Chris Moneymaker

Last updated

Chris Moneymaker
Chris Moneymaker 2006.jpg
Moneymaker at the 2006 World Series of Poker
Residence Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Born (1975-11-21) November 21, 1975 (age 48)
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s) 1 [1]
Money finish(es)9
Highest ITM
Main Event finish		Winner, 2003
World Poker Tour
Title(s)None
Final table(s)1 [2]
Money finish(es)2
European Poker Tour
Title(s)None
Final table(s)None
Money finish(es)3 [3]
Information accurate as of 10 July 2022.

Christopher Bryan Moneymaker (born November 21, 1975) is an American poker player who won the Main Event at the 2003 World Series of Poker (WSOP). [3] 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. [4] This has been referred to in the press as the "Moneymaker effect". [5]

Contents

Early life

Moneymaker was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He attended Farragut High School in Knoxville, Tennessee, and later earned a master's degree in accounting from the University of Tennessee. [4] After receiving his master's degree, Moneymaker worked as a controller. He was also a part-time employee at a local restaurant, in Spring Hill, Tennessee. [4]

Moneymaker claimed that his ancestors made silver and gold coins and chose the name "Moneymaker" as a modification of their German last name, "Nurmacher". [6]

Poker career

World Series of Poker

Moneymaker was working as an accountant when he won a seat in the Main Event of the 2003 World Series of Poker through an $86 satellite tournament at the PokerStars online poker card room. Although largely unknown prior to the tournament, on day one of the tournament his skills caught the attention of professional sports handicapper Lou Diamond, who called Moneymaker his "dark horse to win the whole tournament." [7] Moneymaker went on to win the first prize of $2.5 million, instantly garnering poker superstar status. The 2003 WSOP Main Event was his first live poker tournament. One of Moneymaker's most memorable hands was heads-up against Sam Farha, when on the river he bluffed "all in" with King high. Farha folded a pair of nines, quickly changing the momentum of the match. Moneymaker eventually won the tournament when his 5♦ 4♠ beat Farha's J♥ 10♦ on a board of J♠ 5♠ 4♣ 8♦ 5♥, giving Moneymaker a full house (5♦ 5♠ 5♥ 4♣ 4♠) to Farha's two pairs (J♥ J♠ 5♠ 5♥ 10♦). After winning the Main Event, he quit his job to serve as a celebrity spokesman for Series owner Harrah's Entertainment as well as PokerStars. He also started his own company, Moneymaker Gaming, [4] and began traveling to play in more numerous and larger buy-in tournaments.

His autobiography, Moneymaker: How an Amateur Poker Player Turned $40 into $2.5 Million at the World Series of Poker was published in March 2005. Eric Raskin, editor of All In Magazine, compiled an oral history of the 2003 WSOP Main Event, which included input from three dozen top poker personalities who were involved, also titled The "Moneymaker Effect." [8] As part of Moneymaker's success, it appears that Moneymaker misremembered the buy-in to the satellite that he won on PokerStars, leading to the error in the title of his autobiography, which refers to winning a $40 satellite, rather than the correct figure of $86. [9]

Other poker tournaments

On the World Poker Tour, Moneymaker finished second at the 2004 Shooting Stars event and won $200,000. [2]

During Event 5 of the 2008 World Championship of Online Poker, which was a $10,300 buy-in of No Limit Hold'em, Moneymaker finished in sixth place, taking home over $139,000. He also did well in Event 16, the $215 Pot Limit Omaha with Rebuys, where he finished fifth, earning over $28,000.

Moneymaker won the Deep Stack Pot Limit Omaha event of the World Poker Open tournament in July 2009 and won $15,889. [10]

Moneymaker placed 11th in the 2011 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure Main Event, earning $130,000. [11]

In 2011 Moneymaker placed second at the National Heads Up Poker Tournament against Erik Seidel, earning $300,000. [3]

As of 2022, his total live tournament winnings exceed $3,950,000, [3] over $2,550,000 of which has come from the World Series of Poker. [1]

In 2019, Moneymaker was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame. [12]

Personal life

Moneymaker has been married twice. He and his first wife divorced in 2004; in an interview for a 10-year retrospective on the 2003 WSOP Main Event, he said "The main reason was me wanting to be a traveling poker pro. She didn't sign up for that life. She was married to a stay-at-home accountant who was not traveling the world, gone all the time, and gambling a lot of money. And it was a choice I had to make. I tried to be good, stay at my job, and be that accountant, but in all honesty I didn't want to." [13] With his first wife, Moneymaker has a daughter. [4] He married again in 2005.[ citation needed ]As of 2021, they live just outside of Memphis, Tennessee. [14]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Varkonyi</span> American poker player

Robert Varkonyi is an American poker player, best known for winning the Main Event of the 2002 World Series of Poker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Farha</span> Lebanese poker player (born 1959)

Ihsan "Sam" Farha is a Lebanese professional poker player. He is best known for finishing as runner up in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event in 2003. He has won three bracelets at the WSOP in his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humberto Brenes</span> Costa Rican poker player (born 1951)

Humberto Brenes is a Costa Rican professional poker player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Watkinson</span> American poker player (born 1966)

Lee Watkinson is an American professional poker player, originally from Longbranch, Washington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Hachem</span> Lebanese Australian poker player (born 1966)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Gale (poker player)</span> English poker player (1953–2019)

John Gale was an English professional poker player based in Bushey, Hertfordshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Phan</span> Vietnamese-American poker player (born 1974)

Bon "John" Phan is a Vietnamese-American professional poker player based in Stockton, California, who is a two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner and is a winner and four-time final tablist of World Poker Tour Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Demetriou</span> Greek Cypriot-British poker player (born 1958)

Charidimos (Harry) Demetriou is a Greek Cypriot-British poker player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patrik Antonius</span> Finnish poker player (born 1980)

Patrik Antonius is a Finnish professional poker player, former tennis player and coach, and model from Vantaa, Finland. He currently resides in Monte Carlo. Antonius was mentored by poker pro Marcel Lüske as a member of Luske's "Circle of Outlaws" and later advised by Jennifer Harman. Antonius has two children.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jan Vang Sørensen</span> Danish footballer and poker player (born 1960)

Jan Vang Sørensen is a retired Danish football player, turned professional poker player from Odense. He has won two bracelets at the World Series of Poker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor Ramdin</span> Guyanese-American poker player (born 1968)

Annand Mahendra "Victor" Ramdin is a professional poker player with 19 money finishes and the winner of a World Poker Tour (WPT) Championship. He is based in The Bronx, New York and is a member of Team PokerStars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Billirakis</span> American poker player (born 1986)

Steve Billirakis is an American professional poker player.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dario Minieri</span> Italian poker player (born 1985)

Dario Minieri is an Italian professional poker player from Rome, Italy who won a bracelet at the 2008 World Series of Poker at the age of 23, is a member of team PokerStars, is an online poker player who was the first person to collect enough Frequent Player Points to buy an automobile with them, and is a three-time European Poker Tour final tablist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grant Hinkle</span> American poker player

Grant Hinkle is an American poker player who won the 2008 World Series of Poker (WSOP) $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em event. He earned $831,462 at the event, bringing his total live tournament winnings to $1,640,843.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chino Rheem</span> American poker player (born 1980)

David Y. "Chino" Rheem is a poker player from Los Angeles, California. In November 2008, Rheem finished in seventh place at the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event, cashing for $1,772,650. He went out of this event on A♠ K♣ to Peter Eastgate's A♥ Q♦ with Eastgate flopping a pair of queens on a board of Q♠ 5♠ 7♦ 9♦ 4♥. He is also the winner of the World Poker Tour's Season VII Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic, earning $1,538,730. Rheem had five previous WSOP cashes, his best result being a runner-up finish to Allen Cunningham in a $1,000 no limit Texas hold 'em with rebuys event in 2006. He cashed in the 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event, finishing 193rd place. He also made a final table earlier in 2008, finishing in fifth place in the $5,000 Mixed Hold'em event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antoine Saout</span> French poker player

Antoine Saout is a French professional poker player who made the November Nine in the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, finishing in third place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Berkey</span> American poker player (born 1982)

Matthew Berkey is an American professional poker player from Leechburg, Pennsylvania who focuses on live no limit hold 'em cash games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upeshka De Silva</span> Sri Lankan-American poker player

Upeshka De Silva is a Sri Lankan-American professional poker player from Katy, Texas. A three-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner, in 2020 he made the final table of the WSOP Main Event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damian Salas</span> Argentine poker player (born 1975)

Damian Salas is an Argentine professional poker player from Chascomús. He won the World Series of Poker Main Event in 2020, becoming the first person from Argentina to win the world championship of poker and the second person from South America to win the championship, after 2001 champion Carlos Mortensen. He made the Main Event final table in 2017, where he finished in 7th place earning $1,425,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koray Aldemir</span> German poker player (born 1990)

Koray Aldemir is a German professional poker player of Turkish descent, born in Berlin and now residing in Vienna, Austria. In 2021, he won the World Series of Poker Main Event for $8,000,000.

References

  1. 1 2 "Chris Moneymaker". WSOP.com. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Chris Moneymaker". World Poker Tour. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Chris Moneymaker's profile on The Hendon Mob". The Hendon Mob Poker Database.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Chris Moneymaker - money800 - Poker Player - PokerListings.com". Pokerlistings. Archived from the original on August 22, 2011. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  5. ↑ PokerNews.com: The Moneymaker Effect: Five Years Later May 23, 2008
  6. ↑ Levy, Don Riddell,Glen (November 17, 2021). "The Moneymaker Effect: Meet the man who helped change the fortunes of poker overnight". CNN. Retrieved May 24, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ↑ Moneymaker, Chris; Paisner, Daniel (February 2005). Moneymaker: How an Amateur Poker Player Turned $40 into $2.5 Million at the World Series of Poker, pg 99-101. ISBN   9780060760014 . Retrieved July 1, 2009.
  8. ↑ Raskin, Eric (August 3, 2014). "Interview with All In Magazine Editor and Moneymaker Effect". Cardplayer Lifestyle Poker. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  9. ↑ Willis, Brad (February 16, 2016). "The Moneymaker Boom that almost wasn't". PokerStars. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  10. ↑ "2009 Gold Strike World Poker Open, Pot Limit Omaha". The Hendon Mob. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
  11. ↑ "2011 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure - PokerNews". www.pokernews.com. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Chris Moneymaker and David Oppenheim Inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame". www.pokernews.com. Retrieved July 28, 2021.
  13. ↑ Raskin, Eric (May 22, 2013). "When We Held Kings". Grantland.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Whatever Happened to Chris Moneymaker?". www.gambling911.com. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.