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The world of professional-level poker is not one world but several. There's the world of the old-school career professionals who made not only their living in the pursuit of the game but defined the game itself. Then there are the current pros, those at the top of their game who's names fill the "Who's Who" lists around the world. And finally the new names, the big tournament winners who have seemingly come from nowhere to stand center stage in the spotlight now focused on professional tournament poker.
If we accept for the time being that the old school pros are more about the history of poker than the face of poker today let's turn our attention to the others and see who we might consider to be the "Top 3" in the game today.
The Poker Pros
Daniel Negreanu
Soft-spoken and well liked, Daniel Negreanu is always at the top of the world leader lists. He started early, even dropped out of high school to pursue the game full time, and by the time he was 21 he'd saved enough money to head off to Vegas to try the big-time professional tables. Although he busted out and was forced to return home to Canada it wasn't long before the lessons he was learning paid off.
In 1997 Negreanu won two events at the World Poker Finals at Foxwoods and was named the tournament's best all-around player. In 1998 he won the WSOP $2,000 Pot Limit Hold'em event and became the youngest WSOP bracelet winner in history. He has since added two more WPT wins, three WSOP bracelets, sat at 11 WSOP final tables and finished in the money 18 times.
Daniel seems to give as much back to the poker scene as he takes: over 100 articles for CardPlayer Magazine, contributions to the second edition of Doyle Brunson's "bible" of poker "Super System II", online tutoring at the Poker School and personal training to poker celebrities like Toby Maquire.
Born: July 26, 1974 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
In the game: approx 15 years
Personal edge: known as an exceptional "reader" of his opponents
A.K.A.: "Kid Poker", presumably from his early poker days in Toronto
Career winnings: $7+ million
Official website: fullcontactpoker.com
Phil Hellmuth Jr
"If you ask Phil Hellmuth who the best poker player on the planet is, it’s pretty safe to assume that he’d say ‘Phil Hellmuth’." Loud, arrogant and proud of it Phil Hellmuth is both the beauty and the beast. The beauty part is the man's ability to win tournament poker: won the 1989 WSOP championship event at only 24 years of age; has made the money circle in more than 100 major tournaments, and won 18 events; has won nine WSOP bracelets ('89, '92, '93x3, '97, '01, '03x2) and placed in the money 47 times.
The beast part of Hellmuth is the thing that has earned him such nicknames as "The Poker Brat" and "Hell Mouth": he's got a bad habit of being an arrogant winner and an abusive loser, known to throw temper tantrums at the table when the cards don't go his way. While it has often been claimed that Phil's bad-boy reputation is a clever self-promotion ploy he has admitted in recent years that his attitude could use a little adjusting.
Born: July 16, 1964 in Madison, Wisconsin, USA
In the game: about 20 years
Personal edge: the man knows how to play Texas Hold'Em
A.K.A.: "Brat" and "Hell Mouth" for his trademark bad behaviour at the poker table
Career winnings: tournament winnings exceed $6 million
Official website: philhellmuth.com
Chris Ferguson
In 1999, after 5 years as an UCLA undergrad and another 13 years as a PhD candidate Chris was awarded his doctorate degree in Computer Science. They also gave him the boot. He was 36, and had spent more than half his life there. A year later he defeated TJ Cloutier to win the main event in WSOP 2000. Clearly Chris had been playing more than the academia game during his university years.
Although Chris inherited the interest in academics, both of his parents hold doctorate degrees in mathematics, his interest in poker dates back as far as the fourth grade. By high school he was earning his pocket money in weekend games and making trips to Vegas. By the late '80s Chris was playing poker online in the earliest text-based, no-money versions of the game. By the mid '90s he was playing in tournaments in LA and entered his first WSOP in '95. In 1996 he won a satellite into the main event and has played every year since. He now hold five WSOP winners bracelets from Hold'Em, 7-Stud and Omaha Hi-Lo events ('00x2, '01, '03x2).
Born: April 11, 1963, in Los Angeles, CA, USA
In the game: for fun most of his life, for money about 20 years
Personal edge: mathematician, computer scientist, photographic memory
A.K.A.: "Jesus", so named for his long hair, beard and willowy physique
Career winnings: tournament winnings top $5.5 million
Official website: chrisferguson.com
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The Recent WSOP Champs
Joe Hachem
Born 3 November 1966 in Lebanon, his family moved to Australia in 1972. Gave up his career as a chiropractor in 2002 due to a rare blood disorder and focused on poker. In 2005 he paid the full $10,000 to enter the WSOP main event, survived the largest field in WSOP history (5619 players) and the won $7.5 million prize. He is just the fourth non-American winner of the WSOP Main Event since its inception. He is married with four children and is said to be a devoted family man. Career winnings: approx $7.6 million.
Greg Raymer
Born in 1964 in Minot, North Dakota, USA. Graduated from University of Minnesota Law School in 1992. Raymer practiced as a patent attorney for more than a decade. He began playing blackjack in the mid-1990s at casinos in the Midwest, and turned to poker in 1999 because there was better money in it. His first money finish at the WSOP came in 2001 in the Omaha Split event. In 2004 he turned a $160 online satellite victory into $5 million by winning the championship event. Aside from the World Series, Raymer plays few tournaments, choosing to spend time with his family instead. Known as "Fossilman" due to his fossil-collecting hobby. His live tournament career winnings exceed $5.6 million.
Chris Moneymaker
Born 1976 in Tennessee, USA. Attended the University of Tennessee and earned a Masters degree in Accounting. Started gambling by playing bridge with his grandfather and blackjack with his father. He was working as an accountant in Tennessee when he bought a $39 seat in a WSOP satellite tournament. He won the main event and took home $2.5 million. It was his first live tournament event and his win attracted the world's attention to poker and the WSOP. Career tournament winnings: $3 million. With a name like Moneymaker he hasn't found the need for a catching nickname.
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