Chris Moneymaker changed the face of poker.
Other no-names had won big poker tournaments before. Relative
nobodies had even won the World Series of Poker main event. Robert
Varkoni won the main event just the year prior.
But Moneymaker's story outshined all the others, and it did
because of one reason: Moneymaker won his way into the 2003 World
Series of Poker Main Event through a $40 buy-in satellite event at
Pokerstars.
When the online player took down first prize, professional poker
would never be the same. People could see that anyone had a chance
against the pros. If Chris Moneymaker could do it, then anyone could
win the
World Series of Poker.
Chris Moneymaker's Beginnings
Chris Moneymaker was born in Tennessee in 1976. His first
introduction to cards was via his grandmother, who taught him to
play bridge. Chris's father got him interested in blackjack, but
this interest was more in the way of a hobby. Like many young
gamblers, Moneymaker's interest in poker was stoked in college. At
the University of Tennessee, he played with fellow students for
small pots. At the same time, Chris worked towards a Masters Degree
in Accounting.
Chris worked for years as an accountant, settling into the
conventional suburban life of a working father. In 2000, Moneymaker
and a few friends watched the movie Rounders.
Chris's interest in the game of poker grew to an passion. Because
he couldn't find a legal game nearby, Chris began playing cards
online. He searched all over the internet for the best action and
eventually began playing at
Pokerstars.com.
It could be said that Pokerstars changed Chris Moneymaker's life
forever.
Shake Your Moneymaker
Moneymaker was playing the $20 and $40 buy-ins tournaments
regularly. He bought in to a $39 tournament in 2003, one which was a
pathway to the World Series of Poker. Winning the tournament, Chris
got a freeroll into a World Series of Poker satellite event. Vying
with 63 other players, Chris won the satellite event. Suddenly,
Chris had a freeroll into the $10,000 buy-in World Series of Poker
Main Event.
Chris entered a field of over 700 players. He had to scrape
together the money to visit Vegas, including a loan from his friend,
David Gamble, in exchange for a percentage of Chris's winnings. The
first day of the tournament, Chris was placed at a table that
included Johnny Chan, who appeared in Rounders, and Phil
Ivey, considered by many to be the best player in the world at the
time.
As the tournament continued, Chris would build the biggest chip
stack. He would knock out several of the biggest names in the sport,
eventually squaring off with veteran Sam Farha for the championship.
Chris would eventually win, taking home $2.5 million dollars.
More importantly, Moneymaker became a household name.
Chris Moneymaker, Instant Superstar
Chris's win came at the perfect time for him and poker. His name
was pure Hollywood, perfect to catch the attention of the average
poker fan.
The win also coincided with heightened coverage by ESPN, which
had purchased the broadcast rights for the World Series of Poker.
ESPN seemed to show the World Series of Poker Main Event a thousand
times in 2003. The interest in poker was huge. Because of Chris
Moneymaker, the interest in online poker exploded. Poker was a
phenomenon.
Chris has become an ambassador for poker and a spokesman for
online poker. He signed a deal with PokerStars, the very entity
which gave Chris his big break. And Chris has become a fixture on
the
World Poker Tour.
He finished 2nd at the San Jose Bay 101 Shooting Star World Poker
Tour event, winning $200,000. Chris finished 10th at a 2004 $5,000
WSOP Pot Limit Omaha event, winning another big chunk. And Chris
finished 18th out of 647 entries at the World Poker Tour's Aruba
event.
But Chris Moneymaker remains a humble man, claiming he is not
interested in becoming a legend of poker, but simply providing for
the ones closest to him.
You'll probably also be interested in reading about
Greg "Fossilman" Raymer, who also won his way into the WSOP with
a satellite from Pokerstars. Another Pokerstars player and recent
WSOP champion you can read about is
Joseph Hachem.
This page was last updated on January 12, 2006.
