Phil Ivey has been branded as the best poker contender on the planet by most of the top professionals. Phil Ivey was born in Riverside, CA and relocated to New Jersey before reaching the age of 1. His papa introduced him to one cent-ante Five-Card Stud poker. From that point on, Phil was hooked on poker and wanted to discover anything he could about poker. Phil routinely would tell his parents that he was planning on being a professional poker player. He did not allow the adverse feedback from others annihilate his goal of becoming one of the greatest poker competitors in the world.
He started playing seriously after acquiring a false ID with the name of Jerome. He practiced his game at the casinos of 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 became known at the 2000 WSOP where he made two final tables and won his 1st WSOP bracelet, in a $2, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha match. At the closing table he defeated quite a few of the well known pros including but not limited to "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He made a decision to take his game to the next level and headed out west to Sin City. Phil continues to participate in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the best players on the planet. Ivey credits his success to discipline and a continuing passion for the game of poker. He says that he is picking up skills every day and is quite abashed about his accomplishments. He knows he makes errors every single session of poker and always strives to improve.
Even though Phil has won some big tournaments, he favors destroying cash games on a normal basis.