Famous Poker Players You Should Know About

In the last couple of decades, poker has established itself as a live and online mainstream pastime. For some, it’s also become a profession or, at the very least, a second income. This is no mean feat, either. Making a steady income from poker requires skill, mental fortitude and stamina, no matter what level of stakes you play at.

If you’re someone who aspires to become the next big name in the poker scene, we’re going to shine a spotlight on the best-known poker players in the history of the game. From popular poker players due to their personalities and one-off achievements to famous poker players who embrace the grind and continually stay the course, we have a killer shortlist of 20 poker icons to put on your radar.

Daniel Negreanu

Canadian Poker Hall of Famer Daniel Negreanu is among the most gifted players ever. He’s currently ranked seventh on the All Time Money List for live poker earnings, cementing his position as the most successful Canadian poker player in history.

Negreanu is a six-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner. He’s a veteran of the WSOP scene, cashing 250 times and reaching 57 final tables. Negreanu also has a pair of World Poker Tour (WPT) titles under his belt.

Negreanu is also no stranger to high-profile poker challenges, having faced off against the likes of Doug Polk and Phil Hellmuth in a pair of “High Stakes Duels.” Over the years, Negreanu has been a brand ambassador for PokerStars and, more recently, GGPoker.

Phil Ivey

Nicknamed the “Tiger Woods of Poker”, Phil Ivey is one of the most decorated and talented poker players of all time. Having initially honed his skills, beating his co-workers at a New Jersey telemarketing business in the 1990s, Ivey soon graduated into the poker big leagues by winning his first WSOP bracelet in a Pot Limit Omaha event in 2000.

He’s never looked back, winning 11 WSOP bracelets, 36 final tables and 82 cashes at the WSOP. Ivey is a poker player with very few holes in his game – and an ice-cold poker face. That’s why many believe this pro can be the next high-profile WSOP Main Event winner. He came within a whisker of outlasting thousands of players at the 2009 Main Event, finishing seventh.

He’s edging closer to the top ten in the All Time Money List for live poker earnings, with almost $46 million to his name.

Phil Hellmuth

The “Poker Brat”, Phil Hellmuth, is the poker don of the WSOP. The American poker player has won more WSOP bracelets than any other player (17). He won his first way back in 1989 when he became the youngest-ever winner of the WSOP Main Event at the time. He held this record until Peter Eastgate won the 2008 Main Event at 22.

Hellmuth’s live poker success has largely been in Texas Hold’em, but he’s also proven a master at variants such as 2-7 Lowball, Omaha, Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo and H.O.R.S.E. Although he’s only 25th in the All Time Money List for live tournament earnings, Hellmuth has regularly been involved in some of the highest-profile cash games through the decades.

His nickname is inspired by his volatile personality. Hellmuth is prone to outbursts when losing to an opponent’s weaker pre- or post-flop hand.

Doyle Brunson

Nicknamed “The Godfather of Poker”, Doyle Brunson was one of the founding fathers of Texas Hold’em poker, alongside the likes of Amarillo Slim and Sailor Roberts. Brunson featured at the inaugural World Series of Poker, playing at its first Main Event in 1970. In his poker career, Brunson won back-to-back Main Events in 1976 and 1977 and eight more WSOP bracelets.

Brunson achieved over $6 million in live poker tournament earnings in his lifetime, which was no mean feat considering the bulk of this was completed before the “poker boom” of the mid-2000s.

Despite being a veteran poker player, Brunson embraced the challenge of playing younger upstarts after the poker boom, winning his last WSOP bracelet in 2005 playing the Short Handed No Limit Hold’em event.

Justin Bonomo

Justin Bonomo is one of the highest-earning live tournament poker players ever. At the time of writing, Bonomo sits second in the All Time Money List, with earnings breaking the $64 million mark.

His biggest win came at the 49th WSOP in 2018, winning The Big One for One Drop event for a cool $10 million. This was his third WSOP bracelet win, having previously won No Limit Hold’em events in 2009 and 2014.

Since his third WSOP bracelet, Bonomo has become a regular at Super High Roller events in Asia and Europe, landing two seven-figure cashes at the Triton Poker Series in London.

Bryn Kenney

It’s somewhat fitting that Kenney comes just after Bonomo on this list, given that he’s now number one on the All-Time Money List. Before transitioning to poker, the New Yorker used to be an expert in the trading card game Magic: The Gathering. He landed his first high-profile WSOP cash in a No Limit Hold’em Six-Handed event in 2010 and has never looked back.

He finished 28th in the 2010 WSOP Main Event and has final tabled in ten WSOP events since 2010.

More recently, Kenney has been heavily involved in the Triton Poker Super High Roller series. Since 2016, Kenney’s landed no less than nine $1 million-plus cashes, seven of which came in Triton Poker events. His biggest came in August 2019, at the million-dollar-entry Triton Million for Charity event, taking home over $20.5 million – and that was for second place!

Stephen Chidwick

British poker player Stephen Chidwick is one of the most intelligent players on the modern-day poker scene. Widely respected by his peers, Chidwick currently sits third in the All Time Money List, raking almost $59 million in live poker tournament earnings. This makes him far and away the highest-earning English poker player, ahead of the likes of Ben Heath and Sam Trickett.

Chidwick has one WSOP bracelet, taking down the Pot Limit Omaha event in 2019. He’s also finished in the money 53 times and final tabled 13 times at the WSOP, which is a mark of his consistency and durability.

Chidwick’s most significant cash came at the same Triton Million for Charity event, in which Kenney won $20.5 million in second place. Chidwick finished fourth and managed to more than four-fold his million-dollar entry into a $5.3 million payday.

Vanessa Selbst

Vanessa Selbst is the only female poker player to have won three WSOP bracelets. With live poker tournament earnings weighing just under $12 million, Selbst is the highest-earning female poker pro.

Selbst is also one of the most educated poker pros, having studied at MIT and Yale University. Selbst has racked up an impressive 21 six-figure cashes from live poker tournaments.

Selbst’s biggest poker payday from the live tournament circuit came in 2010, taking him the Partouche Poker Tour Main Event for over $1.8 million. She has multiple Main Event wins on the North American Poker Tour and even the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) events in the Bahamas.

Selbst retired from poker in 2018 to focus on a new career working for a hedge fund but still plays infrequently on the World Poker Tour.

Stu Ungar

Stu Ungar was one of the most talented poker players of the early poker era. The “Comeback Kid” is etched into WSOP Main Event folklore as one of only two players to win it three times. Ungar was also a regular at the WSOP Main Event’s competitor, the Super Bowl of Poker, which Ungar also managed to win three times.

Ungar is also part of a select group of players (Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan and Johnny Moss) to win back-to-back WSOP Main Event titles.

Ungar had five WSOP bracelets to his name by the end of his poker career, including 16 cashes in other events. His third and final WSOP Main Event win came in 1997, 16 years after his last triumph, overcoming a string of personal battles to take the $1 million prize and earn his “Comeback Kid” nickname.

Ungar passed away just 12 months later, having won an estimated $30 million across his poker career.

Jason Koon

West Virginian Jason Koon took up Texas Hold’em poker in 2006 while still in college. He started as an online regular, culminating in a $300,000 win during the 2009 Spring Championship of Online Poker at PokerStars.

Koon hasn’t looked back since, cashing in his first WSOP event in the same year. He has one WSOP bracelet to his name, taking down the Heads-Up No Limit Hold’em event at the 2021 WSOP. Koon has cashed 60 times at WSOP events, including nine final tables.

More recently, Koon’s live poker activity has been largely focused on the Triton Poker Super High Roller series, clinching a string of six-figure paydays. He also landed over $1.8 million at the 2023 WSOP Paradise Ultra High Roller event in the Bahamas. His consistent live earnings in recent years have pushed him into third on the All Time Money List.

Dan Smith

Dan Smith is another poker player who’s worked his way up the All-Time Money List in recent years. “Cowboy Dan” has earned almost $55 million in live poker tournament earnings. 

His biggest live cash came in the Triton Poker Super High Roller series in 2019. At an event in London, Smith finished third in the Triton Million for Charity event, finishing behind second-placed Bryn Kenney for an $8.7 million payday.

At the 2022 WSOP, Smith bagged his maiden WSOP bracelet, winning the Heads-Up Championship. In doing so, he lost the tag of being the most talented poker player without a WSOP bracelet to their name.

Annette Obrestad

Norwegian poker sensation Annette Obrestad shot to stardom after winning the 2007 World Series of Poker Europe Main Event. Her unnerving presence at the table, aided by her stone-cold poker face and oversized dark sunglasses, helped her to outwit amateur and poker pros alike en route to a historic title.

Obrestad has since finished in the money nine times in other WSOP events. She finished in the top 100 of the 2013 WSOP Main Event and finally tabled an event on the European Poker Tour (EPT).

To date, Obrestad’s earnings from live poker amount to almost $4 million. However, Obrestad stepped away from the poker scene after falling out of love with the game and a period of ill health. She’s now a prominent YouTuber, dedicating her channel to makeup rather than poker strategy.

Erik Seidel

Erik Seidel is now one of the elder statesmen of the poker scene. The New York-born poker player was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2010 due to his dedication to the game. Seidel has an impressive ten WSOP bracelets to his name and has accrued 51 final tables and 151 cashes across more than three decades.

Seidel is tied with Johnny Chan, Doyle Brunson and Phil Ivey for the second most WSOP bracelets ever. He’s inside the top ten All Time Money List, with live tournament earnings approaching the $46.5 million mark.

His biggest win came at the 2011 Aussie Millions, taking down the Super High Roller event for a $2.4 million payday.

Johnny Chan

Chinese poker ace Johnny Chan has established himself as one of poker’s all-time greats. After winning his first WSOP bracelet in 1985, he’s since gone on to win ten in total, reaching 27 final tables and cashing in 45 events altogether.

His biggest achievement was winning back-to-back WSOP Main Events in 1987 and 1988. Chan became the first overseas player to win the Main Event in 1987.

Chan may only have $8.7 million in live poker tournament earnings, but he’s always been more prolific at the high-stakes cash game tables in Las Vegas. In 2023, Chan managed to cash three times at the WSOP at the age of 66. Away from poker, Chan owns a fast-food joint in The Strat at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip.

The “Grand Old Man of Poker”, Johnny Moss, became the inaugural winner of the WSOP Main Event in 1970. Moss went on to win the WSOP Main Event in its current guise twice more, in 1971 and 1974. Unsurprisingly, Moss became one of the original inductees to the Poker Hall of Fame in 1979.

Moss won six WSOP bracelets away from the Main Event, including victories in Limit Hold’em, Seven Card Stud and Ace to Five Draw.

Moss’ last WSOP bracelet win came in 1988, winning the Ace to Five Draw at age 81. Moss remains the oldest WSOP bracelet winner in history today. Moss’ live poker earnings amounted to over $1.25 million, big money in the 1970s and 80s.

David Peters

American poker player David Peters has also established himself as one of the most talented poker pros of the modern era. Inspired by Chris Moneymaker’s ground-breaking WSOP Main Event triumph in 2003, Peters turned professional three years later and has never looked back.

Despite his quiet, introverted nature, Peters has been nicknamed the “Silent Assassin” due to his ability to quietly take down hands and knock out opponents in major tournaments.

Speaking of high-profile events, Peters has four WSOP bracelets to his name and a whopping 70 cashes, which is no mean feat at the age of 37. Peters is now inching towards the top ten of the All Time Money List with almost $46 million in live poker earnings.

Mikita Bodyakovsky

Belarusian poker player Mikita Bodyakovsky has stunned many by storming up the All Time Money List in double-quick time. He’s now fifth in the list, with career live earnings of $55.2 million. This was achieved in less than a decade after achieving sizeable wins on the European Poker Tour circuit in 2015.

Bodyakovsky has enjoyed a seamless transition into the high-roller scene. In July 2018, he won the Triton Poker Super High Roller Main Event in Jeju, South Korea, and took home over $5.25 million. Just a couple of months prior, he took down another Triton Poker Super High Roller Main Event in Montenegro for $2.49 million.

The Belarusian has 16 seven-figure cashes to his name, mostly from high-roller tournaments worldwide.

Antonio Esfandiari

The magician-turned-poker player, Iran-born Antonio Esfandiari, is a regular at high-stakes poker tournaments and cash games. Esfandiari has three WSOP bracelets to his name. His highest-profile win came in The Big One for One Drop event in 2012. He took down the $1 million-entry tournament to win $18.34 million.

His other WSOP bracelet wins sandwich his Big One for One Drop success, winning a Pot Limit Hold’em event in 2004 and a No Limit Hold’em event in 2012. Esfandiari also has two WPT titles to his name.

In 2009, Esfandiari enjoyed a deep run in the WSOP Main Event, eventually finishing 24th and missing out on a chance to be part of the “November Nine”.

Victoria Coren-Mitchell

Vicky Coren – now Vicky Coren-Mitchell – helped put female poker firmly on the map. The English poker player made history by becoming the first woman to land a televised professional tournament in the EPT. She also took down a televised celebrity tournament called Celebrity Poker Club in 2005.

Coren-Mitchell has amassed over $2.5 million in live poker tournament earnings to date. Her highest cash, $941,000, was received following her EPT London Main Event triumph in 2006. She went on to win a second EPT Main Event in Sanremo in 2014 for another $661,000 payday. Nowadays, Coren-Mitchell is a TV gameshow host and newspaper columnist.

Chip Reese

Many still regard the late David “Chip” Reese as the finest cash game player ever. Doyle Brunson described him as one of the finest poker players in the world and the leading Seven Card Stud player. Reese was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 1991, aged only 40.

Reese made history in the 2006 WSOP, playing heads-up against Andy Bloch for the $50,000-entry H.O.R.S.E. event. Reese and Bloch played heads-up in the final table for a record seven hours (286 hands!)

Reese died in 2007 as a WSOP legend, with live poker tournament winnings of $4 million.

The Bottom Line

The most famous poker players are typically the most successful ones. However, we’ve tried to include popular poker players who brought the game to life through their personalities and ground-breaking accomplishments. 

The best-known poker players are good role models, too. If you’re a poker beginner looking to master the game of Texas Hold’em and other popular poker formats like 5 Card Draw, this list of 20 poker icons is well worth watching in your little black book.