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The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a series of poker tournaments held annually in Paradise, Nevada and, since 2004, sponsored by Caesars Entertainment. It dates its origins to 1970, when Benny Binion invited seven of the best-known poker players to the Horseshoe Casino for a single tournament, with a set start and stop time, and a winner determined by a secret ballot of the seven players.
Phillip Jerome Hellmuth Jr. is an American professional poker player who has won a record seventeen World Series of Poker bracelets. He is the winner of the Main Event of the 1989 World Series of Poker (WSOP) and the Main Event of the 2012 World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE), and he is a 2007 inductee of the WSOP's Poker Hall of Fame. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest tournament players of all time.
Christopher Bryan Moneymaker, is an American poker player who won the Main Event at the 2003 World Series of Poker (WSOP). His 2003 win is said to have revolutionized poker because he was the first person to become a world champion after qualifying at an online poker site. This has been referred to in the press as the "Moneymaker effect".
Johnny Chan (Chinese: 陳金海; is an 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.
Phillip Dennis Ivey Jr. is an American professional poker player who has won ten World Series of Poker bracelets, one World Poker Tour title, and appeared at nine World Poker Tour final tables. Ivey is regarded by numerous poker observers and contemporaries as the best all-around player in the world. In 2017, he was elected to the Poker Hall of Fame.
Thomas K. McEvoy is a professional poker player, author and member of the Poker Hall of Fame, 2013 inductee. He is best known for winning the 1983 World Series of Poker Main Event.
Daniel Negreanu is a Canadian professional poker player who has won six World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets and two World Poker Tour (WPT) championship titles. In 2014, independent poker ranking service Global Poker Index recognized Negreanu as the best poker player of the previous decade.
Michael Matusow is an American professional poker player residing in Henderson, Nevada. Matusow's nickname of "the Mouth" reflects his reputation for trash-talking at the poker table.
Joseph Hachem is a Lebanese-Australian professional poker player known for being the first Australian to win the World Series of Poker main event, which earned him $7.5 million, then a record for all-time biggest tournament prize.
The 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) began on June 25, 2006, with satellite events, with regular play commencing on June 26 with the annual Casino Employee event and the Tournament of Champions held on June 28 and 29. Forty more events, in various disciplines including Omaha, seven-card stud and razz, plus ladies' and senior tournaments, led up to the 10,000 US$ no-limit Texas hold 'em main event starting July 28 and running through the final table on August 10.
J. C. Tran is a Vietnamese-American professional poker player, based in Sacramento, California.
Jeff Madsen is a four-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner and the 2006 World Series of Poker Player of the Year.
Jamie M. Gold is an American television producer, talent agent, and poker player, based in Malibu, California. He is known for winning the 2006 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event and currently divides his time between his activities as president of production for the entertainment company, Buzznation and poker competition, primarily major tournaments.
Frederick "Eric" Narciso is a dealer at the Orleans Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2007, he entered a $90 satellite held by his employer to gain entry into the 2007 World Series of Poker $500 Casino Employees World Poker Championship. It was in this event that he won $104,701 and a WSOP bracelet. He finished in 27th place in the same event in 2006.
Andrew Cohen is an American bartender at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, who won a World Series of Poker bracelet at the 2009 $500 Casino Employees No Limit Hold'em. Cohen entered the 2009 WSOP intending to participate in five events, 3 $1,500 events, the $1,000 "Stimilus Special", and the $500 Casino Employees No Limit Hold'em events. After winning his bracelet, he indicated a desire to participate in the Main Event. Cohen was the first bracelet winner ever honored with a new tradition at the WSOP, the bracelet was presented at center stage with the winner's national anthem being performed.
The Casino Employees Championship is one of only three closed tournaments awarding WSOP bracelets at the World Series of Poker gathering. While most of the events are open to the general public, participants in the Ladies Championship, Seniors Championship, and the Casino Employees Championship must meet certain eligibility requirements. While these events are closed, the winner of these events is "afforded the same distinction as all gold bracelet tournaments." The WSOP bracelet is considered the most coveted non-monetary prize a poker player can win.
Anthony Nguyen, a.k.a. Andy, a poker dealer at Binion's Horseshoe Casino, was the World Series of Poker bracelet winner in the Casino Employees Championship in 2005. Andy had worked at the Binion's as a poker dealer since 2001. He was 43 when he won the tournament. At the time of the event, the 662 participants represented the largest field at the Casino Employee Championship event.
Carl Nessel, nicknamed Coach, is an American poker player.
David Lukaszewski is an American poker player. He was a Poker Room Shift Manager at the Desert Diamond Casino who won a bracelet in the 208-entry 2003 Casino Employees Championship event at the World Series of Poker. The Casino Employees Championship event was the first time that Lukaszewski had played in a tournament with a buy-in greater than $50. At the start of 2003, Lukaszewski set the modest goal of competing in a major poker tournament and at the last minute, he and several friends decided to drive to Las Vegas to play in the WSOP. Lukaszewski won the entry to the event by winning a $65 single-table satellite at Binion's Horseshoe. When the tournament reached the final three players, they started shooting Kamikaze's. "We were all having such a great time, sitting around playing poker that I think we may have forgotten about the prize money and the bracelet."
References
- 1 2 Dolla, Nolan (June 28, 2006). "WSOP - Event 1: Chris Gros Wins First Event". WSOP.com. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
- 1 2 Laukkanen, Owen (June 28, 2006). "Chris Gros, Casino Employee, becomes Event Champion for the first time at the WSOP". PokerListings.com. Retrieved May 31, 2009.
