Phil Ivey - Professional Poker Player

Introduction

Phillip Dennis Ivey, popularly known as Phil Ivey, was born in Riverside, California, on February 1, 1977.

Phil Ivey's journey to becoming famous was a tough one. He faced many obstacles and challenges, especially at the beginning of his poker career when he played cash games in Atlantic City. His fellow players began calling him "No Home Jerome", as he used to play so often that it seemed like he lived in the casinos.  

All his hard work paid off when he was honoured by being inducted as a member of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Hall of Fame in 2017.

Phil Ivey biography

Phil Ivey is a renowned poker player from the United States who has won $47,350,491 in live poker tournaments and millions of dollars in high-stakes cash games. Ivey has won eleven WSOP bracelets, which makes him second on the list of all-time bracelet winners after Phil Hellmuth, who has won 17. He is ahead of other popular players, including Erik Seidel, Johnny Chan, and the late Doyle Brunson, who have won ten bracelets each. After a decade, Ivey finally claimed his eleventh WSOP bracelet in the $10,000 2-7 Triple Draw Championship event in 2024.

Phil Ivey Background

Phil Ivey's parents moved to Roselle, New Jersey, when he was very young. In the 1990s, he learned about poker at a telemarketing job in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and started playing poker in Atlantic City.

At the age of 18, he started playing live poker, but since the legal gambling age in New Jersey is 21, he used a fake ID with the name Jerome Graham. He got so hooked on playing poker that his fellow players started calling him with a nickname, "No Home Jerome." He later gained popularity as "the Tiger Woods of Poker."

Ivey was primarily a cash game player but tried his hand at poker tournaments in 2000. He won a Limit Hold'em event with a buy-in of $540 in Tunica. The same year, he made his first appearance at the World Series of Poker, where he performed well by cashing three times, reaching two final tables, and winning his first bracelet in a Pot-Limit Omaha event with a $2,580 buy-in.

Phil Ivey Poker Career

Phil Ivey made his first marvellous win at the Pot Limit Omaha event in the World Series of Poker in 2000, winning his first-ever WSOP bracelet. In 2002, he won three WSOP bracelets and tied with players like Ted Forrest, Phil Hellmuth Jr., and Puggy Pearson for the most World Series Tournament wins in one year. In 2005, he finished another Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) event, winning $635,603.

In 2009, Phill Ivey achieved his sixth WSOP bracelet in a $2,500 No-Limit 2-7 Single Draw Lowball event, beating 147 participants and winning $96,367. The same year, he claimed his seventh WSOP bracelet in the $2,500 1/2 Omaha Hi-Lo 1/2 Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo event, competing against 376 players and winning $220,538.

In 2010, he secured his eighth bracelet, winning $329,840 in a $3,000 H.O.R.S.E. event. He competed against 478 participants, including well-known players Bill Chen and John Juanda.

In 2024, he won his 11th WSOP bracelet, winning $347,440 in the $10,000 Limit 2-7 Lowball Triple Draw Championship, competing against 149 players.

Phil Ivey performed consistently well in the Main Event, securing his place among the top 25 players four times from 2002 to 2009 in fields ranging from 600 entrants up to 7,000.

Phil Ivey secured a tenth rank in the World Series of Poker Main Event in 2002, just missing the final table to popular poker player Chris Moneymaker. In 2009, he secured seventh place in the 2009 Main Event, losing to Darvin Moon, earning $1,404,002.

He holds the record for winning the most bracelets in non-Holdem events. Throughout his career, Phil Ivey has won five mixed-game bracelets, including  S.H.O.E. in 2002, Omaha Hi/Lo / 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo in 2009, H.O.R.S.E. in 2010, WSOP APAC Mixed Event in 2013, and Eight Game Mix in 2014 which displays his versatility as a player.

Phil Ivey At a Glance

Category: Richest Celebrities

Net Worth: $125 Million

Birthdate: Feb 1, 1977 (47 years old)

Birthplace: Riverside

Gender: Male

Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)

Profession: Professional Poker Player

Nationality: United States of America

Phil Ivey's Early Life

Since childhood, Ivey has been fascinated by card games. He started honing his poker skills by competing with his co-workers in a telemarketing firm in New Brunswick, New Jersey.

He won his first World Series of Poker (WSOP) title by defeating players like Phil Hellmuth and Amarillo Slim at the age of 23. By the time he reached the age of 30, he had claimed five WSOP tournaments. He got the nickname “The Phenom” after securing three WSOP bracelets in 2002.

What is Phil Ivey's Net Worth?

Like many poker players, Phil Ivey is private about his financial status. However, his net worth is estimated at approximately $125 million. Ivey's earnings come from over $42 million in live poker tournament winnings and substantial profits from high-stakes cash games. His business ventures, table games, and sports betting have significantly contributed to this impressive figure.

How did Phil Ivey Make His Money?

Phil Ivey’s net worth is over $125 Million. He has earned over $38,000,000 in live tournament cash (according to the Hendon Mob). Phil Ivey’s earnings have reached such massive figures by landing big cash throughout his career. 

Many of his winnings come from competing in high-stake online cash games on various platforms. He is said to have won over $10M in profits by playing online Poker.

Phil Ivey Poker Accomplishments

Phil Ivey won more than $30 million playing poker other than the World Series of Poker. He won the World Poker Tour earning $1,596,100 in the L.A. Poker Classic in 2008. He has reached the final table of ten WPT events and won $3.6 million by winning a high-stakes tournament at the Aussie Millions in 2014. 

Phil Ivey earned over $1 million in the $60,000 No Limit Hold'em Turbo event. In 2002, he secured second place in the WSOP in the $100,000 No Limit Hold'em High Roller event. Additionally, he has performed exceptionally well playing online poker, earning more than $20 million on Full Tilt Poker, and is considered one of the best high-stakes cash game players globally.

Phil Ivey's Personal Life

Phil Ivey was previously married to Lucietta (2003 to 2009). They separated after seven years of marriage. Ivey is currently based in Las Vegas. The player consciously keeps his personal life away from the limelight and rarely talks about his relationships in the media.

Phil Ivey's Family

Phil Ivey married Luciaetta in 2003, and they divorced in December 2009. During their marriage, which lasted for seven years, they were a prominent couple in the poker community. The details about their children are not publicly documented. 

Since the divorce, Phil Ivey has kept his personal life even more private. Ivey resides in Las Vegas and remains one of the most enigmatic figures in poker. He is focused on his career and maintains a distinct line between his professional and personal life.

Phil Ivey Masterclass

In 2014, he launched ‘Ivey League’, an online Poker coaching platform for players who want to become professional Poker players.

These days, Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu are offering Poker training courses that players can join to learn the essentials of winning Poker. Through online masterclass, Phil Ivey teaches Poker strategy to aspiring players. He shares his secrets and tips for immense Poker success with them to help them take their game to the next level and become a star Poker player. By joining his masterclass, newbies can get Phil Ivey lessons on various aspects of the game, such as Poker maths, game theory, bankroll management, table image, table positions, check-raise, 3-bet, bluffing, etc.

Phil Ivey’s Poker Strategy

• “I’d work on my game online and at casinos, build my bankroll, find good games, and try to put myself in a position to keep winning and earn a steady income.” - Ivey.

According to Ivey, patience and consistency are the keys to success in Poker.

• “Many people these days are too ambitious; their sights are set too high at the start, and they dive in too deep, quitting their day job too soon. They move to Vegas or wherever, make an all-or-nothing commitment before they’re ready, and burn out.”  - Ivey.

As per Ivey, emotions can irritate you on the Poker table. Therefore, balancing emotional and logical thinking and devising a game plan is essential.

• “The biggest thing when you're playing live is that you're sitting across from the player and can get a detailed impression of how they're acting and whether they're expressing strength or weakness. Online, it's much more about betting patterns, and you're using a much narrower range of cues to what they're holding and thinking.”  - Ivey.

A player must know how to figure out what the opponent is holding. To decipher the ‘tells,’ you must observe his betting pattern and playing style (the time he takes to make his move, table talks, level of interest he exhibits in hand, etc.).

• “You’ve got to take some chances and know when you are beaten and how to get certain advantages.”  - Ivey.

Ivey believes that calculated risk-taking is essential in the game. You need to assess the risk, analyse your opponent and decide whether to hold or fold.

Phil Ivey is universally regarded as one of the best Poker players alive. With patience, dedication and practice, every player can achieve anything he can hope for in the realm of Poker. What matters the most is consistently improving your skills and knowledge through practice and training. The more you play, the more you learn, and the more you win!

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Phil Ivey's WSOP Bracelets

WSOP Heads-Up Record

WSOP Non-Texas Hold'em Results (ITM Finishes only)

World Poker Tour

Phil Ivey has made it to several World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables. In February 2008, he reached the final table in the sixth season of the World Poker Tour at the LA Poker Classic at Commerce Casino. Ivey competed against famous poker players Phil Hellmuth and Nam Lehe at the final table securing first place and winning $1,596,100. Overall, Ivey has made more than $4 million from WPT events.

Phil Ivey's Top Five Live Poker Results

Phil Ivey Controversies

Phil Ivey is a successful poker player known for his outstanding skills at the table. However, he has also been involved in a couple of major controversies. He was connected with Full Tilt Poker, an online poker site that crashed, leaving many players to lose money until Pokerstars rescued them. Ivey got $920,000 from the company before it failed.

Another controversy occurred when Ivey and his friend used a technique called "edge sorting," which he used while playing Baccarat in casinos in the United Kingdom and won millions of dollars. The casinos declined to pay the amount and accused Ivey of advantage play. This issue was resolved after six years of legal proceedings, in which the court judged in favour of the casino.

In April 2023, Ivey went to court over a deal with a cannabis company in Las Vegas named NuVeda. He gave them almost $2 million for a 3% company equity, expecting a $1.75 million ROI as per the 23% interest agreed by the company. However, he only received $250,000 since NuVeda filed bankruptcy.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much money has Phil Ivey won playing poker?

Ivey has won around $42 million playing live poker tournaments and high-stakes cash games.

How many World Series of Poker bracelets does Phil Ivey have?

He has won ten WSOP bracelets since 2000.

What is Phil Ivey's Net Worth?

Ivey has a net worth of around $125 million.

Is Phil Ivey married?

He was married to Luciaetta, and they got divorced in 2009.

Did Phil Ivey cheat at Baccarat?

He did not cheat. He used a technique called edge sorting while playing Baccarat. Edge sorting is considered an advantage play, so it is unethical.

Conclusion

Phil Ivey is a legendary figure in the poker world. He has ten World Series of Poker bracelets and numerous other accolades, and his biography reveals a net worth estimated at around $125 million. This fortune stems from his expertise in poker tournaments and high-stakes cash games and his involvement in business and online poker. Additionally, he contributes to the poker community through his masterclass, sharing strategies and insights to help others excel in the game.