Phil Ivey has been referred to as the greatest poker contender in the world by quite a few of the top pros. Phil Ivey was born in Riverside, CA and moved to NJ before reaching turning one. His grandfather introduced him to one cent-ante Five-Card Stud poker. From then on on, Phil was hooked on poker and wanted to pickup anything he could about poker. Phil would tell his grandparents that he wanted to be a professional poker player. Phil did not let the detrimental feedback from others destroy his ambition of becoming one of the strongest poker competitors in the world.
Phil began playing seriously after acquiring a false ID by the name of Jerome. He honed his techniques at the poker rooms in Atlantic City. The beginning number of years for him were a teaching period and coming away with a win was not a normal outcome at the time. He made his mark at the 2000 WSOP when he made two final tables and won his first WSOP bracelet, in a two dollar, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha event. At the last table he destroyed quite a few of the well known pros including "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He made a decision to take his skills to the next level and headed out west to Sin City. He continues to participate in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the greatest players in the world. Phil credits his achievements to hard work and a continuing passion for poker. He states that he is learning every day and is quite abashed about his achievements. Phil admits to making mistakes every single game of poker and constantly strives to improve.
Even though Phil has come first in some large tournaments, he likes destroying money games on a regular basis.
