Phil Ivey has been branded as the greatest poker contender on the planet by many of the top professionals. He was born in Riverside, CA and moved to Jersey before reaching turning one. His grandfather taught him penny-ante Five-Card Stud poker. From then on on, he was hooked on poker and wished to pickup everything he could about poker. Phil would tell his elders that he wanted to be a professional poker player. He didn’t let the negative feedback from others kill his dream of becoming one of the greatest poker competitors on the planet.
Phil started playing seriously after getting a false ID by the name of Jerome. He honed his game at the casinos in Atlantic City. The first number of years for Phil were a learning opportunity and coming away with a win was not a common outcome at the time. Phil made his mark at the 2000 WSOP when he achieved two final tables and won his first WSOP bracelet, in a two dollar, five hundred Pot-Limit Omaha match. At the last table he destroyed a number of the better known professionals which includes "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He decided to take his game to the successive level and headed out west to Vegas. He continues to compete in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the best players on the planet. Phil credits his success to hard work and an undying love for the game of poker. Phil states that he is learning every day and is incredibly humble about his success. He admits to making mistakes every single session of poker and always strives to improve.
Although Ivey has come first in some big tournaments, he favors winning cash games on a regular basis.