Good Evening Pokermadness !

I’m sorry it took so long before I got back but I had some work for school and different examinations to deal with. I’ll post the next players quicker, so that we could reach the number one in a couple of weeks. I’m running extremely bad the last weeks, especially during live play than. I’m so carddead sometimes that it’s very hard and frustrating to deal with. Last week we played a nine handed cash game for about 6 hours, my best hands were 4x pocket Deuce , one time my favourite pocket fours and one big Ace, Ace-Jack. I played with a dozen of suited connectors but missed like every flop. I only won pots when I bluffed at it, and I know that’s not yet my best game. Online I’m more on a rollercoaster, running over and under the 330$. I play good and with patience, following the Smallball Poker strategy, looking out for pot control and keeping the pot small, especially with overrated hands like Ace-Queen or Pocket Nines. But the biggest problem is that I certainly don’t win too many coinflips for the moment. I’m going to stop complaining right now and start with number 35…

(35)   =>   DAVID   WILLIAMS

> David Anthony Williams

> born 09/06/1980 in Arlington, Texas (USA).

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> became 2nd in the WSOP Main Event in 2004, losing to Greg Raymer.

> won 1 Bracelet (’06 Seven-card Stud)

> plays online at Bodog Poker as a member of TeamBodog.

> has Live Tournament Winnings of over $ 6,300,000 (until 2009).

David is a very smart person, which he showed when he scored enormous on his scolar tests at high school and could choose any university he wanted. He chose Southern Methodist where he studied Economics. Before poker, David was a big star in the game ‘ Magic : The Gathering ‘ but he was suspended  from the game in the late 90s after he’ve marked the cards during a big tournament. He started to play online poker during his suspension and never left it because of the money. He still plays Magic: The Gathering when he wants some fun. David was being mentored in poker at the beginning of his career by Marcel Luske. His second place at the WSOP Main Event in 2004 is still the best finish ever in the Main Event for an African American. Despite of his interest in fashion and bling bling, David Williams is an excellent tournament player. He made three final tables at the WPT and had some great results in high rated televised poker shows such as High Stakes Poker, Poker After Dark and King of Vegas.

(34)   =>   JAMIE   GOLD

> born as Jamie M. Usher

> born 25/08/1969 in Kansas City, Missouri (USA)

> based in Malibu, California.

> Nickname : ‘ Golden Boy ‘

> is the 2006 WSOP Main Event winner.

> ranked 3th on the All Time Money List

> won over $12,200,000 (until 2009) in Live Tournament Play.

Jamie holds a bachelor’s degree from State University of New York. Before his famous poker victory, he was a talent agent and worked as a manager of Lucy Liu and James Gandolfini. Jamie has being tutored in poker by Johnny Chan and Chris Ferguson, who’s his neighbour. He won the biggest cash prize ever with his win in the WSOP Main Event in 2006, after beating Paul Wasicka heads-up. During the tournament he became very well-known for his table-talk, telling the truth about his hands all the time and he had a rare gameplan which is still causing a lot of controversy about his pokerskills. He also likes to eat blueberries during a tournament. He featured in Poker After Dark and season 3 and 4 of High Stakes Poker. He had a controversy after his big win with Bodog Poker. Because he partnered with Crispin Leyser and they had a deal for the half of Gold’ winnings at the WSOP but Jamie refused to give Leyser $6,000,000 after he won the Main Event. Finally he sorted it out with Leyser after different causes, but he ended his contract with Bodog. Jamie now still plays poker but not all the time. He’s also a businessman, television producer and president of Buzznation.

(33)   =>   GAVIN   SMITH

> born 04/09/1968 in Guelph, Ontario (CAN).

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname : ‘ Caveman ‘ or ‘ Birdguts ‘

> won the WPT Mirage Poker Showdown Championship event in 2005.

> was the WPT Player of the Year in season 4.

> won 3 Poker After Dark titles.

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker as a sponsored Pro.

> won over $4,800,000 (until 2009) in Live Tournament Play.

Gavin is a former poker dealer, taxi driver and golf course employee. He’s a very agressive player, doing a lot of talking and drinking (was one time very drunk on Poker After Dark !) at the table but also likes to laugh and joke. He’s a very successful player, making three other WPT final tables. Besides that , he won a lot of other big tournaments such as the B.A.R.G.E Main Event in 2004 and the World Pro-Am Challenge in 2006. Gavin has many famous and funny prop bets with his good friend and fellow Poker Pro Joe Sebok, e.g. Gavin has a tattoo with the initials J.S. after he lost a bet against Sebok. Gavin acts as the co-host of Pokerroad Radio show along with Sebok and The Voice of Poker After Dark, Ali Nejad. Smith is also a good friend of Erick Lindgren, who’ve helped him building up his bankroll.

(32)   =>   ALLEN    CUNNINGHAM

> born 28/09/1977 in Riverside, California (USA).

> resides now in Las Vegas with fellow Poker Pro and girlfriend Melissa Hayden and their dog Muffin.

> Nickname : ‘ Clever Piggy ‘

> won 5 Bracelets (’01 Seven-card Stud/ ‘02 2-7 Draw/ ‘05 NL Hold’em/ ‘06 NL Hold’em w Rebuys/ ‘07 PL Hold’em)

> became 4th in the WSOP Main Event in 2006 (when Jamie Gold won).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker as member of TeamFullTilt.

> has Live Tournament Earnings of almost $10,400,000 (until 2009).

Allen studied Civil Engineering until he was 18 before dropping out and play poker professionally. He is famous to be a quiet, peaceful and focused player who’s playing the game with an analytical vision. Allen earned the title ESPN/Toyota Player of the Year in 2005 and was voted by his peers as the Best All Around Player under 35. He joined a small group of players in 2007 who’ve won a WSOP Bracelet in three consecutive years. Allen is a great tournament player, he won one Poker After Dark title, the National Poker League Vegas O.C. Main Event in 2007 and the WSOP Circuit Event in 2008. He ranked 8th on the All Time Money List.

(31)   =>   ERIK   SEIDEL

> born 06/12/1959 in New York City (USA).

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname : ‘ Sly ‘

> won 8 Bracelets (’92 Limit Hold’em/ ‘93 Omaha 8 or better/ ‘94 Limit Hold’em/ ‘98 2-7 Draw/ ‘01 NL Hold’em/ ‘03 PL Omaha/ ‘05 NL Hold’em/ ‘07 WC NL 2-7 Draw Lowball w/Rebuys)

> became 2nd in the 1988 WSOP Main Event and 4th in the 1999 WSOP Main Event.

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker, part of design team.

> has Live Tournament Winnings of over $9,800,000 (until 2009).

Erik is a former professional backgammon and stock market player. He worked on Wall Street before playing poker full time.  He’s one of the famous players from the Mayfair Club, including Howard Lederer and Dan Harrington. He reached the final table in his first big WSOP event in 1988 when he lost to Johnny Chan heads-up. The final hand of that battle was featured in the famous pokermovie ‘ Rounders ‘. Erik is a great tournament player, not only did he won 8 Bracelets but besides that he won the 2008 WPT Foxwoods Poker Classic and he finished 2nd twice in a big event at the Aussie Millions in 2007 and 2008. He ranked 9th on the All Time Money List. Erik is very well-known as a big music fanatic, listening to a very wild range of different genres of music. He has a special tab on his website where you could find his favourite music albums. He likes to play tennis when he has some time left.

So next time we dive into the top-thirty of Most Famous Poker Players.Watch out for the bad beats and only go All In when you have the best hand!

Cheers,

J.M.

Good Evening pokerworld !

I wish you all the best for the next year and let’s make 2010 a good pokeryear with some extraordinary suckouts and sexy flops !  I’m hoping that smallball-poker is getting bigger this year with more partners and visitors. You really could help me with that pokerfriends. Here are now the next five players…

(40)   =>   CHIP   REESE

> David Edward Reese

> 28/03/1951 – 04/12/2007

> born in Centerville, Ohio (USA).

> lived in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname :  ‘ Chip ‘

> won 3 Bracelets (’78 Seven Card Stud split/ ‘82 Limit Seven Card Stud/ ‘06 H.O.R.S.E World Championship)

> was 6th in the 1979 WSOP Main Event

> has Live Tournament Earnings over $ 3,500,000

His mother learned him the game of poker, together with some other card games, when he was just 5 years old. He played football, was in debate teams and good in economics. He reached the final table of one WPT event and he was the former cardroom manager at the Dunes Casino. He became the youngest living player ever in 1991 to be induct in the Poker Hall of Fame. He had the longest heads-up battle ever in 2006 when he won his third Bracelet against Andy Bloch. It was also back then the largest buy-in WSOP Event ever. Chip wrote the seven card stud chapter in Brunson’s famous book ‘Super/System‘ and Doyle thought that Chip was the best seven card stud player ever. David ‘Chip’ Reese died in Vegas, on Pneumonia or by a gastric bypass, which is still not sure but he’s wildly considered as one of the best cash game players ever.

(39)   =>   ANDY   BLACK

> Andrew Black

> born 20/07/1965, Belfast (NI)

> resides now in Dublin (IRE)

> Nickname : ‘ The Monk ‘

> was 5th in the 2005 WSOP Main Event in the year that Joe Hachem won.

> plays at Full Tilt Poker as an official Pro.

> won over $ 4,100,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009)

Andy is an excellent tournament player, which he proves with his results. He reached one final table at the EPT, won the Premier League Poker II in 2008 after beating Roland de Wolfe heads-up and finished 2th in the PLO Event and 3th in the NL Hold’em Main Event during the 2007 Aussie Millions. Besides that, Andy is also well-known for his famous blow-up during a tournament overplaying his hand and losing a lot of his big stack. He discarded all his possessions in 1998 after another unlucky tournament, travelled to England and lived in a semi-monastic Buddhist environment for five years. He returned very successfully to poker in 2004, dominating some Irish Tournaments before achieving his marvellous 5th place in the 2005 WSOP Main Event. He’ve never forgotten that period and it still helps him. Andy likes to meditate during the breaks of a poker tourney.

(38)   =>   PETER   EASTGATE

> born 13/12/1985 in Dalum (DEN).

> resides now in London (ENG).

> Nickname : ‘ Icegate ‘  or  ‘ Isser ‘

> was the winner of the 2008 WSOP Main Event after beating Ivan Demidov in the final.

> plays at PokerStars as a member of TeamPokerStars.

> has over $ 10,600,000 in Live Tournament Earnings (until 2009).

The young Peter Eastgate won more than 9 million US Dollars with his fantastic win of the WSOP Main Event in 2008. Back than at the age of 22 he was the youngest winner ever, surpassing Phil Hellmuth’s age of 24. But Peter was surpassed this year by another young gun Joseph Cada at the age of 21. Peter proved in 2009 that he does have some excellent poker skills after another great run in the WSOP Main Event, 78th place, and after his second place in the EPT event in London. He ranked 7th in the all time Money List in Tournaments.

(37)   =>   HUMBERTO   BRENES

> born 08/05/1951 from Costa Rica.

> resides now in San José (CR) with his wife and 3 kids.

> Nickname : ‘ The Shark ‘

> became 4th in the 1988 WSOP Main Event

> won 2 Bracelets (’93 Limit Hold’em – Pot Limit Omaha)

> made 3 WPT Final Tables

> plays online at PokerStars as a member of TeamPokerStars.

> has Live Tournament Winnings over $ 5,500,000 (until 2009)

Humberto started to play poker in 1974. He has a recognizable look, easy to spot, always wears a bright tracksuit, two pair of glasses on top of each other and a visor. He’s very famous for his toy shark as a card protector which he uses a lot at the table to influence the cards and the dealer. Humberto also has two brothers who are successful in the pokerworld, namely Eric and Alex. Humberto is wildly considered as one of the most popular players in the circuit. He’s a former entrepeneur in different businessregions such as hotels, construction, tv stations and many more. He has a former success in baccarat and holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Costa Rica.

(36)   =>   JENNIFER   TILLY

> Jennifer E. Chan

> born 16/09/1958 in Harbor City, California (USA).

> lives together with her boyfriend and fellow Poker Pro Phil Laak

> resides now in Texada Island (USA).

> Nickname : ‘ The Unabombshell ‘

> won 1 Bracelet (’05 NL Hold’em Ladies)

> won the WPT Ladies Invitational Tournament in 2005

> has Live Tournament Winnings of over $ 500,000 (until 2009)

Jennifer was formerly married to Sam Simon, one of the producers of The Simpsons and the voice of Bart. Tilly appeared in different televised pokershows such as Poker SuperStars, Poker After Dark and Celebrity Poker Showdown. Nevertheless Jennifer is probably the most famous as an actress. She played in Bound, Liar Liar, The Getaway and she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Woody Allen’s Bullets over Broadway.

That was it for now my dearest friends. I’m going to play some sit and go’s I guess and probably getting some more bad beats because it’s getting really worse again the last weeks. Sometimes really sick to see how people can play rubbish hands and still manage to get lucky. I have the best hand for about 85 % of the time when I go all-in but I only win around 35% of the time. That isn’t normal?  I hope you run better.

See you next time or maybe sunday for the 1/4 Sunday Millions on PokerStars.

Cheers,

J.M.

Hello pokerworld,

I hope you have a splendid holiday with hopefully some more snow to come. It’s not only romantic and nice to watch, but it gave you a reason more to stay inside and enjoy the hearth and Christmas sphere inside your house. And what’s even more fun to combine with that? Yes, you know it. Log on to your favourite online pokersite and play poker online.  I’m still running superbly on PokerStars with a massive run the last comple of months. I hope you could also avoid the beats and I wish you all the good luck you need. But for now, let’s rejoin the action with the next 5 players….

(45)   =>   TONY   G

> Antanas Guoga

> born 17/12/1973, Kaunas (LIT).

> resides now in Melbourne, Australia.

> Nickname :  ‘ The Australian Airbag ‘

> won the Asian Poker Tour event in Singapore.

> made two final tables on WPT circuit and has 15 cashes in WSOP.

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker

> won almost $ 4,000,000 in Life Tournament Play (until 2009).

When he was younger, Tony G was the Rubik’s Cube champion of his country before moving to Australia when he was 11. He’s a real businessman nowadays, he’s the owner of different high poker information sites, such as Pokernews.com. But he also has his own poker play site online at tonygpoker.com. He received the Shining World Leadership Award in January 2008. Tony G is very well-known as a trashtalker at the table, by using some very agressive play combined with intimidation and verbal assaults against his opponents. But he’s known outside the table as a true gentleman which he showed when he donates plenty of his winnings to different charities in Asia, Australia and Russia after winning several big unknown tournaments throughout the world. He also won the WPT Bad Boys of Poker Two event after beating Mike Matusow with his favourite hand, 10-8, in heads-up play. Tony G was wearing a kimono throughout that event to promote poker in Japan.

(44)   =>   SHAWN   SHEIKHAN

> Shahram ” Shawn” Sheikhan

> born in 1969 in Iran.

> lives now in Las Vegas, Nevada (USA) with his wife and daughter.

> Nickname :  ‘ Sheiky ‘  or  ‘ The Iron Sheik ‘

> was 11th in the WSOP Main Event in 2005

> won 1 Poker After Dark title.

> has Live Tournament Winnings around $ 1,500,000 (until 2008).

Shawn owns several tattoo and tobacco stores in the USA. He’s well-known for his trashtalk and frustration explodes at the table which has resulting in a lot of famous incidents, e.g. with Phil Hellmuth on Poker After Dark. Shawn is a bad winner but a worse loser. But he has proved that he can be a good player too, when he made the final four in NBC’s National Heads-Up Poker Championship in 2006. In addition to that he played several seasons on High Stakes Poker, as he’s being a fan of the big cash games. Sheiky did also break one pair of Matusow’s sunglasses during High Stakes Poker. But he was also two times in the news in a negative way. First in 1999 whe he lost control over his car in the rain and caused an accident with one deadly victim. Besides that he was arrested in 2007 and faced deportation because of sexual handlings in 1995 with a 17-year-old girl while he was in immigration status.

(43)   =>   VANESSA   ROUSSO

> Vanessa Ashley Rousso

> born 05/02/1983, White Plains, New York (USA).

> lives now in Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada.

> married to poker pro Chad Brown

> Nickname :  ‘ Lady Maverick ‘ or  ‘ Pokerness ‘

> has several finishes in WSOP, WPT and EPT.

> won the 2006 WPT Borgata Open.

> plays online at PokerStars as a member of TeamPokerStars.

> won almost $2,400,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

Vanessa has two nationalities, the French and the American. She studied Law at the University of Miami and did softball, basketball, swimming, lacrosse and chess on high school. Nowadays she still keeps her physical fitness, which she showed by appearing in the 2009 Sports Illustrated. Besides that she does have some excellent poker results. She became the youngest woman ever to reach the final table at a WSOP circuit event when she was 22. She finished 2nd in the 2007 World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) on PokerStars. She appeared on several episodes of Poker After Dark and won one. She was 2nd in the 2009 NBC’s National Heads-Up Poker, after losing to Huck Seed in the final. She ranked 4th on the Women’s All Time Money List.

(42)   =>   JASON   MERCIER

> born 11/12/1986 in USA

> is from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

> Nickname :  ‘ treysfull21 ‘

> won 1 Bracelet (’09 Pot Limit Omaha)

> won 1 EPT-title (’08 San Remo)

> was 4th in the WSOPE Main Event in 2009

> plays online at PokerStars as a member of  TeamPokerStars.

> has Live Tournament Earnings of over $4,000,000 (until 2009).

Besides playing poker online and live, Jason likes to play basketball and he hangs out a lot on the beach when he want some fun and entertainment. He only plays for two years at the high level and he has already very exceptional results. He showed that in 2008 when he won the EPT 1 Million High Roller Showdown event in London after beating John Juanda in heads-up play.

(41)   =>   PHIL   GORDON

> Philip Stewart Gordon

> born 06/07/1970 in El Paso, Texas (USA).

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada and has one son.

> Nickname :  ‘ Tiltboy ‘

> became 4th in the WSOP Main Event in 2001.

> won 1 WPT title (’04 Bay 101 Shooting Stars)

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker as a member of Team Full Tilt.

> won around $2,200,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

Phil graduated from Georgia Tech in 1991 with a degree in computer science. He was already a millionaire before he started to play poker because of his jobs as a software engineer. He was a former referee on the World Championship of Rock Paper Scissors. He’s 1,98m tall and is a former bridge champion. He’s wildly considered as a very kind, warm person which he’ve showed for several years now by supporting the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation with his winnings. Phil have been very successful in poker. He made several final tables on the WSOP circuit, but hasn’t yet a magical bracelet. He did win the Full Tilt Poker Poker Championship at Red Rock in 2006, after beating Roland De Wolfe in heads-up play. Phil also likes several random activities besides playing poker. He’s a poker commentator for many years now for the Celebrity Poker Showdown episodes. In addition to that, he’s also a writer of columns for poker magazines and he’s the author of three books on poker. His Dvd about ‘Final Table Play’ has also been rewarded.

That was it people, we’re getting closer to the top ten. I’m hoping you’re still as curious as at the beginning. See you again for the next five players and some more poker news .

Cheers,

J.M.

Hi Pokeraddicts !

It’s time for the sequel of my Most Famous Poker Player top 100 list. I hope you were all waiting for it, because from now on I’m going directly to Number One and the players will only get bigger and greater. Smallball-poker is getting bigger and wildly spread with new viewers every day so I’m going to start right now with number fifty…

(50)   =>   DANIEL   ALAEI

> Daniel Christopher Alaei

> born in 1983, from Sante Fe Springs, California (USA)

> resides now in Los Angeles, California

> Nickname :  ‘ Daniel ‘

> won 2 Bracelets (’06 NL 2-7 Draw Lowball / ‘09 WC Omaha Hi-Lo 8-or-better)

> plays online at PokerStars.

> won over $ 2,300,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

In spite of his two Bracelets and his 25th place in the WSOP Main Event in 2007, the year Jerry Yang won, Mister Alaei likes the big cash games even more. He enjoys the action which he showed in the first three seasons of High Stakes Poker. Daniel is someone who always behave properly at the table, a real gentleman who doesn’t like the theatrics around the table and the lack of poker etiquette of the young online wizards irritates him a lot.

(49)   =>   JOHNNY   MOSS

> born 14/05/1907 in Marshall, Texas (USA)

> died peacefully at 16/12/1995.

> Nickname :  ‘ The Grand Old Man of Poker ‘

> won 3 times the WSOP Main Event (’70, ‘71, ‘74), a record next to Stu Ungar.

> won 9 Bracelets in total (’71 Limit A-5 draw, ‘75 ‘76 ‘79 seven card stud, ‘81 seven card stud Hi-Lo, ‘88 A-5 draw)

> has WSOP Tournament Earnings of $ 850,000.

Johnny won the very first WSOP Main Event in 1970 and didn’t miss a single one until he died. He won in 1970 when his peers voted for him as the best player and he took the trophy back home without any prize money. Mister Moss became a member of the Poker Hall of Fame in 1979. Johnny learned the game when he was very young and soon he decided to cross the whole country and he became a road gambler. In that time, the years ‘30-’60, he always had a gun in his pocket because it was very dangerous with all the gambling and the unfair sharpers. Another very remarkable story about Johnny Moss appeared in 1951 when he met Benny Binion. He arranged a marathon heads-up pokergame between Johnny Moss and Nick The Greek Dandalos that lasted for five months ! Johnny won around $4 million (which is now worth around $50 million) before Nick The Greek said the following famous words: ‘ Mr.Moss, I have to let you go’. The Texas Hold’em starting hand A10 is nicknamed ‘The Johnny Moss’.

(48)   =>   TODD   BRUNSON

> Todd Alan Brunson

> born 07/08/1969, El Paso, Texas (USA)

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname :  ‘  Darkhorse ‘

> won 1 Bracelet (’05 Omaha Hi-Lo Split)

> became 13th at the WSOP Main Event in 1992

> plays online at Doylesroom and PokerStars

> has Live Tournament Winnings over $ 3,300,000 (until 2009).

In spite of his famous father Doyle ‘TexasDolly’ Brunson , Todd learned the game of poker on his own when he studied Law at Texas Tech University. Todd is very well-known as a big cash game player, playing regurlarly in the big games at the Bellagio or in the famous televised pokershow High Stakes Poker. Although he’s focussing more on the tournaments the last years, which he showed when he won the Poker Superstars 3 Grand Final after beating Antonio Esfandiari heads-up. Todd also wrote the chapter about 7 Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or better in his fathers book ‘ Super System 2‘.

(47)   =>   ANDY   BLOCH

> Andrew Elliot Bloch

> born 01/06/1969 in New Haven, Connecticut (USA)

> resides now in Tacoma Park, California.

> Nickname : ‘ The Rock ‘

> was the second season winner of the Ultimate Poker Challenge

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker as a member of TeamFullTilt

> won over $ 4,200,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009)

Andy made two final tables at the World Poker Tour in his first season playing, which was very exceptional. He also played in the longest recorded heads-up beattle in the WSOP history when he lost the H.O.R.S.E. event in 2006 against Chip Reese after playing 286 hands. Bloch was also the runner-up to Chris Ferguson in the 2008 NBC’s National Heads-Up Poker Championship. Andy prefers the mathematical vision when he plays poker, probably because of his education and his 2 electrical engineering degrees from the Harvard Law School. He’s a good, wise man because he donates all his online winnings to various charities around the world. Before playing poker, Bloch was a member of the MIT Blackjack Team , being a good player calculating the cards. He also wrote a book about blackjack and he was a former world champion in ‘ Paper-Scissors-Stone ‘.

(46)   =>   CHRIS   MONEYMAKER

> Christopher Bryan Moneymaker

> born 21/11/1975 in Atlanta, Georgia (USA)

> lives now in Nashville, Tennessee.

> married and has one daughter Ashley.

> Nickname : ‘ Money ‘

> was the 2003 WSOP Main Event winner after beating Sam Farha heads-up.

> plays online at PokerStars as a member of TeamPokerStars.

> has Live Tournament Earnings of almost $ 3,000,000 (until 2009)

There was a massive change in the poker world after Chris’ win in the WSOP Main Event in 2003. The Moneymaker Effect was born. A poker boom in the whole world appeared after his win because an amateur had won the biggest tournament alive playing his first live tourney and of course, now everybody believed they could achieve the same. But Chris played very well and he proved later that he wasn’t just a one hit wonder when he became second in the 2004 Shooting Stars event of the WPT. Later he wrote an autobiography about his great WSOP victory. Chris holds a master degree in accounting from the University of Tennessee. Many people think that his last name ‘Moneymaker’ is just an imaginary nickname but it’s his real last name given by his ancestors.

So people, we’ve just started the second half of my list. I hope you still enjoy it and can’t wait for more. Please don’t bother at all to shout your opinion. I’m glad to hear from you.

See you soon,

J.M.

Hi Folks !

It’s ideal to post another topic when it’s raining like hell as it does this afternoon. So here I am for the last post in the Special Hands categorie for the time being. Next week you’ll see numbers 50-46 of my list. I’m not going to talk a lot today about the crazy, different hands but you’ll have the chance to see those miracles yourself. You’ll probably remember my post about ‘ Cracking Aces’ ? Well this time I will have the best starting hand in NL Hold’em before the flop is revealing his mystery cards.I’ll show you now three hands where I play the Pocket Rockets and one extraordinary where someone else had the Nuts preflop.

The first one is very recently. I’m sitting on the BB with AA when there are two limpers to me, so I must raise and raise just over three times the Big Blind. I get one caller before we see the flop..

That was some Sexy Turn, like Antonio Esfandiari would say, don’t you think ? But well he deserved that for playing the J9 suited preflop with his small stack.

The second hand with the AA is where I’m in first position. I really like to limp than, knowing there are some very loose-agressive or desperate low stacked players behind me. I do this 75% of the time, it’s the ideal trap. But you must know the players’ style a little before doing that trap because you don’t want a limp pot with 4-6 players where you hold Aces. So I limped this hand…

That was very close! I get deservedly lucky on the turn after the short stack made his 1 outer. Happily I could dodge the flush draw on the river and take a nice pot. But as you’ll see now in the next example, it also could turn very wrong as I limp again in first position with AA knowing there are two morons behind me….

So my trap worked perfectly as he shoved in with K9 suited, certainly after the flop was very good. But then I got Whamboozelled, as Norman Chad would say, when he turned and rivered a 9 to make trips and got rewarded for his bad play. The last hand I’ll show you is even worse . Happily I’m not involved in that one because I would really steam afterwards if that happens to me. So the guy limps also in first position with AA…

How Sick was That ?!? He made trips Aces on the flop against K 10 leaving the short stack with only running outs, namely the 2 remaining Kings or running Q J. He got his running Kings giving him Quad Kings against the full house. Fortunately he got enough chips left to make a comeback.

Be there next week for the continuation of the Most Famous Poker Players top 100 !

Cheers,

J.M.

Hello Pokerfriends,

Today I’m going to let you take a look into our great homegame where we’re playing almost every week with an average of 6-7 players, each time at a different home. We sat down at my place the other night with 7 players when one particular hand ran pretty good during our cashgame. Before I’ll tell you more, I really must inform you that we’re the specialists of Micro Stakes Poker.

So that night the blinds were at 0.05/0.10 euro ( we also play sometimes with blinds 0.10/0.25 euro) when I was the dealer and Mister Blind All-In (yeah, I’ll use nicknames but I’m pretty sure the players know who this is ) raised it up under the gun to 0.75 euro. After everybody folded , including me with my J3 offsuit, Mister Hitman called on the small blind, followed by a fold of the Big Blind. Then I dealt the flop with a pot of 1.60 euro :    , followed by a check of both players. After I showed the turn :  , there was some more action when Mister Hitman bet 1 euro, followed by the instant call of Mister Blind All-in. I thought that the river was definitely the action card. Hitman bet 2.50 euro , followed by a small raise to 6.50 by Blind All-in. Mister Hitman thought for a while before shoving in for another 12 euro. Blind All-in called immediately and turned over to make Quad Kings winning a nice pot over 40 euro !!!!!! Mister Hitman showed his very astonished after making a full boat on the turn, but losing to the Quads of King Kong (=pocket Kings).

A dozen hands later I woke up in the Cut-Off with the Cowboys : , so after a few folding people I made a very standard raise to 0.60 euro. The button and the SB folded, but Mister Blind All-in called on the Big Blind for another 0.50 euro. Then the flop came with a pot of 1.25 euro :  giving me the absolute nuts on a perfect rainbow flop. Blind All-in immediately bet out 1 euro and I just smooth call. The turn wasn’t a blank : and he bet again, now 2 euro. So I looked at my stack of around 13 euro and I decided that he must have something to bet like that into the raiser and I went suspiciously all-in and he called instantly. He showed leaving him with 1 out against my trip Kings. The river was very close, but no cigar : and I won a nice pot around 30 euro.

If you’re interested to come and play at our Micro Stakes Poker, just let me know because we always need new and more players ! See you next time for the last episode of the Special Hands for a while, followed afterwards with the continuation of my Most Famous Poker Players top-100 !!

Cheers,

J.M.

Hi Pokerworld !

Welcome for another round of the great poker madness while I show you now some new self-experienced boards in my special hands categorie, like I’ve promised earlier.

I was playing some Sit and Go NL Hold’em ( $3 / 27 players) at PokerStars. I was playing very good, making the right decisions and winning the coin-flips on the right moments. So I easily made the final table and after busting some other donkaments, we were left with 5 players and I was the stackleader with a chipcount of $ 10,235.

I woke up then with pocket 7’s, blinds were $300/$600 with an ante of $50, and I decided to make a small min-raise to $ 1250 , which I regretted afterwards while I should have raised more there with that hand. The button folded and the SB pushed all-in for a total of $3,590, which left me with a decision after the BB folded. That’s why I should have raised more, making this decision much easier. But seeing that player making loose, absurd moves earlier in the tourney and regarding my hand and stack (still being left with a decent stack if I lost), I decided to gamble as I expected a coin-flip (50%-50%). Probably he had two overcards or maybe even one or a smaller pair, but then he turned over Pocket Rockets (=Aces) and I was left with only 20% chance of winning the pot.

So after the flop came   , I was only left with a little 13% winning chance , which stayed that way after the turn but then the river was magical and sick at the same time, namely the beautiful giving me the low straight and a stack of $ 14,675, but more important eliminates the man with the bullets.

A few hands later I sat on the button with J7 suited, a stack of $ 10,200 and only 4 players left. The blinds were still $300/$600 with an ante of $ 50 when under the gun player ‘misseri’ (no mercy for him) pushed his low stack of $1,462 all-in. I was sort of steaming after a unlucky loss in a big pot against ‘Wilmus’ and decided to call. Nevertheless I knew my hand has a more than decent chance against a lot of hands and I couldn’t let him take the blinds with his low stack, so I took the benefit of it and hoped to bust him out. After the blinds folded and he turned over the American Airlines (=Aces) ,  I immediately knew I was in bad shape with my 19% chance of winning.

After the flop , I only had a chance of 15% but yet I pretty liked that board with a gutshot straight draw. Definitely after the turn , which turned my gutshot into an open ender and gave me 18%. The river was just perfect for me , and we were down to three players. Do I really need to say that I did won that SnG ? Yeah, I was lucky twice against the Aces but I really deserved that victory and we all need some luck from time to time , no ? I guess the 7 is the magical and necessary card if you want to crack the Bullets (=Aces).

Well, I hope you saw the new Poll I made on the left side of my blog! Please vote as quick as possible because I’ll take your advice into account when I’ll finish my list further and further. I can say that my top-10 is already a fact! The names aren’t of course between those of the poll but you could give your opinion about them in a few weeks when I’m reaching to the last Ten. For now you can help the Pro’s in this poll to rank as high as possible and as close to the divine Ten. My favorite of those is clearly Patrik Antonius so you must vote if you’ve another favorite.

Cheers,

J.M.

Hi Donkaments !

Today I’m going to present you the last 5 players before I’m going to take a short break in my Most Famous Poker Player top-100 and will show you some special hands again like I told you the last time. Afterwards I’ll continue automatically with the last 50 players.I’m playing my A-game online for the moment at PokerStars. Since October I’ve made a profit of almost  150$, which is pretty nice for my low bankroll ^^, meaning almost a doubling of my starting bankroll at the beginning of the month. I hope it will continue like that for the last two weeks, but for now I’m going to present you the next group of players, starting with the nice lady on number 55…..

(55)   =>   CLONIE   GOWEN

> Cycalona ” Clonie ” Gowen

> born 06/11/1971 in Florida (USA).

> lives now in Dallas, Texas

> has 2 children

> won WPT Ladies ‘ Night event in 2003.

> has Live Tournament Winnings of over $ 1,600,000 (until 2009).

Clonie is a former basketballplayer, high jumper and she was the Miss Teen Oklahoma in her youth. She owned a travel agency and she likes scuba diving all over the world. Clonie has played several different roles in the pokerworld : she was a guest commentator, a columnist for All In Magazine,  a host for tourneys and charities and as a partner in a poker school. Gowen won already three Poker After Dark titles, only Johnny Chan could achieve that same result. She was a former member of ‘ Team Full Tilt ‘ at Full Tilt Poker but they got into a twist about a breach of contract which resulted in a $ 40 Million Lawsuit against Full Tilt Poker.

(54)   =>   JOHN   PHAN

> Bon ” John” Phan

> born 10/10/1974, Da Nang (VIET).

> resides now in Long Beach, California (USA).

> Nickname :  ‘ The Razor ‘ .

> won 2 Bracelets ( ‘08 NL Hold’em / ‘08 2-7 Triple Draw)

> won 1 WPT-title (’09 Legends of Poker).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker

> has Live Tournament Earnings around $ 5,400,000 (until 2009) .

John won several other big No Limit Hold’em tournaments (e.g. LA Poker Classic) and he made four other WPT final tables. He reached a fabulous achievement in 2008 when he became Player Of The Year for both Cardplayer Magazine and Bluff Magazine. One weird thing about his poker career must be the fact that his family and parents first didn’t approve his pokerdream, but with his phenomenal results he made it very clear that he made the right choice. John supports them now very frequently when he visits Vietnam. He also does a lot of social work there, along with his good friend and fellow poker pro Liz Lieu.

(53)   =>   LAYNE   FLACK

> born 18/05/1969 Rapid City, South Dakota.

> lives now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname :  ‘ Back to Back ‘

> won 6 Bracelets (’99 PL Hold’em /’02 NL Hold’em- NL Hold’em /’03 Omaha Hi-Lo Split – Limit Hold’em Shootout / ‘08 PL Omaha).

> won 1 WPT-title (Invitational Tournament).

> plays online at PokerStars.

> won +- $ 4,300,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

Layne began in the big poker world as a casino worker and he got his nickname as he was the first person in 2002 to win back to back a WSOP event at the same game. He was mentored through out his career by Huck Seed and Johnny Chan. Flack began with recreational drug use enjoying the great life but he couldn’t quit and searched for help in rehab, after his good friend Daniel Negreanu paid for it. Layne signed a deal with Poker Icons, just like Jamie Gold, Kathy Liebert and Annette Obrestad, which is an agency in Scandinavia that helps the player managing and promotes poker in Europe.

(52)   =>   GABE   KAPLAN

> Gabriel W. ” Gabe ” Kaplan

> born 31/03/1945 Brooklyn, New York (USA).

> resides now in Los Angeles, California.

> won 2 Poker After Dark titles

> won over $ 1,500,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

Gabe is a former baseball player, bellman, stand-up comedian and actor for several movies and TV series. He’s probably best known for his role in the 1970s sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter. Kaplan made several final tables in the Super Bowl of Poker and the WSOP. Gabe is very well-known in the whole world as the co-host on High Stakes Poker, together with A.J. Benza , where he had a role that suits him perfectly, regarding his former stand-up comedian acts. He’s also a poker commentator for shows such as the WSOP events (earlier), National Heads-Up Championship and the Intercontinental Poker Championship.

(51)   =>   JEFFREY   LISANDRO

> born in 1966 in Perth, Australia.

> resides now in Salerno (ITA).

> Nickname :  ‘ Iceman ‘ .

> won 4 Bracelets (’07 7-Card Stud / ‘09 7-card Stud – 7-card Stud H/L-8 – Razz)

> plays online at PokerStars.

> has Live Tournament Winnings over $ 4,000,000 (until 2009).

Lisandro was nominated as the 2009 WSOP Player of The Year after his three Bracelet wins and his good run in the Main Event. Jeff is a cash game specialist, but proved this year he can play excellent tournaments too. He’s regarded as one of the best Seven Card Stud players in the world, which he proved this year when he became the first player ever to win the three different Stud games at the WSOP in the same year. Lisandro has some other great wins, such as his win in 2005 at the NL Hold’em WSOP Circuit Event at Lake Tahoe where he defeated Phil Ivey heads-up. Jeff made also a remarkable 2006 WSOP Main Event. Not so much by his excellent 17th place but through a heavy incident with Prahlad Friedman when there was a great misunderstanding about the antes and Prahlad called Lisandro ‘ a thief’ and then Jeffrey went crazy. Lisandro is a good friend of fellow poker pro J.P. Bellande. Jeffrey likes chewing gum at the table saying that ‘ it’s ideal to reduce tells’.

See you next time for the special hands,

Be There !

J.M.

Good Afternoon dearest Pokerfriends !

Here I am with the next five players out of my famous pokerlist ! It will be a good mix between old, respected rocks and dangerous young guns, from all over the world, like you’ll see following the next information. I just want you to know that I collected and experienced some exceptional hands and boards the last weeks, which I’m going to share with you after I’ve showed you number 51 out of my Most Famous Poker Players top-100. After those posts about the mysterious hands, I’ll naturally continue with the last 50 players, until we reach the Number One.

(60)  =>   TOM   McEVOY

> Thomas K. McEvoy

> born 14/11/1944 in Grand Rapids, Michigan (USA).

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada and has 3 kids.

> Nickname : ‘ Pokerchump ‘

> was the 1983 WSOP Main Event Winner beating Rod Peate heads-up.

> won 3 other Bracelets (’83 Limit Hold’em / ‘92 Limit Omaha / ‘06 Razz).

> plays online at PokerStars as a representative.

> has Live Tournament Winnings of around $ 2,900,000 (until 2009).

Being an accountant first, Tom was the first winner of the Main Event ever, earning his buy-in through a satellite. He won the Professional Poker Tour in 2006. McEvoy was also very famous for his severe attitude against smoking at the table. He proved that by convincing the Binion’s in 2002 to make the World Series of Poker (WSOP) a non-smoking event. Tom was the 2009 winner of the WSOP’s first Champions Invitational event, winning a sweet classic 1970 Corvette. Besides playing poker, Tom McEvoy is also very famous as an author and co-author of many books on poker, together with players like T.J. Cloutier and Max Stern. Tom is also a columnist for CardPlayer Magazine.

(59)  =>   ROLAND   DE  WOLFE

> born 1981, London (ENG).

> still lives there.

> Nickname : ‘ The Sheep ‘

> won 1 Bracelet (2009 PLO Hi-Low Split 8 or better)

> won 1 WPT-title (2005 Paris)

> won 1 EPT-title (2006 Dublin)

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker.

> has Live Tournament Winnings of over $ 4,500,000 (until 2009).

He was a former poker editor for Inside Edge, a British gambling magazine. Roland was also the second person ever, besides Gavin Griffin, to complete a hattrick in poker with tournament wins in World Series of Poker (WSOP), World Poker Tour (WPT) and European Poker Tour (EPT).

(58)  =>   TED   FORREST

> born 24 /09/1964 in Syracuse, New York (USA).

> resides now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname : ‘ Professor Backwards ‘, ‘ The Suicide King ‘, ‘ Spooky ‘, ‘ The Hitman ‘

> won 5 Bracelets (’93 7card Razz – Omaha 8 or better – 7card Stud / ‘04 7card Stud – NL Hold’em)

> won 1 WPT-title (2007).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker.

> won over $ 5,700,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

Ted was the 2006 NBC’s National Heads-up Poker Champion after beating Chris Ferguson in the final. He’s a very well-known high stakes gambler, which he showed during two seasons of High Stakes Poker and by many, many proposition bets. Forrest is also considered as one of the best Stud players in the whole world. His first three World Series of Poker Bracelets were stolen. You maybe wonder why Ted Forrest is so low ranked in my list, well I could give you an answer to that question. I just can’t stand the guy in total, his face, his manner or his accent, just everything about this fellow makes me feel uncomfortable. I mean, the guy has 4 nicknames . I know I’m not the only one who thinks that about him. We aren’t his biggest fan, and never will be.

(57)  =>   BERTRAND   GROSPELLIER

> born 08/02/1981 in France.

> resides now in London (ENG).

> Nickname : ‘ ElkY ‘

> won 1 WPT-title (2008)

> won 1 EPT-title (2008)

> plays online at PokerStars as a member of TeamPokerStars.

> has Live Tournament Winnings of over $ 5,800,000 (until 2009).

Before playing poker, Elky was already an online game star as he was one of the top ranked Starcraft players. He even moved to South Korea for a while to play it full time and gaining a lot of fans and prestige. Bertrand made several final tables at the WPT and EPT. Besides his live poker achievements, Grospellier is very well-known as a big online gun. He was the first person ever to reach the Supernova and Supernova Elite status on PokerStars. Elky also made the Guinness World Book of Records with his exceptional performance for playing the most single Sit and Go’s in 1 hour, namely 62. At the World Championships of Online Poker (WCOOP) in 2009, Elky won another 2 Bracelets.

(56)  =>   MIKE   SEXTON

> Michael Richard Sexton

> born 22/09/1947 in Shelby, Indiana (USA).

> lives now in Las Vegas, Nevada.

> Nickname : ‘ The Ambassador of Poker ‘

> won 1 Bracelet (’89 7card Stud split)

> plays online at PartyPoker.

> won around $ 3,700,000 in Live Tournament Play (until 2009).

Mike was a gymnast first and he holds a degree in public recreation. He was also a former paratrooper in the U.S. Army. Sexton was a good and close friend of the great pokerlegend Stu Ungar, but Mike is mostly famous for his promotion of poker events. He’s the main host and commentator, besides Vince Van Patten, of the World Poker Tour (WPT). Mike is also a spokesman for PartyPoker.com and National League of Poker. In 2006, Sexton won the WSOP Tournament of Champions after beating Daniel Negreanu heads-up. He donated then half of his $ 1,000,000 prize money to several charities, and plans to do the same in the future.

So people, that was that for today. It’s time for dinner now , I guess I deserve that but maybe Ted ‘Spooky’ Forrest will think otherwise about that . Com’on , the guy has 4 nicknames, do I really have to say more ? Well bye for now and see you next time for sure !

J.M.

Good Evening Pokerworld !

It’s time for the next episode of my marvellous list: The Most Famous Poker Players top 100 ! As we move forward to the last fifty players you’ll hopefully recognize them some what quicker than the first pro’s that I showed you. But we still have fifteen players to go before getting to the top-50, so I’m not going to waste anymore time as I hope that you become more and more curious about the future as we are getting closer to Numero Uno :

(65)  =>   KRISTY   GAZES

> born 28/10/1967, Torrance, California (USA).

> lives now in Hollywood, California.

> was formerly married to poker player Bill Gazes.

> Nickname :  ‘ Mixed Games ‘

> won the Full Tilt Poker Championship in 2005.

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker.

> won almost one million dollar in Live Tournament play (until 2009).

She began her pokercareer as a high stakes cash game player, but preferring the mixed games more like Horse or Hose. Kirsty made 2 final tables in the 2007 Aussie Millions, namely at the Main Event and at the Pot Limit Omaha Event. She recently went more from playing poker to the stock market and she became a very successful business woman.

(64)  =>   KENNY   TRAN

> Phuong ” Kenny ” Tran

> born in 1974, Vietnam.

> lives now in Arcadia, California (USA).

> married and has 3 children.

> Nickname :  ‘ The Kid ‘  or  ‘ Sick Call Kenny ‘ .

> won 1 Bracelet (2008 Heads-Up NL Hold’em World Championship).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker as a sponsored pro.

> has Live Tournament winnings over $ 2,100,000 (until 2009).

Besides several cashes at the WSOP and World Poker Tour, he’s well-known as a high stakes cash game specialist, which he showed on several episodes of the famous show Poker After Dark. Kenny discovered the game of poker in a bar in 1992, while working at McDonalds that time. He also donates 10% of his winnings to his family and relatives in Vietnam.

(63)  =>   DAVID   GREY

> David F. Grey

> is married and from Henderson, Nevada (USA).

> Nickname :  ‘ Vegas Stud ‘ .

> won 2 Bracelets (1999 – 7 Card Stud / 2005 – NL 2-7 Draw Lowball).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker as a sponsored Pro.

> won over $ 1,500,000 in Live Tournament play (until 2009).

He’s best known for his cash game play, but he has also some good tournament results like his 8th place at the 2003 WSOP Main Event where later winner Chris Moneymaker busted him out. Nevertheless David only plays tournaments around Vegas. David appeared as a high stakes cash game specialist on the most famous pokershow High Stakes Poker and on a few occasions at Poker After Dark. His other passion besides Poker is to play golf, like many other pro’s such as Daniel Negreanu and Doyle Brunson.

(62)  =>   MICHAEL   MIZRACHI

> Michael David Mizrachi

> born 05/01/1981, Miami, Florida (USA).

> lives now in Hollywood, California.

> married to poker pro Aidiliy and they got 2 children.

> Nickname :  ‘ The Grinder ‘

> won 2 WPT titles (2005 / 2006).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker.

> has almost $ 7,000,000 in live tournament earnings (until 2009).

He has an Iraqi, Jewish origin and he’s probably the most famous of the brothers Mizrachi (with Robert and Eric as fellow poker players). Michael’s first dream was to become a doctor. In 2006 he was nominated by Card Player Magazine as Player of the Year. Michael likes the big cash game play which he showed on the second season of High Stakes Poker.

(61)  =>   CARLOS   MORTENSEN

> Juan Carlos Mortensen

> born 13/04/1972, Ambato (ECU).

> lives now in Madrid, Spain.

> Nickname :  ‘ El Matador ‘

> was the 2001 WSOP Main Event winner beating Dewey Tomko heads-up.

> won 1 other Bracelet (2003 – Limit Hold’em).

> won 2 WPT titles (2004 / 2007 WPT Championship Event).

> plays online at Full Tilt Poker.

> has over $ 8,700,000 in Live Tournament cashes (until 2009).

He was the first player ever to win the world championship events at both World Series of Poker (WSOP) and the World Poker Tour (WPT). Carlos is wildly considered as the last real poker pro who have won the Main Event and upon now still the only Hispanic one. Mortensen is well-known for his loose play, bluffing tactics and for his original style to stack his chips.

Well, that was it for today.Have you noticed that all the 5 players today actually play online at Full Tilt Poker? Maybe I should give it a try there !

See you soon,

J.M.