Top 5 Poker Pros Who Went Broke
It s incredibly difficult for the average poker player to imagine winning millions at the tables and then somehow going broke within a year or two, but this fate has befallen more pros in our game than in any other.
Poker genius and massive wins are the stuff of legend, but it brings with it a downside - the opportunities to gamble at huge stakes in other games, easy access to drugs and alcohol, and friends who are nothing of the sort. It distances players from the lives they once led and replaces them with a new world where money can buy everything.
When it all comes crashing down, the fallout is a ghastly sight as we re about to see
Stu Ungar
Stu Ungar was the original Kid in poker, a fearless genius at the tables who won millions at a time when millions still meant something to the world s best.
At the same time as he was taking down Main Event bracelets and vast sums in the toughest high-stakes cash games, he was fighting addictions which would ultimately see him die a lonely and penniless death in a Vegas motel.
From the age of ten, when he learned to play gin rummy and would fleece waiters of their tips while in the Catskills on family vacations, Ungar showed an immense talent for numbers, which, as he grew up, would lead him into the world of gambling and poker at a very young age.
Win big, lose bigger
Winning $10k in a marathon gin rummy game in New York, he lost it all at the Belmont and Aqueduct horse tracks in a few days; this was just a taste of how his life would go huge wins and devastating losses.
Winning $1million at the poker tables then losing almost double that sum on football betting, then more still at the craps table was not an unusual part of the troubled young genius life. Running from debts and then winning big to pay them off took it s toll, and Ungar turned to cocaine to fuel his days-long gambling forays.
The drugs man.
When Stu Ungar took down the 1980 WSOP Main Event he was the youngest-ever champion, and he repeated his success the following year. His legend grew as he took down the best NoLimit title events the game had to offer throughout the 80 s.
But the drugs and the gambling problems took their share of Ungar, often forcing him to play when seriously ill or in dire need of a win to cover other debts. It wasn t until 1997 that he managed to win his 3rd Main Event bracelet a $1million payday which was a result of being backed to play in the event at the last minute.
"That was by far my greatest performance ever," said a tearful Ungar afterwards. "I just played so perfect -- so perfect. It's so tough to come back." The Comeback Kid became his new nickname, but it was to be short-lived.
Death of a legend
The money was gone in two short months, his old friends cocaine and the racetrack, as ever, wiping out his fortune every time he won big. After he died alone at the age of 45 in the Oasis Motel in Vegas, the poker and gambling world mourned the troubled yet meteoric life of one of the game s true legends.
"It's wasted genius," said Las Vegas gaming analyst and radio talk-show host Larry Grossman, "Stu had his faults but was an extraordinary person.
Archie Karas
Archie the Greek Karas is another poker player and gambler with legendary status. His famous Run from 1993 to 1995 saw him turn his last $50 into a $40million fortune!
However, while for Ungar it was drugs and sportsbetting which took him down to the bottom again, for the Greek it was dice and baccarat which wiped out his winnings in three short weeks. And then, there s the cheating .
Like Ungar, Karas had a troubled childhood, running away from an abusive father at the age of 15 and working his passage to the US where he soon became a feared pool shark. When the line of opponents willing to hand him their money dried up, he turned to poker, soon becoming a skilled player who could win millions but lose them just as quickly.
Money can t buy you love
In 1993, down to his last $50, he returned the pool tables of his youth and found a very wealthy opponent, one who would unwittingly bankroll him all the way to the top of the gambling world.
Poker shark, pool shark
Taking $1.2million from his luckless mark at the pool tables for stakes up to $40,000 a game, he more than tripled his money by taking the same guy to the cleaners on the poker felt.
He hit Vegas with his $4million and had soon increased it to $7million, and sat in the famous Binion s Horseshoe Casino waiting for anyone rich and brave enough to take him on. Stu Ungar was the first to fall to Karas red-hot poker sword, quickly dumping $1.2million Karas way. It didn t take long to demolish Stuey, boasted Karas as he eyed up new victims.
Chip Reese stepped up to the challenge and lost $2million and within six months Karas was sitting on $17million with nobody to play.
Soon Karas had won all of Binion s highest-denomination chips and the casino had to actually buy them back!
Too much cash
Then came the dice, and a problem which we might only dream about. For Karas it was a reality:
And, naturally, having all that money readily to hand is as much a curse as a bankroll for degenerate gamblers, which Karas surely was despite his amazing run of fortune.
Breaking the bank
At one point, Karas very nearly broke the bank at Binion s casino after winning all of the Binion s Horseshoe casino s $5,000 chips, which were the highest denomination of chips at the time.
With $40million in the bank, Karas could have done anything with his life that he wanted, even retire to his own island and live a playboy retirement out in the sun, or invest it and live in comfortable excess until the day he died. But no, what Karas wanted to do was gamble and it all came crashing down around his ears
The Big Crash
His dice addiction, a high-variance game at the best of times, accounted for half of his fortune in short order. Then came the baccarat tables which took another $17million from him. And finally, as Bluff magazine explained it,
And the most amazing run in gambling history had ended not with a bang, but with the whimper of dice on a felt table. Despite mini-runs later on, Karas could never control his gambling excesses and soon matters would turn ugly when it was revealed that he had been investigated and charged several times for marking cards at Blackjack.
His cards are marked
Had his Run been legitimate? Or had Karas been marking cards all the way along his infamous $50 to $40million route? No-one has claimed so, but there will always be a dark cloud above Karas even more so when he was arrested for a 5th time in 2013 on charges of cheating and defrauding a casino when he was caught marking cards at a California blackjack table.
From gambling hero to cheating zero is a horrible legacy for the man who had the world at his fingertips for two years. But if gambling has taught us anything, it s that the game takes more than it gives in so many ways.
Scotty Nguyen
Thu?n B. "Scotty" Nguy?n is one of the true characters in the poker world, a loud and personable guy with legendary poker skills mixed in with gambling and drug problems, He is a player who has bridged the gap between the old school and the new.
As with so many others, Nguyen built himself up from literally nothing into a millionaire using only his card skills and just as quickly saw it reduced to ashes when the fame and fortune took their pound of flesh.
For a young Vietnamese boy from a family of 13 who would get horribly beaten by his father just for touching playing cards at home, the rise to poker stardom was a long and arduous path, involving various work sponsors in the US before he found his way to the bright lights of Vegas.
Poker pitfalls
His very first WSOP would set a trend for blowing his winnings, Nguyen scooping over $150K for his Omaha Hi-Lo title victory and lost it all on dice between the cashier s desk and the exit.
By the time I made it to the front door I was busted. I lost everything at the craps table. I had to borrow $5 to pay the valet guy, stated Nguyen wistfully. As many others have discovered before and since, the road to poker greatness has a lot of pitfalls along the way, and Nguyen has fallen into most of them.
No regrets
Nguyen has seen plenty of controversy throughout his long and illustrious career; his alcohol-fueled rants at the poker table causing major problems in the past. This is not to mention drug-excesses which cost him more than money and even soft-playing accusations which hurt more than the lost millions. Still, his hero-status is well-established among the poker elite, despite the bad times.
Act like a champ, always
While some champions have hit rock-bottom and literally begged their way back into games, Nguyen has never been able to do this he says:
Whether he now has $5million or a dime in his pocket, Nguyen has recovered from his worst and darkest days of drink, drugs and gambling not everyone is so lucky!
Erick Lindgren
When it comes to stories of poker pros going bust, they don t come much uglier than Erick Lindgren s sad tale of debts, gambling degeneracy, bankruptcy, and legal actions.
As the All-American face of poker , Lindgren was one of the most successful poker players of the noughties boom a total of $10million+ in the bank from tournaments alone, including his 2004 $1million scoop at the PartyPoker Cruise. The future looked sweet indeed for the young poker sensation.
Football and sports
Almost from the start, Lindgren had an addiction to sportsbetting, and it wasn t a cheap one either. I was betting very big, $50k to $100k per game, Lindgren confessed, after fellow pro and sportsbettor Haralabos Voulgaris came out and publicly claimed that Lindgren owed him six figures for years and had failed to pay the debt in full.
We all knew that (Lindgren) was pretty much a piece of shit when it came to settling gambling debts, wrote Voulgaris on a 2+2 thread started by Max Weinberg who was also owed money by Lindgren. It sparked off a trail of Lindgren owes me confessions from other pros.
Lindgren s debts across poker and sportsbooks got as high as $10million at one point, and although he claimed to have paid back as many as he could, his name became synonymous with bad debt in poker circles.
Seeking help
I ve had a gambling problem for a long time and I ve finally got the opportunity to address it, said Lindgren of his stay at a rehab clinic back in 2012. But as with all degenerate gamblers, getting away from the tables and the bets and the numbers wasn t at the top of his list. There is a big win around the corner to save the day Allegedly.
I just want to get back to where my word, when I say something, it means something and I just want to get back to a level of full accountability, Lindgren told Bluff magazine. But his plan for doing so involved more gambling!
That s the thing, I don t want to stop my profession. I just want to get better at it, claimed the one-time golden boy of poker s big boom.
The addict s dream
As every addict knows, you can t control these things they always control you. There is no such thing as just one drink, one last hit, one final bet , but it didn t seem to be something Lindgren could or would accept.
And the flip side is what kills off the degenerate gamblers ability to pay off debts if poker and betting is all you ve ever known, all you re any good at, how can you just stop AND pay off millions to your creditors? It s a Catch 22, you re damned if you do and damned if you don t.
Throw in a $2million loan which was mistakenly sent to Lindgren twice by Full Tilt s Chris Ferguson and spent twice by the debt-ridden pro and you have almost nowhere left to turn. Lindgren s 2012 bankruptcy didn t solve his problems and it hasn t helped to pay back all those he welched on deals with.
Despite the stint in rehab, and help from those left in the game willing to extend a hand, just last year Lindgren was slapped with a lawsuit from PokerStars who had bought out, or rather inherited, his $2.5million debt from Full Tilt and Lindgren once again filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
A very sad and cautionary tale that shows no matter how talented a player you are, or how much you win, the lifestyle of the rich and famous can come crashing down if you don t learn to control your urges.
Chino Rheem
Sometimes perhaps not often but sometimes you can feel sorry for the man who once had it all and let it slip through his fingers by a combination of bad luck, bad choices, bad runs, and bad advice.
Other times, however, you feel that some people get exactly what they deserve, and poker low-life Chino Rheem falls into this second category.
Anyone who can get 118 pages of a 2+2 thread devoted to their indiscretions entitled Chino Rheem SCUM part two (more scams) yes, part 2!! is obviously doing something very wrong in their lives and pissing off too many people. So what s his story?
Can you spare $40K?
Chino Reem borrows money. Lots of it. And doesn t repay it. Instead he blows it on the tables, or parties, or drugs or whatever. Not an entirely novel story, but Rheem has a bad habit of dragging others into his lies and deceit, claiming for example that Mike the Grinder Mizrachi would vouch for him when the man had offered no such thing.
$40k here, $40k there and lots of sums in between have come Rheem s way, and yet, whenever he wins big which for a few years was a regular occurrence as, despite his terrible habits, Rheem is a fine player he would suddenly not have the money to repay the debts.
Joseph Cheong, who loaned Rheem $40,000, said:
It s not unknown for poker players and other gamblers to act this way, but Rheem has taken it to a whole new level it seems. After being outed by Will Molson (of Canadian beer family fame) on 2+2, and then seeing dozens of other players repeat their own versions of Rheem-scams, he finally admitted to his behaviour, at least partly.
Bad role models
Unfortunately for Rheem, his role model is a man we ve just met a man who hasn t quite gotten to grips with what gambling degeneracy is and entails.
To be so broke that you have to lie and cheat other players out of their own hard-earned money to continue your own degenerate ways is about as low as it gets.
Rumour has it that he has paid off some of the smaller debts now, whether by choice or by force is unclear, but it has been said that even if Rheem wins the Main Event it would barely put a dent in what he really owes out there.
Are the majority of poker players broke?
I recalled watching HSP and watching how much money all these guys have. PLaying 300/600nl with 100 dollar straddle. then i start reading that many of these players arent even playing 100 percent of their own money. I mean unless you are durrrr, then you are most likely not. Am i right on this?
Also there was a player named eskimo clark and i read about how much moneyhe made from tourneys and now its like hes asking for a stakes just for a 300 dollar tounament. I read an article that a guy who didnt want to disclose his name said most live pros are broke and have backers for tournaments. And even if they hit a big score, they dont get most of it b/c they are staked.
But when you look at the real cash game poker scene, 10/20nl is the highest running game that goes regularly and thats in bellagio in vegas and commerce. Isn't it shockinw how big games don't even exist anymore compared to HSP?
I mean when was the last time there is actually like a 100/200nl game at a casino? It probably happens not counting WSOP less than 3 times a year?
Also im shocked but how could some players who play so high end up going broke or close to it? I read someone mentioned there was a guy who used to play 25/50nl heads up online and he saw him playing 2/5nl shortstacked and once he doubled up, he left.
Does anyone feel like poker gives a false illusion? You see all the money on the table like in HSP but games like that dont even really exist much unless its on TV or WSOP?
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Im sure there are some high stakes games out there. For the most part, the television is just to get viewers, that is why it is such high stakes. Some of the players are even sponsored to play on TV.
You're correct on how most games out there are very small though. The casino that i go to back home usually only has 1 table of 2/3/5 deepstack, and most tables are 1/2/2 nlh.
I am sure they are mostly free rolling. Sponsors, endorsements, advertising, royalties, ect.
Why would anyone go through the trouble of getting ready for TV with makeup, contracts, releases, if there wasn't any incentive for them?
I am sure they are mostly free rolling. Sponsors, endorsements, advertising, royalties, ect.
Why would anyone go through the trouble of getting ready for TV with makeup, contracts, releases, if there wasn't any incentive for them?
There are a lot of perceptions we poker players have. The bigger one in the US is just how many online players are active. It is nowhere near as many as we might think.
At one of the minor Casino's in LA, Hollywood Park, I watched 5 tables of $5-10 or higher and it sure looked like each table had at least 100K on it. I would guess that Commerce or the Bike were running more and larger BI games regularly, like even at 9 in the morning.
I recalled watching HSP and watching how much money all these guys have. PLaying 300/600nl with 100 dollar straddle. then i start reading that many of these players arent even playing 100 percent of their own money. I mean unless you are durrrr, then you are most likely not. Am i right on this?
Also there was a player named eskimo clark and i read about how much moneyhe made from tourneys and now its like hes asking for a stakes just for a 300 dollar tounament. I read an article that a guy who didnt want to disclose his name said most live pros are broke and have backers for tournaments. And even if they hit a big score, they dont get most of it b/c they are staked.
But when you look at the real cash game poker scene, 10/20nl is the highest running game that goes regularly and thats in bellagio in vegas and commerce. Isn't it shockinw how big games don't even exist anymore compared to HSP?
I mean when was the last time there is actually like a 100/200nl game at a casino? It probably happens not counting WSOP less than 3 times a year?
Also im shocked but how could some players who play so high end up going broke or close to it? I read someone mentioned there was a guy who used to play 25/50nl heads up online and he saw him playing 2/5nl shortstacked and once he doubled up, he left.
Does anyone feel like poker gives a false illusion? You see all the money on the table like in HSP but games like that dont even really exist much unless its on TV or WSOP?
First off, you have your numbers kind of off. 20NL means that the BB is $0.20, so you would be saying that that's the biggest game running, which I know you meant $20 BB, which would be 2000NL.
Anyways, there are definitely higher stakes than that being played in Vegas. Not in every room, but in some of them. Just watch players twitter accounts and they are talking about it.
MANY players will take out stakes on high buyin MTTs, want to know why? Because there is so much variance in them and the smaller chance that they will win, so they use the stake to spread out the cost to them when they don't win. Look up staking to figure out more about this.
I recalled watching HSP and watching how much money all these guys have. PLaying 300/600nl with 100 dollar straddle. then i start reading that many of these players arent even playing 100 percent of their own money. I mean unless you are durrrr, then you are most likely not. Am i right on this?
Also there was a player named eskimo clark and i read about how much moneyhe made from tourneys and now its like hes asking for a stakes just for a 300 dollar tounament. I read an article that a guy who didnt want to disclose his name said most live pros are broke and have backers for tournaments. And even if they hit a big score, they dont get most of it b/c they are staked.
But when you look at the real cash game poker scene, 10/20nl is the highest running game that goes regularly and thats in bellagio in vegas and commerce. Isn't it shockinw how big games don't even exist anymore compared to HSP?
I mean when was the last time there is actually like a 100/200nl game at a casino? It probably happens not counting WSOP less than 3 times a year?
Also im shocked but how could some players who play so high end up going broke or close to it? I read someone mentioned there was a guy who used to play 25/50nl heads up online and he saw him playing 2/5nl shortstacked and once he doubled up, he left.
Does anyone feel like poker gives a false illusion? You see all the money on the table like in HSP but games like that dont even really exist much unless its on TV or WSOP?
You have made some good points. Poker is one of the hardest ways to earn money from. Its like hurdles where the bar is two times higher than other areas of life. However for the few who make big wins in tournaments life is better.
Let me give you something deeper from a man who had a sweeter slice of capitalism than most of us:
?If you've been playing poker for half an hour and you still don't know who the patsy is, you're the patsy. to quote Warren Buffett, billionaire investor.
Im one of the patsys that plays (only freerolls).
| I mean when was the last time there is actually like a 100/200nl game at a casino? It probably happens not counting WSOP less than 3 times a year? |
Look at Dutch Boyd, he is a bracelet winner and former highstakes player. He recently posted on 2+2 asking for a job and was prepared to work minimum wage.
Back in 2005/2006 Lex Veldhuis used to play $100/200 games against guys like H@??INGOLL and Patrick Antonius. Now he seems to just play $1/2 and $2/4 on Stars. I know he is an sponsored player, but to play games like $100/200 and above it takes more than a sponsorship package.
Surely most of the highstakes guys have to be under rolled for the games they play or are getting help from other means to be able to afford buy ins.
I think there may be more to that story. I just googled Dutch Boyd 2+2 and it seems there was some sort of lawsuit filed against him for using the phrase Two Plus Two to direct ppl to strategy articles and gaming services on a Website he and someone else created.
Not saying he's rich by any means but I imagine he has enough connections in the poker world to keep him afloat for awhile, not to mention isn't that guy like a genius or something I would find it hard to believe he would be working minimum wage unless he lost a prop bet or something
Dude, use a period once in a while. Your post gives me a headache.
I am sure they are mostly free rolling. Sponsors, endorsements, advertising, royalties, ect.
Why would anyone go through the trouble of getting ready for TV with makeup, contracts, releases, if there wasn't any incentive for them?
There's a few things to consider here but the short story is yes, there are an awful lot of broke poker players. They could be broke for any number of reasons - maybe they're good at poker but bad at sports betting, maybe it's drugs, maybe they've got terrible bankroll management. Whatever the reason yes, it's a lot more common than you think.
Don't go assuming that every player who takes a stake or pieces out their action is necessarily broke though. There are plenty of good reasons for a winning, non-broke player to do that too, including getting the option to play in games higher than what they're rolled for and spreading their risk more evenly.
I know that Steve o'dywer who is regarded as one of the best live tournament players in the world owed out alot of his EPT winnings
just goes to show he was obviously struggling at some point to pay back debts or to pay for his buy ins,
its a bad concept to grasp playing at the top of the spectrum your pretty much gambling as you lose your superior edge, as so many players on there day
are as good as you.
its important to take the time to pick the best games if possible
I know that Steve o'dywer who is regarded as one of the best live tournament players in the world owed out alot of his EPT winnings
just goes to show he was obviously struggling at some point to pay back debts or to pay for his buy ins,
its a bad concept to grasp playing at the top of the spectrum your pretty much gambling as you lose your superior edge, as so many players on there day
are as good as you.
its important to take the time to pick the best games if possible
It was pretty funny to hear Steve say straight up in the interview after winning the EPT grand final it's not all mine, I have backers and look a little dissapointed. I think most poker players are backed but they just don't make it known.
I wonder if Antonio Esfandiari will ever say how much of the One Drop he had of himself.
Professional players writing books about how to make a killing at poker while they themselves are flat broke or close to it remind me of the gurus who will show you how to make a fortune overnight flipping houses but won't tell you how many times they've had to file bankruptcy already. I'm not questioning their skills or what they teach, I'm questioning the overall image that they project with the help of the entertainment industry that sucks people in and takes their money, because they've been given a false impression of the lifestyle and what being a poker pro is like. People see all the glamour and big paychecks on TV and want that, but it's just an illusion. There's another thread on these boards started by somebody who wanted to go pro with a $10k bankroll and cut himself off from his family because they wouldn't support him.
To be brutally honest if I had to treat poker as anything other than a hobby I would throw the cards in the fireplace and never look back, it's a brutal way to try and make a living.
bad bankroll managment, the most players are playing aboth their limits, i played a time long aboth my head, i played in SCOOP en WCOOP played 1/2 online, and of course i busted my pokerstars account, then I went to titan poker ( stupid idea) and lost their because of their big rake (dont play that site its really bad) and then I went back to pokerstars deposited 600 dollars and played the NL10 and NL16 and since then i am consitently winning and I will not play aboth my head ever again, and I dont will bust my account again.
To the other thing high stakes still exist, by my homecasino montesino vienna every begin of the month there is high stakes action, and if you look to macau, there are the biggest cash game on earth but they are not televised.
Scared money -- watch out for that. Don't play like you can't loose the money. We smell the fear. Besides that, you play cash games only?
Is english a second language of yours? I'm having some trouble understanding you.
Almost every poker player has a story about once going completely broke. Sad but true.
It's like anything else involving easy money (ex. binking a huge tourney, etc. ). Just look at the slew of lottery winners that go flat broke after winning millions; there have been so many they made a tv show about it.
Having to work hard day after day for your money makes you appreciate it so much more.
Notes: Poker is not the same as the lottery, but luck is a big component in both. Poker can be hard work for some, not denying that, but there are far tougher jobs out there.
It's not the luck, but the wagering component.
I can literally give a poker player $100 million bucks.
What will be do? He will just go find a table with $5 mil/$10 mil blinds.
This is why every gambler goes broke.
If he gets more money, he just starts to bet bigger.
Have you ever been up in Vegas? What did you do? Yea, you started to make huge bets until you gave it all back, and then some.
It's not the luck, but the wagering component.
I can literally give a poker player $100 million bucks.
What will be do? He will just go find a table with $5 mil/$10 mil blinds.
This is why every gambler goes broke.
If he gets more money, he just starts to bet bigger.
Have you ever been up in Vegas? What did you do? Yea, you started to make huge bets until you gave it all back, and then some.
That doesnt match for everybody, I have enough money for two lifes to spend, but guess, which limits I play, NL10 Nl16 NL25, i want to build my bankroll up with my own hard work, and i dont want to play like the business man with the big sharks, to donate my money to them. And maybe one day I become a shark myself. when I am up by roullete I go and dont place any bets
I recalled watching HSP and watching how much money all these guys have. PLaying 300/600nl with 100 dollar straddle. then i start reading that many of these players arent even playing 100 percent of their own money. I mean unless you are durrrr, then you are most likely not. Am i right on this?
Also there was a player named eskimo clark and i read about how much moneyhe made from tourneys and now its like hes asking for a stakes just for a 300 dollar tounament. I read an article that a guy who didnt want to disclose his name said most live pros are broke and have backers for tournaments. And even if they hit a big score, they dont get most of it b/c they are staked.
But when you look at the real cash game poker scene, 10/20nl is the highest running game that goes regularly and thats in bellagio in vegas and commerce. Isn't it shockinw how big games don't even exist anymore compared to HSP?
I mean when was the last time there is actually like a 100/200nl game at a casino? It probably happens not counting WSOP less than 3 times a year?
Also im shocked but how could some players who play so high end up going broke or close to it? I read someone mentioned there was a guy who used to play 25/50nl heads up online and he saw him playing 2/5nl shortstacked and once he doubled up, he left.
Does anyone feel like poker gives a false illusion? You see all the money on the table like in HSP but games like that dont even really exist much unless its on TV or WSOP?
Well if your able to find a poker game at all your lucky compared to me. In this little town I'm in I cant ever find or get a poker game going at all. Everyone's to broke around here. Lucky if I get to play in a game at all unless its online.
Seems like I can always do pretty good playing poker, but gamblingball together I have a problem with lol.
I seem to always start out winning sometimes even a lot, but before its over I usually lose everything I've won plus some.
I just dont know when to quit I guess.
I'm a poker player and I'm pretty much broke
Not from playing poker though. I do pretty good when I play. For the most part anyway.
I usually play till I go broke though. Most of time it's from other games I lose my money on not poker.
Poker pros who are broke
Published on May 2nd, 2007 1:01 am EST
You read about a big-name professional poker player winning a million dollar first prize in a poker tournament, and you figure that they are set, and living the high life. Someone took down the World Series of Poker a few years ago, or maybe a World Poker Tour event recently, and you figure that they are pretty much set for life. Wrong.
Without a doubt, there are so professional players that are extremely well-off, but you would be surprised at how few there actually are. Run down a list of the top 100 most recognizable names in poker, and you would be astonished by how many are penniless and owe money to various backers and lenders. Pick any major tournament, and probably half of the well-known names are being backed in the tournament. Why is this?
There are varying reasons for why most well-known pro players are broke. Here is a list of the most common reasons for a busted bankroll; almost every broke player fits on this list somewhere, and most of them have fallen victim to most of the reasons on this list for a depleted bankroll.
1. Sports Betting. Betting on sports is seemingly the Kryptonite for many a professional poker player's bankroll. Most of the well-known players bet on sports, and they bet big. Most do not do well betting on sports, but they just can't keep away from the action. Sports betting is the top reason why many players are broke.
2. The life. Living in Vegas, it is hard to keep your head on straight. There are easy drugs, hookers, expensive dinners, bottles of champagne; it all adds up, and most players have found that after they win a big tournament, they can easily party half of their winnings away.
3. Sidegames. Whether it's craps (T.J. Cloutier will tell you about the dangers of playing craps), blackjack or roulette, for some reason these mathematically inclined poker players think that they can beat games where the house always has an edge.
4. Staking. Most players don't have the money to finance their own entries into these tournaments. A big name player wins $1 million in a tournament? Well there is a good chance that they are paying a backer at least half of this. After the tax man and the backer get their $$, there is not much left.
5. Cash games. Many a successful tournament player have fallen victim to the allure
6. Divorces. Many players live a degenerative lifestyle, and oftentimes after they hit it big, they lose their wives and families. Divorce settlements and child support costs quite a bit of money.
7. The golf course. You would be surprised at how big the action is on the golf course, and how many of these pros with money get taken by professional golf hustlers.
8. Drug / alcohol abuse. Ruined many a promising poker career, with Stu Ungar probably being the most famous of them. Drug and alcohol abuse leads to poor business and bankroll decisions.
9. Backing friends. Being a successful backer means making hard and painful business decisions. Unsuccessful backing usually stems from entering 2-3 of your friends into the World Poker Championships after you took first place in a World Series of Poker Circuit event.
10. Unsuccessful online cash game play. Ask Mike Matusow about this, who has dropped over $2.5 million dollars playing online. Sometimes, successful live player just does not translate to successful play online.
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Poker is a very volatile game, but high stakes poker is straight dangerous. Many one time poker stars have long since been busto, whether or not the general public has any clue. Some players have their troubles well documented, while others do their best to keep everything a secret. Take a look at these five famous poker players who are either confirmed busto, near busto, or merely rumored to be broke. The poker community, particularly the online poker community, loves to talk about the financial status of players they don t know anything about, so don t take anything you read for absolute fact. Having said that, this list is quite accurate from what information is available, so don t be surprised if you see one of these guys railing your table the next time you are in Vegas.
#1-T.J. Cloutier
What are the first few automatic suggestions from Google when you search for T.J. Cloutier? Things like broke and craps are at the very top of the list. These two words effectively tell the long story of Cloutier s degenerate gambling. Even though it is clearly a losing proposition, Cloutier always comes back to the craps tables to lose, lose, and lose some more. He even sold off one of his WSOP bracelets, probably in an attempt to either pay back a debt or get his fix at the craps table. For as much success as Cloutier has had at the poker tables, it is safe to assume that he hasn t done nearly as well tossing the dice.
#2-Jean Robert Bellande
Jean-Robert Bellande hardly keeps his broke lifestyle a secret, as evidenced by his Twitter account, aptly named brokelivingjrb. If you follow Bellande on Twitter, you will find that he loves nothing more than a good gamble. Whether it is playing in high stakes games way out of his bankroll, or just gambling it up, Bellande is no stranger to variance. He chronicles his daily wins and losses online for everyone to see, and while it makes for some good entertainment, it also demonstrates just how much of a degenerate he really is.
#3-Jamie Gold
Jamie Gold won the largest World Series of Poker Main Event ever in 2006, netting $12,000,000. This may not have been enough for Gold, though, as he has recently been spotted in many small stakes live games. Gold was once the poster child for High Stakes Poker on GSN, but he is now more likely to be sitting right next to you in the smallest stakes games available. The truth is that Gold lost half of his $12,000,000 in earnings in a lawsuit, surely lost a fair bit more in taxes, and lived well beyond his means (at least at the poker table). A few million dollars can disappear quickly when you are playing pots for a few hundred thousand at a time.
#4-Isilsur1
Isildur1 (real name Viktor Blom) was a superstar in the online poker community from 2009 and into 2010, but his whirlwind journey came to a crashing halt when he lost millions to Brian Hastings in a heads up match on Full Tilt Poker. Though Hastings admitted that he cheated to earn the money from Blom, it didn t seem likely that Isildur1 would ever get a nickel back. This devastating loss put a dent in Blom s bankroll and poker skill set, as he has not been the same ever since. To his defense, though, he doesn t exactly have the bankroll to play in the highest stakes games anymore. Tony G has tried to help Isilsur1 out with a stake, but it has all been for naught, so far, anyway.
#5-Tom Dwan
Tom Dwan is the focal point of almost all finance related poker gossip. Even when it is clear that he is up millions across multiple years of play, there is no shortage of people who want to talk about how broke he is. Dwan is accused of being broke whenever he goes on a million dollar downswing, something that is fairly common for his playing style and stakes. There are a lot of people who think that Dwan is broke or will eventually go broke, but he is sitting pretty for the time being. Only time will tell if Dwan continues to prosper or fades into oblivion (as Phil Hellmuth has planned).
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