Carlos Mortensen

Juan Carlos Mortensen was born in Ambato, Ecuador, before moving to his mother’s home country, Spain, in his mid-teens. His Spanish roots and aggressive style of play have earned him the nickname of “The Matador” or “El Matador”.

Juan Carlos Mortensen was born in Ambato, Ecuador, before moving to his mother’s home country, Spain, in his mid-teens. His Spanish roots and aggressive style of play have earned him the nickname of “The Matador” or “El Matador”.

His first game of poker came in April 1997. Whilst waiting for his wife to finish her night’s work behind a bar in Madrid he found a game of No Limit Hold ‘em to play. However, at the time playing the game for money was illegal in Spain. His first game saw him lose $70 but he was determined to win back his money so returned the next day and did exactly that. His winning streak continued for the best part of a week and made him realise how lucrative the game could be.

Mortensen established himself as one of the best players in the Madrid area. Despite not speaking a word of English, he made the move to America to further his career. Regardless of the language barrier, his game flourished as he studied his opponents intensely, completely oblivious to any banter at the table.

His first visit to the States lasted just three months because of the restrictions on his Visa. He began the trip with $2,800 – for poker, food and hotels - and ended with over $10,000.

Early in 2001, less than four years after his first game, Mortensen won his first two tournaments, playing Limit and No Limit Hold ‘em. The latter, his success at the Bay 101 Shooting Stars tournament, enabled him to play at the 32nd World Series of Poker tournament in May of the same year. Aged 29, he went all the way to the final and won his first WSOP bracelet, and $1,500,000, in the No Limit Hold ‘em event, defeating Dewey Tomko in the final heads up battle. His second bracelet came in 2003 when he won the Limit Hold ‘em event.

He won his second million dollar prize in 2004, beating the likes of Erik Seidel and John Juanda in the World Poker Tour Season 3’s No Limit Hold ‘em event. Hold ‘em is clearly Mortensen’s most favourable event with 10 of his 12 first place finishes in this game – his other two were in Limit HORSE and Limit Omaha Hi/Lo. His first win of 2007, in the No Limit Hold ‘em championship of WPT Season 5, earned the Spaniard just under $4,000,000 effectively doubling his career earnings. He made history with this success, becoming the first player to win a WPT Championship and a WSOP main event, and also put him on the list of top 10 all time tournament money earners.

He lives with his wife, Cecilia Reyes (who is also a poker player), in Las Vegas. They take an annual holiday back to Spain, spending two months in the familiar surroundings of their former home.