a national navy was an issue of debate among the members of the Second Continental Congress. Supporters argued that a navy would protect shipping, defend the coast, detractors countered that challenging the British Royal Navy, then the worlds preeminent naval power, was a foolish undertaking. Commander in Chief George Washington resolved the debate when he commissioned the ocean-going schooner USS Hannah to interdict British merchant ships, and reported the captures to the Congress
11.
Nick Dandolos
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Nicholas Andrea Dandolos commonly known as Nick the Greek was a professional gambler and high roller from Rethymnon, Crete. Dandolos was the son of wealthy parents and he attended the Greek Evangelical College and earned a degree in philosophy. When he was 18 years old, his grandfather sent him to the U. S. A. with an allowance of $150 per week, although Dandolos settled down in Chicago he eventually moved to Montreal where he began gambling on horse races. Dandolos was known throughout his life for winning and losing large sums of money, after winning over $500,000 on horse racing, he moved back to Chicago where he lost it all on card and dice games. He quickly became a master of these games, however, from January 1949 to May 1949, Dandolos played a two-person heads up poker match against poker legend Johnny Moss where the two played virtually every variation of the game that existed at the time. The game, set up by Benny Binion as a tourist attraction, is credited as being the inspiration for the modern day World Series of Poker. At the end of this five-month poker marathon, down an estimated $2–4 million, Dandolos uttered what has one of the most famous poker quotes ever, Mr. Moss. One urban legend claims that Dandolos once had the opportunity to escort Albert Einstein around Las Vegas. According to Dandolos own testimony in Gambling Secrets of Nick the Greek, just before the end of World War II, the caller said that there was someone who was looking for a poker game on a weekend in Manhattan. Dandolos reminded his friend that gambling is illegal in New York, at the game, according to Dandolos, he introduced Albert Einstein as little Al from Jersey. Another urban legend has him winning one million dollars against a Texan, in the early hours of the morning, Nick felt tired and called an end to the game. The Texan accused him of chickening out while the going was good, Nick the Greek then called for a new deck of cards, shuffled them and asked the Texan if he wanted to cut the cards one time, for double or quit. The Texan declined and they went home, nobel Prize–winning physicist Richard Feynman also met Nick the Greek, according to the autobiographical Surely Youre Joking, Mr. Feynman. Nick explains how he wins big not by playing the tables and he then relies on his reputation to bet against others. In Eliot Asinofs Eight Men Out, the author attributes this gambling wisdom to Nick the Greek, near the end of his life, Dandolos was near-broke and playing $5 limit draw poker games in Gardena, California. When asked by a fellow player how he could play for millions and now be playing for such small stakes, Dandolos supposedly replied, Hey, its action. He died on Christmas Day in 1966 and was an inductee of the Poker Hall of Fame in 1979. Its estimated that he won and lost over $500 million in his lifetime and he himself claimed that he went from rags to riches over 73 times
12.
Benny Binion
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Lester Ben Benny Binion was an American gambling icon and mob boss. Benny Binion was born and raised in Pilot Grove, Texas in Grayson County and his parents initially kept him out of school due to poor health. His father, a trader, let him accompany him on trips. While the outdoor life restored his health, Benny Binion never had any formal education, as he traveled with his father, the young Benny learned to gamble, a favorite pastime when horse traders met up with farmers and merchants during county fair trade days. Binions FBI file reveals a history dating back to 1924, listing offenses such as theft, carrying concealed weapons. Binion moved to El Paso when he was 18, a year later, at age 19, Binion moved to Dallas where he set up moonshining operations, for which he was twice convicted. In addition to his moonshining, in 1928, Binion opened up a more lucrative numbers game. In 1931, Binion was convicted of shooting and killing an African American rum-runner, Frank Bolding and this was the origin of Binions Cowboy nickname. Binion received a suspended sentence. In 1936, Binion established a network of private dice games at several Dallas hotels and this came to be known as the Southland Syndicate. By the end of 1936, Binion had gained control of most gambling operations in Dallas, in 1936, Binion and a henchman killed a numbers operator and competitor, Ben Frieden, emptying their pistols into him. Binion then apparently shot himself in the shoulder and turned himself in to police, Binion was indicted, but the indictment was later dismissed on the grounds that Binion had acted in self-defense. In 1938, Binion and another henchmen allegedly killed Sam Murray, Binion was never indicted for this murder, and charges were dropped against his henchmen. By the early 1940s, Binion had become the reigning mob boss of Dallas and he then sought to take over the gambling rackets in Fort Worth. The local mob boss of that city, Lewis Tindell, was murdered shortly afterwards, the Chicago Outfit made a successful move into Dallas after World War II. With the 1946 election of a Dallas County Sheriff Steve Gutherie, Binion lost his fix with the local government, while in Dallas, Binion had begun a long-running feud with Herbert Noble, a small-time gambler in Dallas, which continued after Binion moved to Las Vegas. Binion demanded that Noble increase his payoff to Binion from 25 to 40 percent, Binion posted a reward on Nobles scalp that eventually reached $25,000 and control of a Dallas crap game. Noble survived numerous attempts on his life, sometimes narrowly escaping with gunshot wounds, in November 1949, Nobles wife was killed in a car bombing intended for him
13.
Amarillo Slim
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Thomas Austin Preston, Jr. known as Amarillo Slim, was an American professional gambler known for his poker skills and proposition bets. Preston won the 1972 World Series of Poker Main Event and was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 1992, before becoming a well-known tournament player, Preston was a rounder, touring the United States looking for gambling action along with Doyle Brunson and Sailor Roberts. Following his WSOP victory, he appeared on talk shows, including The Tonight Show. He appeared on Ive Got a Secret, where his secret involved losing $190,000 in one night of poker, Preston won four WSOP bracelets including two in Omaha. Prestons final WSOP win was in 1990, in the $2,500 Pot Limit Omaha event at the 2000 WSOP, he came in second to Phil Ivey. In January/February 1980, Amarillo Slim hosted the Second Annual Poker Classic and this series eventually came to be called the Super Bowl of Poker and continued until 1991. Gabe Kaplan became the first winner of this tournament series and Stu Ungar won the three times. Prestons lifetime tournament earnings totaled more than $587,000, in 1973, Preston and Bill G. Cox wrote Play Poker to Win which was published by Grosset and Dunlap. A revised edition was published by HarperCollins in 2005 entitled Amarillo Slims Play Poker to Win. In May 2003, Preston published his autobiography Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People, where he wrote of playing poker with Larry Flynt, Lyndon Johnson, in addition to his poker exploits, Preston wrote about his exploits in proposition betting. In April 2007, Preston created a website and released an E-Book called All In, the book was written by Preston along with Joe Brent Riley. Thomas Austin Preston, Jr. was born on December 31,1928, in Johnson, Arkansas, after they divorced, his mother returned to Johnson, while his father moved to Amarillo. Slim is quoted as saying, Its a good thing he did, Preston was divorced, had three children, and lived in Amarillo, Texas. In August 2003, Preston was indicted in Randall County, Texas on charges of indecency with a 12-year-old grandchild. The charges were reduced to misdemeanor assault in a bargain and on February 10,2004, Preston pleaded no contest to the reduced charges. Preston received a $4,000 fine, two years probation and was ordered to undergo counseling, in a 2009 interview, he stated that he was innocent of any wrongdoing, but chose to take the plea bargain in order to spare his family from a court trial. Early on the morning of October 4,2006, Preston was the victim of an armed robbery. The armed robber fired three bullets into Prestons car as he sped away, on January 28,2007, Preston was robbed at gunpoint while in his home
14.
Doyle Brunson
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Doyle F. Brunson is an American poker player who has played professionally for over 50 years. He is a two-time World Series of Poker Main Event champion, a Poker Hall of Fame inductee, and he is also one of only four players to have won the Main Event at the World Series of Poker multiple times, which he did in 1976 and 1977. He is also one of two players, along with Bill Boyd, to have won WSOP tournaments in four consecutive years. In addition, he is the first of five players to win both the WSOP Main Event and a World Poker Tour title, in January 2006, Bluff Magazine voted Brunson the most influential force in the world of poker. Brunson was born in Longworth, Fisher County, Texas, one of three children and he was part of the All-State Texas basketball team. In the 1950 Texas Interscholastic Track Meet, he won the event with a time of 4,43. Despite receiving offers from colleges, he attended Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene. The Minneapolis Lakers showed interest in Brunson but an injury ended his hopes of becoming a professional basketball player. He still occasionally requires a crutch because of the injury, Brunson earned a bachelors degree in 1954 and a masters degree in administrative education the following year. Brunson had begun playing poker before his injury, playing five-card draw and he played more often after being injured and his winnings paid for his expenses. After graduating, he took a job as a business machines salesman, on his first day, he was invited to play in a seven-card stud game and earned over a months salary. He soon left the company and became a poker player. Brunson started off by playing in games on Exchange Street in Fort Worth with friend Dwayne Hamilton. Eventually, they began traveling around Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, playing in bigger games, the illegal games Brunson played in during this time were usually run by criminals who were often members of organized crime, so rules were not always enforced. Brunson has admitted to having a gun pulled on him several times, Hamilton moved back to Fort Worth, while the others teamed up and travelled around together, gambling on poker, golf and, in Doyles words, just about everything. They pooled their money for gambling and after six years, they made their first serious trip to Las Vegas and lost all of it and they decided to stop playing as partners, but remained friends. Brunson finally settled in Las Vegas and he made some WSOP championship event final tables before his back-to-back wins, but since this was when the event was winner-take-all, they are not counted as cashes. Besides his two wins in 1976 and 1977, Brunsons other main event cashes are,1972,1980,1982,1983,1997,2004 and 2013
15.
Johnny Moss
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Johnny Moss was a gambler and professional poker player. He was one of the inductees into the Poker Hall of Fame in 1979. Moss was born on May 14,1907 in Marshall, Texas and grew up in Dallas, Texas, a group of cheaters taught him how to cheat in games, but Moss put this knowledge to good use. As a teenager he was hired by a saloon to watch over games. While he was keeping games safe from cheaters, he was learning the strategy behind playing poker, two years later, he became a rounder, a player who travels the country looking for gambling action. In 1949, Moss played with Nick the Greek in a heads up poker marathon set up by Benny Binion. At the conclusion of the game, Nick the Greek uttered what has one of the most famous poker quotes ever, Mr. Moss. This game is cited as the inspiration behind the WSOP. This game became the foundation for Al Alvarezs book The Biggest Game in Town and is one of the best known stories in poker. Despite being one of the best-known poker stories, a soon to be released book, Showgirl Stories, according to Fischer, there were no stories or reports of this tournament until six years after Nicks death. Binion never spoke of the game even when providing a history of Las Vegas and avoided answering questions about the game by saying, Well. While Nick the Greek was often covered by the national media, Fischer says that nearly every version of the story is virtually identical to the version first told by Moss beginning circa 1971. The story is said to have taken place in 1949 at the Horseshoe Casino, a casino that did not exist for another year. Fischer also points out that during the time that Binion supposedly set up the game, because of his past, Binion lost his license to run a gambling establishment in 1948 and did not regain it until April 13,1950. He was not granted a license to open the Horseshoe Casino until December 5,1952, Fischer believes that the notion of Binion sponsoring a poker game, in front of a window, of a casino that hasnt opened, while fighting extradition is absurd. An authorized autobiography on Moss, which is called Champion of Champions, was written by Don Jenkins, Moss won the 1970,1971, and 1974 World Series of Poker Main Events. For the 1970 WSOP Main Event, Moss was actually elected champion by his peers, during Mosss career he won $834,422 in WSOP tournament play. *In 1970, Moss was voted champion by his peers, **Moss set the, as of the end of the 2016 World Series of Poker, still-standing record of oldest bracelet winner in WSOP history
16.
Texas hold 'em
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Texas hold em is a variation of the card game of poker. Two cards, known as the cards, are dealt face down to each player. The stages consist of a series of three cards, later a single card and a final card. Each player seeks the best five card poker hand from the combination of the community cards, if a players best five card poker hand consists only of the five community cards and none of the players hole cards, it is called playing the board. Players have betting options to check, call, raise or fold, rounds of betting take place before the flop is dealt, and after each subsequent deal. Texas hold em is the H game featured in H. O. R. S. E, in Texas hold em, as in all variants of poker, individuals compete for an amount of money or chips contributed by the players themselves. The game is divided into a series of hands, at the conclusion of each hand, the objective of winning players is not to win every individual hand, but rather to make mathematically and psychologically better decisions regarding when and how much to bet, raise, call—or fold. Ones pattern of betting may encourage opponents to bet or to fold, the winning poker players know how to enhance their opponents betting and maximize their own expected gain on each round of betting, to thereby increase their long-term winnings. Although little is known about the invention of Texas hold em, after the game spread throughout Texas, hold em was introduced to Las Vegas in 1967 by a group of Texan gamblers and card players, including Crandell Addington, Doyle Brunson, and Amarillo Slim. This is when ace high was changed from the form in which aces were low. Addington said the first time he saw the game was in 1959 and they didnt call it Texas hold em at the time, they just called it hold em. … I thought then that if it were to catch on, it would become the game. Draw poker, you bet only twice, hold em, you bet four times and that meant you could play strategically. This was more of a mans game. For several years the Golden Nugget Casino in Downtown Las Vegas was the only casino in Las Vegas to offer the game, at that time, the Golden Nuggets poker room was truly a sawdust joint, with…oiled sawdust covering the floors. Because of its location and decor, this room did not receive many rich drop-in clients. In 1969, the Las Vegas professionals were invited to play Texas hold em at the entrance of the now-demolished Dunes Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. This prominent location, and the inexperience of poker players with Texas hold em. After a failed attempt to establish a Gambling Fraternity Convention, Tom Moore added the first ever poker tournament to the Second Annual Gambling Fraternity Convention held in 1969 and this tournament featured several games including Texas hold em
17.
Poker Hall of Fame
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The Poker Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional poker in the United States. Binion was known for the ways in which he marketed his casino. In 1949, he convinced Johnny Moss and Nick The Greek Dandolos to play high-stakes poker heads up where the public could watch them, in 1970, he invited a group of poker players to compete in what would be the first World Series of Poker. When Harrahs Entertainment, now known as Caesars Entertainment, acquired the rights to the WSOP in 2004, currently, membership in the Poker Hall of Fame is handled directly by the WSOP. As of 2016,52 people have been inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame,21 of whom are still living. Before the 2009 World Series of Poker, then-WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack announced that the process for becoming a member into the Poker Hall of Fame would undergo a slight modification, starting in 2009, the Poker Hall of Fame started accepting nominations from the public. This move was intended to increase interest in the Hall, almost immediately after this decision was announced, Party Poker started an online campaign to get its representative and World Poker Tour commentator Mike Sexton elected to the Hall. Other poker sites, namely PokerStars Tom McEvoy, followed suit by pushing their own poker professionals, or, for non-players, contributed to the overall growth and success of the game of poker, with indelible positive and lasting results. In 2009, 23-year-old online poker professional Tom Dwan was a finalist for the Poker Hall of Fame because of public balloting, as a result, a new age requirement was added in 2011. This rule, known as the Chip Reese Rule, established an age of 40 to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. This new requirement eliminated some players who were regular nominees over the years, such as Phil Ivey. Admission into the Poker Hall of Fame is considered one of the biggest honors in poker, in his acceptance speech, T. J. Cloutier declared, Its one of two things Ive always wanted to win. Barbara Enright, the first woman inducted into the Hall, considers her induction to be a lifetime achievement honor, before being acquired by Harrahs Casino, R. S. Owens & Company was commissioned to design an award for Poker Hall of Famers. The award was an 8-inch-tall piece of glass with a hand of cards sandblasted at the bottom, the name. The circle had a gold emblem bonded to the glass and had the Binions Horseshoe Casino logo in it, there was a gold plated base with three gold-plated stacks of chips. World Poker Tour Walk of Fame Poker Hall of Fame Doyle Room Poker Hall of Fame Legends Jack Binion & Crandell Addington Accessed March 3,2008
18.
Sailor Roberts
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Bryan W. Sailor Roberts was an American professional poker player. Before becoming a professional, Roberts was a rounder and traveled the country looking for games with Doyle Brunson. In addition to his career as a player, he was also a renowned contract bridge player. Robertss first WSOP bracelet was won at the 1974 World Series of Poker in the $5,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event and he won the 1975 World Series of Poker Main Event, gaining his second WSOP bracelet and $210,000. Roberts earned his nickname Sailor for having served in the United States Navy during the Korean War, Roberts died from cirrhosis caused by hepatitis. He was posthumously inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2012, Sailor Roberts Hendon Mob tournament results
19.
Bobby Baldwin
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Bobby Baldwin is a professional poker player, and casino executive. As a poker player, Baldwin is best known as the winner of the 1978 World Series of Poker Main Event, Baldwin was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and attended Oklahoma State University in 1970. He currently resides in Las Vegas and he married Audra Hendley on August 2,2012 at their Southern Highlands home. Baldwin won his first two bracelets at the 1977 World Series of Poker, first winning the $10,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event, then winning the $5,000 Seven Card Stud event. Baldwin won his largest tournament prize in 1978 when he won the WSOP world championship event, earning the title, in 1979, he won the $10,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event again, earning his fourth and most recent bracelet at the WSOP. Baldwin also competed in the Super Bowl of Poker tournaments, organized by 1972 world champion Amarillo Slim, Baldwin cashed in several SBOP events and won the $5,000 Seven Card Stud event in 1979. His major wins include four WSOP bracelets, all won from 1977 to 1979 and he won WSOP bracelets in three consecutive years which only a small number of players have done in the history of the WSOP. In addition to his 1978 victory, Baldwins other WSOP Main Event cashes are,1981,1986,1987,1991,1992,1994, in 2003, Baldwin was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. His last live cash came in the 2012 World Series of Poker in the Big One for One Drop, in 1982, he became a consultant for the Golden Nugget casino, and in 1984 was named the president. He was selected to head The Mirage in 1987, and was named as the president of the Bellagio hotel, Baldwin now oversees additional resorts added through the Mandalay Resort Group buyout as well as the previous Wynn properties. In addition to poker, Baldwin is also known as a world class billiards player, Baldwin and his playing style are the subject of a book entitled Bobby Baldwins Winning Poker Secrets, which was written by Mike Caro. Baldwin has written columns on poker and he authored a section for Doyle Brunsons Super/System. His own book Tales Out of Tulsa, a guide for novices, was published in 1985. The high-stakes signature poker room in the Bellagio is named Bobbys Room after Baldwin, as of 2012, his total live tournament winnings exceed $2,300,000. His 20 cashes at the WSOP account for $2,100,311 of those winnings
20.
Hal Fowler
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Harold Arthur Hal Fowler was an American poker player known for winning the 1979 World Series of Poker Main Event. He is considered the first amateur player to become pokers World Champion. Fowler was born in Vermont and later lived for years in Tulare. Before his WSOP victory, he worked as an advertising executive, although he was a relative unknown amateur player, Fowler won the 1979 World Series of Poker Main Event. At one point in the tournament, he was down to around 2,000 in chips at a table that included Johnny Moss, Bobby Baldwin. Additionally, it is believed that Fowler could not cover the entrance fee, fowlers 1979 win is sometimes called the greatest upset in the history of the WSOP. Fowler defeated professional Bobby Hoff heads up to win the championship when his 7♠ 6♦ made a gut-shot straight, Fowler would later fade from the poker scene because of complications from diabetes that hurt his eyesight and his legs. Fowlers career tournament earnings exceeded $380,000 and he died at the age of 73 in a nursing home on November 7,2000
21.
Stu Ungar
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Stuart Errol Stu Ungar was a professional poker, blackjack, and gin rummy player, widely regarded to have been the greatest Texas hold em and gin player of all time. He is one of two people in history to have won the World Series of Poker Main Event three times. He is also the person to win Amarillo Slims Super Bowl of Poker three times, the worlds second most prestigious poker title during its time. He is one of four players in history to win consecutive titles in the WSOP Main Event, along with Johnny Moss, Doyle Brunson. Ungar was born to Jewish parents Isidore and Faye Ungar and he was raised on Manhattans Lower East Side. His father, Isidore Ungar, was a shark who ran a bar/social club called Foxes Corner that doubled as a gambling establishment. Despite Idos attempts to keep his son from gambling after seeing its effects on his customers, Stu began playing underground gin. Ungar was gifted at school and skipped seventh grade, but then dropped out of school in tenth grade, ido died of a heart attack on July 25,1967. Romano was regarded as one of the best card players of his time and he had the ability to recite the spelling and definition of all of the words in the dictionary and apparently shared a penchant and interest for calculating odds while gambling as Ungar did. By many accounts the two developed a close relationship with Romano serving as a mentor and protector. Ungar was infamous for his arrogance and for routinely criticizing aloud the play of opponents he felt were beneath him, One of Ungars most famous quotes sums up his competitiveness, I never want to be called a good loser. Show me a loser and Ill just show you a loser. However, his relationship with Romano gave Ungar protection from gamblers who did not take his crass attitude. One man reportedly tried to hit him in the head with a chair in a bar after Ungar soundly defeated him. Ungar would claim later that the man was found shot to death a few days after the incident. Ungar won a local gin tournament at age 10, by 1976, he was regarded as one of the best players in New York. Ungar eventually had to leave New York due to gambling debts at local race tracks and he later moved to Miami, Florida, to find more action. In 1977, he left for Las Vegas, Nevada, where he reunited with Madeline Wheeler, One of the reasons Ungar eventually took up poker exclusively was because gin action had dried up due to his skilled reputation
22.
Jack Straus
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Jack Treetop Straus was an American professional poker player. In addition, Straus is known for pulling off one of the best bluffs in the history of poker. Straus began playing in World Series of Poker events in the early 1970s and he finished in fourth place in the 1972 Main Event. He won his first bracelet in 1973 in the $3,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event and he won the 1982 World Series of Poker Main Event, earning $520,000 and a second WSOP bracelet. His appearances at the table of the Main Event in 1972,1973. Other players to have done this include Main Event champions like Johnny Moss, Doyle Brunson, Stu Ungar, Johnny Chan, and Dan Harrington. Famously, Strauss 1982 win was a comeback after being down to a single $25 chip, supposedly the origin of the common tournament poker aphorism, a chip and a chair. Although accounts vary, the most common story is that he pushed his chips into the pot, was called, Straus had thought he was eliminated from the tournament, but when he got up, he discovered he had one chip left under a napkin on the table. Because he didnt declare himself all-in, the tournament directors allowed him to continue playing, Straus is credited with one of the most celebrated bluffs of all time. While playing in a no limit Texas Holdem cash game, Straus had won several large pots in a row. When he looked down he found that he had been dealt 7-2 offsuit, the worst starting hand in Texas Holdem, Straus raise was called by a single opponent and the flop came 7-3-3. This was a flop for a 7-2, so Straus bet out. However his tight opponent made a raise, indicating a likely overpair to the board. Straus knew he was almost certainly behind, but he decided that he might be able to beat his opponent by representing trip threes, so he called the large raise. The turn was a 2, for a board of 7-3-3-2, which was no help to Straus with a pair already on the board. This set his opponent thinking deeply, Straus knew that he was desperate to avoid a call, as his chances of drawing out to win on the river were very slim. After a few minutes, Straus offered his opponent a proposition and he told him that for $25, he could choose either one of Strauss hole cards and Straus would show it to him. The guy considered for a while, then tossed Straus $25, after another long pause, his opponent eventually figured that Straus would only make such an offer if both his hole-cards were deuces, therefore giving him a full house, deuces over threes
23.
Tom McEvoy
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Thomas K. McEvoy is a professional poker player, author and member of the Poker Hall of Fame. He is best known for his win in the 1983 World Series of Poker main event, McEvoy was born and raised in Michigan. He was an accountant, but after he was laid off from his job and he first learned to play poker when he was five years old and would regularly get in trouble for playing it in grade school. McEvoy first cashed in the WSOP in 1982, finishing in 6th place in the $1,000 Razz event. The following year, he won his first World Series of Poker bracelet in the $1,000 Limit Holdem event, McEvoy won the 1983 World Series of Poker Main Event. He was the first winner to earn his buy-in through a satellite tournament. His heads-up matchup with Rod Peate was the longest heads-up battle in WSOP history before being surpassed during the $50,000 H. O. R. S. E event in 2006 by Chip Reese and Andy Bloch. Since his two wins in 1983, McEvoy has gone on to win two more WSOP bracelets. He won the Razz tournament in 1986, defeating Alma McClelland, but his luck in the WSOP Main Event since his championship win has not been so good. McEvoys only other main event cash since 1983 was in the 2006 WSOP, in March 2006, Tom McEvoy won the third ever Professional Poker Tour event beating a field of pros-only at the Bay 101 casino. He defeated a final table included fellow WSOP bracelet winners, Toto Leonidas. McEvoy is staunchly opposed to smoking, in 1998, he helped organize the first tournament where smoking was not allowed. There was much reluctance, but the tournament still attracted a number of players. Also, in 1998, McEvoy won the annual Ventura County poker championship, with fellow accountant, Phil Palmquist, Palmquist began this Omaha tournament with a Royal Flush, which brought him to the final table as Chip Leader, only to be worn down by McEvoy. In 2002, McEvoy convinced Becky Binion Behnen to make the WSOP a non-smoking tournament by agreeing to give Behnen poker lessons. McEvoy has authored or coauthored over a dozen books on poker with other such as T. J. Cloutier, Brad Daugherty, Don Vines, Dag Palovic. He is a columnist for CardPlayer Magazine and a representative of PokerStars. com, on Sunday May 31,2009, Tom McEvoy became the winner of the WSOPs first Champions Invitational, outlasting 19 other former Main Event champions. He defeated 2002 world champion, Robert Varkonyi in the play to win the tournament
24.
Berry Johnston
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Berry Enfield Johnston is an American professional poker player. He is best known as the 1986 World Champion, but he has won four other bracelets at the World Series of Poker in addition to cashes. Johnston won the 1986 World Series of Poker Main Event, and placed third in 1983 and 1985 and fifth in the 1990 World Series and he has made at least 29 final tables at the WSOP and has finished in the money on at least 66 occasions. He has also cashed ten times in the WSOP Main Event and his most recent cash in the Main Event came in 2007, when he finished in 113th place in a field of over six thousand players, for which Johnston won $58,570. Having cashed in at least one event every year from 1982–2010, Johnston cashed three times in the 2008 World Series of Poker, including tenth place in an Omaha Hi/Lo event, and he is currently 42nd on the WSOP all time money list. He is also ranked in fourth place for the WSOP all-time cashes list with 57 cashes as of the end of the 2009 series. Johnston is still competing at high levels of poker today, Johnston has also played on the NBC Poker After Dark Series, most recently in 2008 among some of his fellow World Series of Poker Main Event Champions. Berry finished fourth in the tournament, which was won by Johnny Chan, the other world champions in the tournament were Phil Hellmuth, Huck Seed, Chris Ferguson, and Jamie Gold. He was inducted into the Seniors Poker Hall of Fame in the early 1990s, Johnston was the only inductee in the 2004 class. As of 2010, his live tournament winnings exceed $3,450,000. His 60 cashes as the WSOP account for $2,075,527 of those winnings, official site pokernews. com – Legends of Poker, Berry Johnston
25.
Johnny Chan
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Johnny Chan is a Chinese-born American professional poker player. He has won 10 World Series of Poker bracelets, including the 1987 and 1988 World Series of Poker main events consecutively. Chan moved with his family in 1962 from Guangzhou to Hong Kong, then in 1968 to Phoenix, Arizona, and later in 1973 to Houston, Texas, where his family owned restaurants. When he was 21, Chan dropped out of the University of Houston, where he was majoring in hotel and restaurant management, Chan won the World Series of Poker in. A videotape of the 1988 WSOP final heads up match is featured in the movie Rounders and he almost won a third consecutive title, but finished in 2nd place in 1989 to Phil Hellmuth. He is the last player to win back-to-back WSOP Main Events, jerry Buss, who was an avid poker player and owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, promised Chan an NBA championship ring if he could win three in a row. In 2005, Chan became the first player to win ten World Series of Poker bracelets and he is currently tied with Doyle Brunson and Phil Ivey for second place with 10 World Series of Poker bracelets, behind Phil Hellmuth. He was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2002, in 2008, Chan cashed for the first time in the Main Event since 1992, earning $32,166 for his 329th-place finish. In 2010, Chan cashed in the Main Event taking 156th place for $57,102, Chan competed in the $400,000 Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament in February 2005. He came back from having $20,000 chips out of $3,200,000 in play to finish in place to Gus Hansen. Chan later competed in Poker Superstars II during the summer of 2005 and he defeated 22 players to make it to the finals. He defeated Todd Brunson in the finals after three matches to win the $400,000 first prize, Chan appeared in Poker Superstars III where he made it as far as the semi finals but was defeated by Todd Brunson after three matches. On NBCs late-night show Poker After Dark, a six-person $20,000 buy-in winner-takes-all tournament and he came in second and fifth when he did not win. His appearances in which he made it to heads-up were, WSOP Champions — originally aired Jan. 1,2008 — Won heads-up against Patrik Antonius Dream Table III — originally aired Mar. 23-27,2009 — Won heads-up against Jennifer Tilly Chan won Bob Stupaks 1981 American Cup poker tournament and he defeated all 9 other players at the final table in less than an hour. As a result, Stupak gave Chan the nickname The Orient Express, Chan has never made a final table on the World Poker Tour. Chan played in the 2004 and 2005 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions events, as of 2014, his total live tournament winnings exceed $8,600,000. His 45 WSOP cashes account for $4,355,464 of those winnings, in addition to playing poker, Chan owns a fast-food franchise in the Las Vegas Stratosphere Hotel and is a consultant for casinos and game makers
26.
Phil Hellmuth
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Phillip Jerome Hellmuth, Jr. is an American professional poker player who has won a record fourteen World Series of Poker bracelets. He is the winner of the Main Event of the 1989 World Series of Poker and the Main Event of the 2012 World Series of Poker Europe, Hellmuth is also known for his temperamental poker brat personality. Since 1992, he has lived in Palo Alto, California with his wife Katherine Sanborn, who is a psychiatrist at Stanford University, as of 2016, his total live tournament winnings exceed $20,900,000. He is ranked seventh on the money list. Hellmuth is known for taking his seat at poker tournaments long after they begin. On October 18,2015, Hellmuth is ranked #119 on the Global Poker Index, Hellmuth holds the records for most WSOP cashes and most WSOP final tables, overtaking T. J. Cloutier. As of March 2015, Hellmuth has won over $12,000,000 at the WSOP and ranks fourth on the WSOP All Time Money List, behind Antonio Esfandiari, Daniel Colman, and Daniel Negreanu. Hellmuth also is tied for all time in number of times cashed in the WSOP Main Event. He has eight Main Event cashes, placing him behind Berry Johnston, and Humberto Brenes, Doyle Brunson, of those 22 events, Hellmuth has finished runner-up six times. At the 1993 World Series of Poker, Hellmuth became the player in WSOP history to win three bracelets in one WSOP. At the 1997 World Series of Poker, Hellmuth won his 5th bracelet of the decade, at the conclusion of the 1999 World Series of Poker, his five bracelets would stand to lead the decade for most WSOP bracelets won by one player in the 1990s. At the 2006 World Series of Poker, Hellmuth captured his 10th World Series of Poker bracelet in the $1,000 No Limit Holdem with rebuys event, at the time, it tied him with Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan for most bracelets. At the 2007 World Series of Poker, Hellmuth won his record-breaking 11th bracelet in the $1,500 No Limit Holdem Event, Hellmuths sponsor arranged for him to arrive at the 2007 WSOP Main Event in a race car. Hellmuth lost control of the car in the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino parking lot and he gave up the car for a limo, arriving at the Main Event two hours late. At the 2008 WSOP Main Event, Hellmuth verbally abused another player, after a private meeting with WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack the penalty was overruled and Hellmuth finished the tournament in 45th place. On June 11,2012, Hellmuth won his 12th World Series of Poker bracelet in the $2,500 Seven-Card Razz event, defeating Don Zewin, Zewin had finished third to Chan and Hellmuth when Hellmuth won his first bracelet in 1989. Hellmuth also collected $2,645,333 for his finish in the $1,000,000 buy-in Big One for One Drop tournament. This win also made Hellmuth the first player in WSOP history to win multiple bracelets in three different years, also, Hellmuth finished runner-up in the WSOP Player of the Year race for a record third time
27.
Brad Daugherty (poker player)
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Brad Daugherty is a professional poker player. Daugherty began playing poker in 1969 on a school trip. Following high school he worked in the industry, but after hearing of large prize money for tournament winnings, in 1978 he moved to Reno. In 1987 he won his first tournament and he was awarded the first ever million-dollar first-place prize at the World Series of Poker when he won the bracelet in the 1991 Main Event, and finished in ninth place in 1993. As of 2009, his live tournament winnings exceed $1,700,000. His 19 cashes as the WSOP account for $1,158,574 of those winnings, Daugherty is the co-author with Tom McEvoy of Championship Satellite Strategy and No-Limit Texas Holdem for New Players
28.
Hamid Dastmalchi
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Hamid Reza Dastmalchi is an Iranian-American professional poker player. Dastmalchi won the 1992 World Series of Poker main event, which is his largest tournament win at $1 million and he again made the final table of the main event in 1995, finishing in fourth place. The Nevada Gaming Commission ultimately ruled the chips should be cashed, in his career, Dastmalchi has won three WSOP bracelets, his last victory coming in 1993. Dastmalchis last major tournament cash came in 2002 in the World Poker Tour Five Diamond World Poker Classic. Although he rarely plays in tournaments anymore, his live tournament winnings exceed $1,800,000 as of 2009
29.
Jim Bechtel
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James Gary Jim Bechtel is an American cotton farmer and poker player, now based in Gilbert, Arizona. He is best known for winning the 1993 Main Event at the World Series of Poker, at the time of his WSOP win, he lived in Coolidge, Arizona. Bechtel began playing poker as a recreational player near his home in Arizona while working as a cotton farmer. He cashed for the first time in the World Series of Poker and he followed up this showing with several more final table appearances at the WSOP tournaments. Bechtel first cashed in the $10,000 No-Limit Holdem Main Event in 1986 and he made the final table of the Main Event in 1988, finishing in 6th place in the tournament which was won by Johnny Chan who earned his second consecutive world championship title. Bechtel earned $49,000 for his 6th-place finish, at the 1993 WSOP Main Event, Bechtel reached the final table in second chip position with $631,000. He went on to eliminate the 1990 World Champion Mansour Matloubi, Bechtel earned the top prize of $1,000,000 and the WSOP bracelet, becoming the first amateur player to win the WSOP Main Event since Hal Fowler won the 1979 World Series of Poker Championship. Bechtel also finished in the money of the Main Event in 1986,1988,1989, Bechtel was also one of the players to make the final table of the inaugural $50,000 H. O. R. S. E. Event of the 2006 World Series of Poker, which was won by the late Chip Reese, the players at the final table for this event were one of the most accomplished groups of poker players ever to sit at a WSOP final table. Bechtel was eliminated after his pocket 7s were beaten by Blochs pocket 10s, Bechtel earned $549,120 for his fourth-place finish. In 2009, Bechtel competed in the WSOP Champions Invitational tournament, the tournament drew 20 out of the 24 living former world champions, and the ten-handed final table was broadcast by ESPN. Bechtel finished fourth place in the tournament, which was won by 1983 World Champion Tom McEvoy, Bechtel has competed on the World Poker Tour and has cashed in four tournaments. His highest cash was 10th place in the season two Five Diamond World Poker Classic, held at the Bellagio and his other three cashes were at the season two Bicycle Casino Legends of Poker, the season three WPT World Championship, and the season four L. A. Bechtel has earned a total of $106,940 from his cashes on the WPT, aside from the WSOP and WPT, Bechtel has made numerous cashes and has won two other major tournaments. His first major tournament victory was at the 1992 Hall of Fame Poker Classic, in 1994, he won the Queens Poker Classic IV $2,500 buy-in No Limit Deuce to Seven Draw event, earning a prize of $60,750. Since then, he has cashed in many different tournaments and made more than a final table appearances. His most recent major tournament cash was 48th place in the 2010 Arizona Poker Championship $1,000 No Limit Holdem event, as of 2012, his total tournament winnings exceed $2,500,000. His 23 cashes at the WSOP account for $1,838,861 of those winnings
30.
Russ Hamilton
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Russ Hamilton is an American poker player. He was the 1994 World Series of Poker main event champion, defeating Hugh Vincent in heads-up play to win $1 million in first-prize money, following his World Series win, Hamilton served as a consultant for Ultimate Bet, an online poker server. In 2008, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission found Hamilton largely responsible for cheating players on Ultimate Bet out of $6.1 million through software that allowed access to opponents hole cards, in 2009, Kahnawake increased the $6.1 million estimate to $22,100,000. After playing in games in Detroit, he moved to Las Vegas at the age of 36. He joined a tournament blackjack team and enjoyed a run but. In 1994, he won the World Series of Poker main event bracelet and he also invented Elimination Blackjack a tournament Blackjack derivative that was used as the format for the televised Ultimate Blackjack Tour. Hamiltons last major cash came in the 2009 World Poker Tour PCA Main Event, as of 2014, his total live tournament winnings exceed $1,525,000. His eight cashes at the WSOP account for $1,261,940 of those winnings and he has won World Championships in several types of casino games and founded the Ultimate Blackjack Tour in 2005. UltimateBet eventually refunded a total of $22,100,000 to the defrauded players, in October 2008,60 Minutes aired a report profiling Hamilton and called the fraud the biggest scandal in the history of online gambling. 60 Minutes partnered with the Washington Post in their investigation and this recording included statements of admission from Hamilton such as I did take this money and Im not trying to make it right, so weve got to get that out of the way real quick
31.
Dan Harrington
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Dan Harrington is a professional poker player, best known for winning the Main Event at the 1995 World Series of Poker. He has earned one World Poker Tour title, two WSOP bracelets, and over six million dollars in tournament cashes in his poker career and he is also a member of the Poker Hall of Fame. Harrington chose his own nickname Action Dan even though he is known for being a conservative player. He is a distant cousin to professional golfer Pádraig Harrington and former NFL quarterback Joey Harrington. Harrington was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, currently residing in Santa Monica, California, Harrington is a former champion backgammon player and U. S. chess master. Before becoming a professional and businessman, Harrington worked for many years as a bankruptcy lawyer. He also played poker against Bill Gates while Gates was at Harvard, some of his earlier poker experience came from the Mayfair Club in the mid-1980s, where he played with Howard Lederer, Steve Zolotow, and Erik Seidel. In addition to being a professional poker player, Harrington also works in real estate. He has also stated during interviews about his career, that he is there for the money. Also unlike many professional players, Dan considers himself only a part-time player due to the fact that he spends a large amount of his time on his business interests. He usually only plays a few events at the World Series of Poker each year and plays in occasional World Poker Tour events, Harrington first cashed in the World Series of Poker in 1986. The next year, in only his second WSOP cash, Harrington made the table of the Main Event, he finished in sixth place in the event. Harringtons friend and fellow Mayfair Club member, Howard Lederer was also at this final table, sporting his iconic green Boston Red Sox cap, Dan Harrington is known as a crafty, tight-aggressive player, employing starting hand standards that are stricter than most professionals. When he reached the table at the 1995 Main Event, he set the runner-up, Howard Goldfarb. At the time of his Main event victory, Harrington lived in Downey, also, in 1995, he won a bracelet in the $2,500 No-Limit Holdem event for $249,000 and the Seven-card stud event at European Poker Open in London. He made his first final table at the World Poker Tour in 2005, in 2007, he won the Legends of Poker for a prize of $1,634,865. In 2008, Harrington made his first appearance on the NBC show Poker After Dark in the episode titled Mayfair Club and this tournament brought together poker players who had played at the legendary Mayfair Club in New York City. Harrington busted out first, finishing in sixth place, the tournament was won by Heimowitz, who defeated Lederer in heads-up play
32.
Huck Seed
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Huckleberry Huck Seed is an American professional poker player best known for winning the Main Event of the 1996 World Series of Poker. Seed was born in Santa Clara, California, but grew up in Corvallis, Montana and he was a member of the 1987 Montana All-State basketball team. Seed was an engineering student at California Institute of Technology. He took a leave of absence in 1989, started playing poker, Seed was a star player on Caltechs basketball team and is featured in the 2006 documentary Quantum Hoops. Seed won the 1996 World Series of Poker main event, which resulted in his second bracelet and he made the final table of the 1999 WSOP main event, but was eliminated in sixth place by eventual champion Noel Furlong. In the 2003 World Series of Poker, Seed won his fourth bracelet in a $3,000 Limit Razz tournament. He defeated Phil Ivey in heads-up play to win the bracelet, in the 2007 Main Event, Seed finished 73rd out of 6,358 players. Seed won the 2009 NBC Heads-Up Poker Championship, where he took the top prize of $500,000 and improved his record in the event to 18-4. In addition, Seed became the player to cash in every NBC Heads-Up tournament. Seeds streak ended in the 2010 tournament with his first round loss to eventual runner-up Erik Seidel, in 2010, Seed won the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions freeroll for $500,000. As of October 2011, his live tournament winnings exceed $5,900,000. He has four WSOP bracelets and 40 total cashes at the WSOP, Seed has been involved in many prop bets. He once made a $10,000 proposition bet with Phil Hellmuth, by bet rules, he was not allowed to bet more than an additional $15,000, and could settle the bet without attempting the feat for $5,000, which is what eventually happened. This bet has been reported, Seed discussed it in a podcast. Seed once took a bet that he could break 100 on a desert golf course four times in a day using just a five iron, sand wedge. He has also bet that he would be able to go a year without shaving
33.
Noel Furlong
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J. J. Furlong is an Irish businessman and recreational poker player who won the 1999 World Series of Poker main event. Furlong was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland and he originally became a millionaire from his carpet manufacturing business. He was given the nickname Noel because he was born on Christmas Day, Furlong began playing poker in 1984, and in his first trip to the World Series of Poker in 1989, he placed 6th in the main event. That final table was won by Phil Hellmuth, and also included two world champion, Johnny Chan, and business executive and professional poker player, Lyle Berman. Ten years later, Furlongs biggest win came in the 1999 WSOP main event, until Andy Blacks 5th-place finish at the 2005 World Series of Poker main event, he was the top money-winning Irish poker player in the world. He is currently 6th on the Irish poker tournament money-winning list, Furlong also won the Irish Poker Open, the longest running tournament in Europe, in 1987 and again in 1989. This tournament began in 1980, and has held nearly every year since that time. Furlong is one of five players in Irish Poker Open history to have won the tournament twice. In recent years, he has not traveled much to play poker, preferring to concentrate on his business and other interests, while playing occasionally in tournaments in Ireland, as of 2009, Furlongs total live tournament winnings exceed $1,100,000. His 3 cashes at the WSOP account for $1,070,785 of those winnings, Furlong owns a carpet distribution company that does over $100 million worth of business a year. Because of his involvement with the business, he doesnt play poker frequently, usually only the WSOP and tournaments in Ireland. Furlongs other interests include owning horses and working as a horse trainer
34.
Chris Ferguson
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Christopher Philip Chris Ferguson is an American professional poker player. He has won five World Series of Poker events, including the 2000 WSOP Main Event, on September 20,2011, the U. S. Ferguson was born in Los Angeles, California. Both Fergusons parents have doctoral degrees in mathematics and his father, Thomas Ferguson, teaches game theory, Ferguson attended UCLA, where he earned a Ph. D. in computer science in 1999 after five years as an undergraduate and 13 years as a graduate student. His Ph. D. advisor was Leonard Kleinrock, Ferguson began playing poker at the age 10. In college, he honed his skill on IRC poker playing online for money in chat rooms. In 1994, he began playing in tournaments in California and in 1995, Ferguson beat T. J. Cloutier heads-up at the Main Event of the 2000 WSOP to win the $1.5 million prize. In 2004, he entered the WSOP Main Event, earning $120,000 for his 26th-place finish, also in 2004, Ferguson helped launch the online poker site Full Tilt Poker. Ferguson finished runner-up to Phil Hellmuth in the 2005 National Heads-Up Poker Championship and he made the finals again in 2006, but again finished second, this time to Ted Forrest. In 2008, he made the finals for the third time, at one time he had the most event wins, but he is now second to Huck Seed. In 2008, Ferguson cashed for US$677,905 at the WSOP, as of 2010, his total live tournament winnings exceed $8,000,000. His 63 WSOP cashes account for $4,051,104 of those winnings and put him third for most cashes at the WSOP, behind Phil Hellmuth and he claims to have turned $1 into more than $20,000 playing online poker over six months as a personal challenge. He talked about this as a guest on Poker Night Live, similarly, to show that it could be done, he turned $0 into $10,000 on Full Tilt by first winning freeroll tournaments. Despite achieving his goal, Ferguson has continued the challenge and was at one point over $20,000 and he is a relatively quiet player who often adopts a characteristic motionless pose to avoid providing information to his opponents. He adopted his trademark wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses consciously, to point towards a table image that does not display outright the fact that he was a college student. His style is highly mathematical, using a knowledge of game theory. Ferguson is nicknamed Jesus because of his trademark long brown hair, in addition to his five bracelets, Ferguson was the first player to have won three World Series of Poker Circuit rings. On September 20,2011, the United States Department of Justice amended an existing civil complaint against Full Tilt Poker, the case was dismissed February 19,2013 yielding insofar that money be paid out by Ferguson and limitations placed on his website and the legality of online poker. His interests include his presidency of a dancing club at UCLA, as well as his ability to throw playing cards fast enough to cut through bananas, carrots
35.
Carlos Mortensen
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Juan Carlos Mortensen is a Spanish professional poker player of Danish descent and the only Hispanic Main Event winner of the World Series of Poker. Mortensen is known for his play, bluffing tactics. Mortensen moved from Spain to the United States in the late 1990s to play poker and he won $1,500,000 at the 2001 World Series of Poker Main Event. He defeated a field of 613 players, including a tough final table that included professional players Mike Matusow,1989 WSOP Main Event champion Phil Hellmuth, Phil Gordon. In the final hand, Mortensens suited King-Queen out-drew and defeated Tomkos pocket aces and he won his second bracelet at the 2003 World Series of Poker in the $5,000 Limit Holdem event, earning $251,680. He defeated professional player Mark Gregorich heads-up to win the title, at the 2006 World Series of Poker Carlos made 3 final tables. He finished 9th in event #2 winning $71,617 and he would once again finish 9th in event #6 earning him another $73,344. He came up just short of winning his 3rd bracelet in event #33 where he finished runner-up to James Richburg earning him $94,908 and he is considered to be the last big-name poker professional to win the Main Event at the World Series of Poker. A few other players have made the final table in the post-boom years since his win. He finished 10th in the 2013 WSOP Main Event, being the Final Table Bubble Boy, in 2004, he won the World Poker Tour Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship for $1,000,000. In 2010, Mortensen won the Season Eight WPT Hollywood Poker Open, with this win, he passed Daniel Negreanu for first on the all-time WPT money list, and tied Gus Hansen for most WPT titles with three. Mortensen has also made the money in the World Heads-Up Poker Championship. In 2006, he and his wife, fellow poker player Cecilia Reyes Mortensen, as of 2014, his total live tournament winnings exceed $11,400,000. His 21 cashes as the WSOP account for $3,080,524 of those winnings, GENEALOGY, family origins of Carlos Mortensen in the Mauricio Alvarado-Dávilas genealogical database for Ecuador. World Poker Tour – profile Hendon Mob tournament results
36.
Robert Varkonyi
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Robert Varkonyi is an American poker player, best known for winning the Main Event of the 2002 World Series of Poker. Varkonyi was born in and raised in New York and he first started playing poker as an undergraduate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After his graduation in 1983, he was an investment banker in Brooklyn, Varkonyi is most well known for winning the 2002 World Series of Poker Main Event, taking the $2 million prize. In the final hand, Varkonyis Q♦ 10♠ defeated Julian Gardners J♣ 8♣ on a board of Q♣ 4♣ 4♠ 10♦ 10♣, in the WSOP Main Event the following year, Varkonyi was at the televised feature table, playing in defense of his championship. Two-time world champion Doyle Brunson was also featured at the table for a while, later in the broadcast,1998 world champion Scotty Nguyen was also at the feature table and they played several hands together. In the 2003 World Series of Poker, Varkonyis chance of a championship was dashed when his K♥ K♦ met Nguyens A♦ A♠. He cashed in the event in 2007, finishing in 177th place in a field of over six thousand players. In the 2009 WSOP, Varkonyi competed with 19 other former WSOP main event world champions in the first ever Champions Invitational tournament and he finished the tournament in second place, being defeated in heads-up play by 1983 world champion Tom McEvoy. At the 2011 WSOP, Varkonyi cashed in the Main Event for the time in his poker career. He finished in 514th place in a field of 6,865 players, as of 2011, Varkonyis lifetime live tournament winnings exceed $2,200,000. His three cashes at the WSOP total $2,075,274, Varkonyi currently resides in Great Neck, New York, with his wife Olga, who also plays poker, and two daughters. He named his first daughter Victoria after his World Series win and his second daughter is named Valarie. Olga made an appearance at the 2005 World Series of Poker main event, finishing in the money in 238th place
37.
Chris Moneymaker
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Christopher Bryan Moneymaker is an American poker player who won the Main Event at the 2003 World Series of Poker. His 2003 win is said to have revolutionized poker because he was the first person to become a champion by qualifying at an online poker site. This has been referred to in the press as the Moneymaker Effect, Moneymakers ancestors made silver and gold coins and chose the name Moneymaker as a modification of their German last name, Nurmacher. Moneymaker was born in Atlanta, Georgia and he attended Farragut High School in Knoxville, Tennessee, and later earned a masters degree in accounting from the University of Tennessee. After receiving his masters degree, Moneymaker worked as a comptroller and he was also a part-time employee at a local restaurant. Moneymaker was working as an accountant when he won a seat into the Main Event of the 2003 World Series of Poker through a US$86 satellite tournament at the PokerStars online poker card room. Moneymaker went on to win the first prize of $2.5 million, the 2003 WSOP Main Event was his first live poker tournament. One of Moneymakers most memorable hands was heads-up against Sam Farha, Farha folded a pair of nines, quickly changing the momentum of the match. Moneymaker eventually won the WSOP when his 5♦ 4♠ beat Farhas J♥ 10♦ on a board of J♠ 5♠ 4♣ 8♦ 5♥, after winning the WSOP, he quit his job to serve as a celebrity spokesman for Series owner Harrahs Entertainment as well as PokerStars. He also started his own company, Moneymaker Gaming, and began traveling to play in more numerous and his autobiography, Moneymaker, How an Amateur Poker Player Turned $40 into $2.5 Million at the World Series of Poker was published in March 2005. On the World Poker Tour, Moneymaker finished second at the 2004 Shooting Stars event and won $200,000. During Event 5 of the 2008 World Championship of Online Poker and he also did well in Event 16, the $215 Pot Limit Omaha with ReBuys, where he finished fifth, earning over $28,000. Moneymaker won the Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha event of the World Poker Open tournament in July 2009, Moneymaker also placed 11th in the 2011 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event, earning himself $130,000. As of April 2010, his live tournament winnings exceed $3,000,000. In 2011 Moneymaker placed 2nd at National Heads Up Poker Tournament against Erik Seidel earning $300,000.00 Moneymaker has been married twice. He and his first wife divorced in 2004, as he would say in an interview for a 10-year retrospective on the 2003 WSOP Main Event and she didnt sign up for that life. She was married to an accountant who was not traveling the world, gone all the time. And it was a choice I had to make, I tried to be good, stay at my job, and be that accountant, but in all honesty I didnt want to
38.
Greg Raymer
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Gregory Raymer nicknamed Fossilman, is a professional poker player. He is best known for winning the 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event, raymers family moved numerous times during his childhood, from his birthplace of Minot, North Dakota to Lansing, Michigan, where he lived until age 10. He then moved to Clearwater, Florida, attending Dunedin Middle School, and would later once again. After Raymer graduated from Parkway South High School in St. Louis, he enrolled at the University of Missouri–Rolla and he graduated from the University of Minnesota with a masters degree in biochemistry in 1989, and then again from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1992. He then practiced law as a patent attorney for more than a decade, Raymer is nicknamed Fossilman because of his fossil collecting hobby. He uses a small fossil as a card protector while he plays poker, Raymer first finished in the money of a World Series of Poker event during 2001 in the $1,500 Omaha hi-lo split 8 or better event won by Chris Ferguson. At the 2004 World Series of Poker, he defeated David Williams to win the $5,000,000 first prize in the $10,000 no limit Texas hold em WSOP main event. The following year, as defending champion, Raymer finished 25th in the 2005 WSOP Main Event, arguably, this two-year accomplishment ranks as one of the most impressive performances in the Main Event in recent history, along with Dan Harringtons. Both players posted deep runs in years, and both looked to repeat as world champion within a ten-year span. In 2005, Raymer also entered the inaugural British Poker Open, as one of the favourites, he made the final table and came in third in a live final, worth around £20,000. On September 17,2007, Raymer won his first World Championship of Online Poker bracelet by winning Event #6 of the 2007 WCOOP, a $320 Pot Limit Omaha with Rebuys event. At the 2009 World Series of Poker $40,000 No Limit hold em event, he placed third out of 201 entrants, in 2012, he won an unprecedented four Heartland Poker Tour events. As of 2016, his live tournament winnings exceed $7,650,000. Most of his winnings have come from his places in the money at WSOP tournament events, since 2011, Raymer has operated a poker training school called Fossilman Poker Training. The 1-2 day training classes are conducted at poker rooms around the US, Raymer was one of the original members of Team PokerStars Pro, a group of professional poker players who represent and endorse PokerStars. com, the worlds largest online poker site. As of early 2011, he is no longer a member of Team PokerStars Pro, Raymer has lobbied extensively to have poker regulated and classified as a game of skill, after the passage of the UIGEA in 2006. As part of effort, he is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Poker Players Alliance. In a December 2006 interview, Raymer said that he was considering running for Vice-President of the United States in 2008 as a candidate of the Libertarian Party, however, Raymer did not end up running
39.
Joe Hachem
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Joseph Hachem is a Lebanese Australian professional poker player known for winning the Main Event of the 2005 World Series of Poker. He was the first Australian to win the Main Event, which earned him $7.5 million, the next year, Hachem won his first World Poker Tour title at the Bellagio Casinos Five Diamonds Poker Classic, earning him $2.2 million. He is one of only five players to win both a World Series of Poker main event and a World Poker Tour championship. Including his WSOP Main Event victory, Hachem has finished in the money in thirteen World Series events, as of July 2014, Hachems tournament winnings exceed $11,800,000, making him the fourteenth highest ranked player in live tournament career earnings. Joseph Hachem was born in Lebanon on 11 March 1966, in 1972, at age six, Hachem and his family moved to Melbourne, Australia. He worked as a chiropractor for 13 years before giving up the career after developing a blood disorder that affected the blood vessels in his hands. Around 1995, while taking time off to consider his future, Hachem started to play poker with greater frequency, mostly in casinos and he also ran a small brokerage business in Pascoe Vale, Victoria. Hachem said he was too temperamental when he first started playing poker and had to learn to control his temper. Around 2000, after years of playing, Hachem started playing regularly in tournaments at the Crown Casino and Entertainment Complex in Melbourne. Hachem spent another five years playing regularly on the Melbourne tournament circuit before setting his sights on the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, Nevada. Just prior to entering the 2005 World Series of Poker, Hachem visited the Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens, one of the players made a joke that Hachem was stopping in before being crowned the new Australian champion. Hachem entered the World Series of Poker as a relatively unknown poker player, two weeks prior to the main event, Hachem finished 10th in the $1,000 buy-in No Limit Holdem World Series event, winning $25,850. Hachem won the 2005 World Series of Poker $10,000 no limit Texas hold em Main Event and he won $7,500,000 for the first-place finish, then a record for all-time largest poker tournament prize. He entered the tournament by paying the $10,000 entrance fee in cash, Hachem ended the first day of the tournament with 67,000 in chips, about twice the average, and he said the strong start gave him confidence going into the rest of the tournament. Hachems chip stack stayed at the tournament average for most of the tournament until he reached the final table, a number of fellow Australians provided moral support from the audience, chanting Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi. Hachem was short-stacked for much of the table, and was constantly being re-raised by professional player Aaron Kanter. With four players left in the hand, Hachem was rejuvenated when he went all in with Q♦ 7♦ against Kanter, Hachem caught a queen on the flop and doubled his chips. In a later interview, Hachem said he knew the hand was a point for him
40.
Jamie Gold
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Gold is an American television producer, a talent agent, and poker player, based in Malibu, California. Gold was born in Kansas City, Missouri, as Jamie M. Usher and his name was later changed by court order to Jamie M. Gold following his mothers divorce and remarriage to Dr. Robert Gold, the family moved to Paramus, New Jersey, where Gold was raised by his mother and her second husband. He graduated from Paramus High School in 1987 and he later earned a bachelors degree from the State University of New York at Albany in 1991, and studied entertainment law at UCLA. At the age of 16, Gold began his career in the entertainment business as an intern at the J. Michael Bloom & Associates Talent Agency and he became a talent agent before he was 21, but soon moved into management/production. Golds clients have included Jimmy Fallon and Lucy Liu, Golds interest in poker began as a youngster. His mother, Jane, was a poker player. In 2005, Gold began regularly playing in poker tournaments, in April 2005 at the Bicycle Casino, he won his first major no limit Texas hold em tournament, earning $54,225. Over the next 12 months, Gold had seven more in the finishes in California tournaments. While many pros criticized Golds play in the stages of the tournament. Gold favored pressuring all of the players at the table especially when playing in position, bluff magazine, a major poker trade publication has analyzed Gold’s winning poker strategies as follows, “He forced his tablemates to risk their entire stack time after time. If they reraised him, he knew they were holding the nuts and folded, or he sniffed out a bluff and forced them all in. At the 2006 WSOP, Gold maintained a significant chip lead from Day 4 onwards to win the World Series of Poker Main Event, excluding 4th-place finisher Allen Cunningham, Gold had more casino tournament final table finishes than the rest of his final table opponents combined. Gold eliminated 7 of his 8 opponents at the final table, Gold defeated Paul Wasicka heads-up, earning a record $12,000,000 when in the final hand his Q♠ 9♣ made a pair with the board of Q♣ 8♥ 5♥. Wasicka held 10♥ 10♠ and did not improve with the A♦ on the turn, Gold won the event despite earlier saying that he would prefer to finish second as he felt uncomfortable with the idea of being famous. Gold ate blueberries during the play of the 2006 WSOP main event final table and joked in a post-tournament interview that the blueberries were brain food and the reason he won. Golds WSOP win was marked by an ability to goad his opponents into either calling his bets when he had an unbeatable hand or folding to him when he was weak. He consistently told his opponents that he was weak or strong, telling the truth sometimes, Golds table talk, though both an asset and a source of criticism for his tendency to tell opponents his actual hand during play, was contrary to WSOP rules
