Phil Ivey has been branded as the greatest poker player on the planet by quite a few of the top pros. Phil Ivey was born in Riverside, CA and relocated to New Jersey before his first birthday. His grandfather taught Phil penny-ante 5-Card Stud poker. From that point on, he was hooked on poker and wanted to pickup anything he could about poker. Phil would tell his parents that he was going to be a professional poker player. Phil didn’t allow the detrimental comments from others kill his goal of being one of the best poker competitors in the world.
He began competing seriously after getting a false ID by the name of Jerome. He honed his skills at the poker rooms in Atlantic City. The beginning number of years for him were a learning period and winning wasn’t a normal thing at the time. Phil became known at the 2000 World Series of Poker when he made 2 final tables and won his first World Series of Poker bracelet, in a two dollar, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha event. At the final table he destroyed a number of the well known professionals including "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
Phil decided to take his game to the successive level and headed out west to Las Vegas. He continues to compete in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the best players on the planet. Ivey credits his achievements to hard work and an immeasurable love for the game of poker. He says that he’s learning every day and is incredibly humble about his success. He knows he makes mistakes in each session of poker and always aspires to get better.
Even though Ivey has won some big-time tournaments, he favors winning money games on a normal basis.