Steve Zolotow
January 29, 2008
Steve Zolotow is an American professional poker player from Las Vegas, Nevada. He was one of the regulars at the famed Mayfair Club.
Zolotow has been on the poker circuit since 1988, when he finished in 5th place in that year’s World Series of Poker $2500 Pot Limit Omaha tournament. In the years to come, he would earn bracelets for winning the 1995 Chinese Poker tournament (which also featured Doyle Brunson and Howard Lederer), and for winning the 2001 $3000 Pot Limit Hold’em tournament (which also featured John Juanda, Tom McEvoy, Kathy Liebert, Chris Ferguson and Scotty Nguyen.)
Despite his successes at the World Series, his biggest cash win to date came for a 4th place on the World Poker Tour’s season 2 PartyPoker.com Million Cruise, which saw him sharing a final table with Scotty Nguyen, Barry Greenstein, Daniel Negreanu and eventual winner Erick Lindgren. Zolotow won $259,684 from the tournament’s prize pool.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $1,600,000.
WSOP Bracelets
| Year | Tournament | Prize (US$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | $5,000 Chinese Poker | $112,500 |
| 2001 | $3,000 Pot Limit Hold’em | $243,335 |
Xao “Jerry” Yang
January 29, 2008
Xao “Jerry” Yang (born 1968) is a poker player from Temecula, California and the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event champion.
Yang started playing poker in 2005. He entered the 2007 World Series of Poker after winning a US$225 satellite at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula. Prior to the World Series, he had four cashes in local California events.
At the final table, Yang went from starting eighth in chips to holding a big chip lead that he never relinquished. The process of accumulating this chip lead involved Yang knocking out seven of the eight other players at the final table. Heads-up against Tuan Lam, he won the title with 8c 8d against Lam’s Ad Qd when he hit a nine-high straight on the river after Lam had caught a queen on the flop. After a 12-hour final table, Yang had won US$8,250,000 for the victory at 3:35 AM local time.
Yang summarized his tournament strategy:
| “ | I study my opponents very carefully, and when I sensed something, when I sensed some weakness, I took a chance. Even if I had nothing, I decided to raise, reraise, push all-in or make a call….The only way that I could win this tournament was by being aggressive from the very beginning and that’s exactly what I did. And thank God I was also able to pick up some good cards at the same time. | ” |
Once Yang was guaranteed a share of the prize money he pledged to donate 10% percent of his winnings to three charities (the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Feed the Children, and the Ronald McDonald House), as well as his alma mater, Loma Linda University.
As a result of winning the Main Event, Jerry Yang currently ranks 8th in the all time money list for live tournaments.
Personal life
Yang, an ethnic Hmong, was born in Laos. When the communists took over in the 1970s, his family escaped to Thailand where they spent four years in a refugee camp. He lost a brother and sister while living in the camp. He and his family moved to the United States in 1979.
Yang holds a Master’s degree in health psychology from Loma Linda University and worked as a therapist and social worker. He quit his job after winning the World Series. He is married and has six children.
Lee Watkinson
January 29, 2008
Lee Watkinson (born October 18, 1966) is an American professional poker player, originally from Cheney, Washington.
At the 2004 World Series of Poker (WSOP), Watkinson finished 2nd in the $5,000 pot limit Omaha event. He also finished in the money of that year’s $10,000 no limitTexas hold ‘em main event, finishing 113th.
Watkinson made back-to-back World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables during its third season. The first time he finished 2nd to Eli Elezra, and the second time he finished 2nd again, this time to Doyle Brunson.
Watkinson made back-to-back WSOP main event cashes at the 2005 World Series of Poker (WSOP), finishing in 45th place out of 5,619 entrants for a $235,390 prize. He also made the final table of a WSOP circuit event in November 2005, finishing 3rd.
At the 2006 WSOP, Watkinson won a bracelet and the $655,746 first prize in the $10,000 pot limit Omaha event when his Ac Qs 6c 5c defeated Mike Guttman’s Js Jc 10d 8d on a board of 5s 4s 3h 7d Kh.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $3,200,000.
He is an economics graduate and quotes wrestling and surfing as his main interests outside of poker. He wrestled at 142 pounds in college and 187 pounds the last time that he wrestled in 2001. Lee is a humanitarian, working with the Cortland Brandenburg Foundation to rescue retired chimpanzee test subjects. His poker nickname among Vegas pros has been Lee “Sandwich” Watkinson for his tendency to trap players by using a “sandwich raise” with or without a good hand, notably by Phil “Unabomber” Laak.
Watkinson finished 8th in the 2007 World Series of Poker Main Event, earning $585,699.
Paul Wasicka
January 29, 2008
Paul Wasicka (born February 17, 1981 in Dallas, Texas) is a professional poker player, based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Paul Wasicka started playing poker in 2004 when he attended an underground tournament in Denver, Colorado. He formerly worked as a bartender and restaurant manager before shifting over to poker. Wasicka finished as runner-up to Jamie Gold in the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event, winning over $6,000,000.
Wasicka’s tournament accomplishments since that World Series of Poker finish include winning the 2007 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship by defeating Eli Elezra, Joe Hachem, T.J. Cloutier, Nam Le, Shannon Elizabeth, and finally Chad Brown in the finals 2-0. For the win he earned $500,000. He also made a World Poker Tour final table at the Commerce Casino’s LA Poker Classic, finishing fourth and taking home $455,615.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $7,300,000.
Marco Traniello
January 29, 2008
Marco Traniello is an Italian professional hairdresser and poker player.
Prior to working as a hairdresser, Traniello was the captain of an oil ship and a real estate agent.
While on vacation to America in 1999, Traniello met his future wife, poker pro Jennifer Harman, in the parking lot of The Mirage, where their cars were parked next to each other.
He made his first appearance at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in 2005, finishing in the money in seven different events (tied for the most money finishes in the 2005 WSOP with Michael Mizrachi and Tony Cousineau). Amongst these money finishes, Traniello made the final table of the $2,000 pot limit hold’em event.
Traniello also played in the 2005 World Speed Poker Open in London and cashed in the $15,000 no limit hold’em main event of the World Poker Tour Five Diamond World Poker Classic.
Traniello is good friends with several other players on the poker circuit, including Daniel Negreanu, Erick Lindgren and Juan Carlos Mortensen. He also writes for Card Player Magazine.
At the 2007 World Series of Poker, he made it to the final table at the $10,000 Pot Limit Omaha event. He finished 5th, winning $156,435, his biggest win to date.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $360,000.
Phuong “Kenny” Tran
January 29, 2008
Phuong “Kenny” Tran (born c.1974) is a professional poker player from Arcadia, California.
Tran first began playing poker in 1992 at a bowling alley while working at McDonald’s. He began playing tournaments in 1999 and has 10 career World Series of Poker cashes, including two final tables in 2000 and 2007.
Tran’s largest cash to date occurred when he made the final table of the $50,000 World Championship H.O.R.S.E. Event at the 2007 WSOP. He finished in 5th and won $444,000. In that same year he had his highest finish in the Main Event, finishing in 16th and earning $381,000. He also finished in 16th position in the inaugural World Series of Poker Europe Main Event, earning $68,000.
Tran is known as a cash game specialist who plays in high stakes No Limit Texas Hold ‘em games at the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles. He also plays online on Full Tilt Poker where he is a sponsored pro.
Tran was born in Vietnam and donates 10% of his winnings to his extended family there. He is married with two children.
As of 2007 his total winnings exceed $1,395,000.
Erica Schoenberg
January 29, 2008
Erica Schoenberg (Born March 25, 1978 in Akron, Ohio) is an American professional blackjack and poker player. She is a former model, personal trainer, and professional volleyball player. Schoenberg received professional blackjack training from a member of the MIT Blackjack Team. She has gone on to compete in the World Series of Blackjack.
Schoenberg is also a professional poker player and placed 16th in the World Poker Tour $25,000 Championship - No Limit Texas hold’em and third in the 2007 World Series of Poker $1,500 no limit hold ‘em. She also appeared in the Season 4 WPT Ladies Night Event along with Jennifer Tilly and four other female players. In 2007 Schoenberg won the $2,500 No Limit Hold’em Mandalay Bay Poker Championship winning $105,875. She also competed in the Ultimate Blackjack Tour, a televised 10 week series airing on CBS.
Schoenberg has a sponsorship agreement with Full Tilt Poker.
Schoenberg’s fiance is high stakes poker player David Benyamine.
As of 2007, her total live poker tournament winnings exceed $530,000
David Oppenheim
January 29, 2008
David Oppenheim (born March 7 in Los Angeles, California) is an American professional poker player from Calabasas, California who placed third in the second season of the World Poker Tour’s No-Limit Hold ‘em Championship at the Borgata Poker Open in Atlantic City, winning $117,500.
Oppenheim, who has been playing professionally for over 15 years now, began playing poker at the age of 19 during his second year of college and is now known for being one of the biggest cash games players in the world as well as a representative of Full Tilt Poker, he also had a brief cameo role as the character Josh Cohen in the 2007 film Lucky You.
In January of 2008 Oppenheim appeared on the third season of NBC’s Poker After Dark on the episode “19th Hole” along with professionals Gavin Smith, Erick Lindgren, Phil Ivey, Doyle Brunson and Daniel Negreanu.
As of 2008, his total live tournament winnings exceed $490,000.
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