Famous Poker Players

Intriguing Players We Tend To Idolize

Poker card-games, such as Texas Holdem, have shown increasing popularity over the past 10 years. And just like every area of sports and entertainments has its celebrities, poker has its own famous poker stars. In every broadcasted tournament, you can always be sure that broadcasters will focus on the pro poker players. The online rooms, where we find the celebrity competitors, are always crowded with observers. The manners and sayings of many famous poker stars even creep into our daily lexicon.

New stars appear on the poker horizon following all the key tournaments and championships. One of the most famous poker players is Phil Hellmuth, until recently the youngest player to win the World Series of Poker's Main Event. Nicknamed "Poker Brat" for his cocky behavior, Phil has won since then 10 more WSOP bracelets, all of them in Pot Limit or No Limit Holdem competitions. Another outstanding figure among pro poker players is Doyle Brunson, who has been a champion for a half a century. "Texas Dolly", Brunson has a hand named after him, a ten and a two, which earned him the victory in two Main Even championships.

But modern times introduced us to new talents. The poker boom of the 21st century is largely attributable to one Chris Moneymaker. Many famous poker stars applauded him when, after winning a $40 satellite, he went on to win two and a half million dollars in WSOP's Main Event. The entire poker community was inspired by his victory.

Not every celebrity poker player was made famous by their Main Event victories. Gus Hansen and Daniel Negreanu are the two pro poker players everyone is talking about. Poker fans everywhere monitor their progress on the tour and respect them. All famous poker players are good friends with Negreanu, who brings a lot of knowledge and insight to the table. Gus can be unpredictable, playing with a conservative style on one day and taking risks on the next. Both are frequently featured on "High Stakes Poker" and "Poker After Dark" TV shows along many other famous poker players. Mike Matusow, called "The Mouth" because of his ceaseless and sometimes amusing talking, is another poker celebrity who appears on TV.

Poker card-games are not just a man's world. One of the most well known female poker players is Jennifer Harman, the only woman who regularly plays the high-stakes cash game at the Bellagio. Another one is Annie Duke, "The Dutchess of Poker", who won the first WSOP Tournament of Champions, besting some of the top players in the world and earning two million dollars. No list of top players would be complete without the movie star Jennifer Tilly, who who rose through the field of hundreds of female poker players in the Ladies' Texas Holdem tournament and won her championship bracelet.

As fun and exciting the lives of famous poker players are, they also experience some disadvantages. Thousands of fans watch their style of play and study their methods of playing. The on-line poker community constantly discusses their actions and decisions. A lot of amateur players are very eager to face the famous poker stars and to eliminate them from the tournaments. Thus, famous poker players cannot advance to the final table that easily.

Drawbacks aside, nothing compares to being one of the famous poker players. Perhaps somewhere in the future you will become one as well?

By Dennis Boesen

 

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