NL Texas Holdem Poker- Who is Phil Ivey?
Phil Ivey has been labeled as the number one poker competitor on the planet by most of the top professionals. Phil Ivey was born in Riverside, CA and moved to NJ before his first birthday. His grandfather taught Phil one cent-ante 5-Card Stud poker. From that point on, he was hooked on poker and wanted to discover every little thing he could about the game. Phil routinely told his grandparents that he was going to be a professional poker player. Phil didn’t let the detrimental comments from other people destroy his goal of becoming one of the greatest poker players on the planet.
He began playing intently after acquiring a fake ID with the name of Jerome. He sharpened his abilities at the casinos of Atlantic City. The first number of years for Phil were a teaching period and winning was not a common outcome at the time. He made his mark at the 2000 WSOP where he achieved 2 final tables and won his first WSOP bracelet, in a two dollar, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha match. At the closing table he defeated a number of the better known pros including but not limited to "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He decided to take his game to the next level and headed out west to Vegas. He continues to compete in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the best players in the world. Ivey credits his success to dedication and a continuing passion for the game of poker. He says that he is learning every single day and is quite abashed about his success. Phil knows he makes errors in each session of poker and constantly strives to improve.
Despite the fact that Ivey has won some large tournaments, he favors winning money games on a regular basis.