Phil Ivey has been branded as the number one poker competitor in the world by many of the top professionals. Phil Ivey was born in Riverside, CA and moved to Jersey before his first birthday. His grandfather taught him one cent-ante 5-Card Stud poker. From that point on, he was hooked on poker and wished to discover every little thing he could about poker. Phil routinely told his parents that he was going to be a professional poker player. He didn’t let the adverse feedback from other people destroy his goal of becoming one of the strongest poker competitors in the world.
He started competing seriously after getting a fake ID by the name of Jerome. He honed his game at the casinos of Atlantic City. The initial few years for Phil were a teaching period and winning wasn’t a common thing at the time. Phil made his mark at the 2000 WSOP when he achieved 2 final tables and won his 1st World Series of Poker bracelet, in a $2, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha game. At the last table he defeated quite a few of the well known professionals including but not limited to "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He made a decision to take his game to the next level and moved out west to Vegas. He continues to compete in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the best players on the planet. Ivey credits his success to hard work and an eternal passion for poker. He says that he’s learning every day and is incredibly humble about his achievements. Phil knows he makes blunders in each game of poker and constantly strives to get better.
Despite the fact that Ivey has won some large tournaments, he prefers winning cash games on a normal basis.