Phil Ivey has been referred to as the greatest poker contender in the world by many of the top professionals. Phil Ivey was born in Riverside, CA and moved to Jersey before reaching turning 1. His grandpa taught him penny-ante Five-Card Stud poker. From that point on, Phil was hooked on poker and wanted to pickup anything he possibly could about poker. Phil would tell his elders that he was going to be a professional poker player. Phil didn’t allow the negative feedback from other people destroy his dream of becoming one of the greatest poker competitors in the world.
Phil began playing intently after acquiring a fake ID with the name of Jerome. He practiced his techniques at the casinos in Atlantic City. The initial number of years for him were a teaching period and winning wasn’t a normal outcome at the time. Phil became known at the 2000 WSOP where he made two final tables and won his 1st WSOP bracelet, in a two dollar, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha game. At the final table he defeated many of the well known pros including but not limited to "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
Phil made a decision to take his game to the next level and moved out west to Vegas. He continues to participate in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the best players on the planet. Phil credits his achievements to dedication and an immeasurable love for poker. Phil says that he is learning every day and is very abashed about his success. Phil admits to making errors in each session of poker and always aspires to improve.
Despite the fact that Ivey has come first in some big tournaments, he likes winning money games on a normal basis.