Dave Welch
February 4, 2008
Dave Welch is an English poker player based in St. Albans, who made several appearances on the Late Night Poker television series, including the season 1 grand final and the season 6 semi-final.
His biggest cash win to date is FF 250,000 ($40,750) for winning the 1998 Euro Finals of Poker no limit hold’em poker tournament, defeating a field including Padraig Parkinson, Dave “Devilfish” Ulliott, Patrick Bruel and Surinder Sunar.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $340,000.
Welch is married to poker player Debbie Berlin, another Late Night Poker regular.
Liam Flood
February 4, 2008
Liam Flood is an Irish bookmaker and poker player.Together with Terry Rogers, Flood is credited with introducing Texas hold ‘em to Europe. He was a finalist in series 1 and 2 of the famous Late Night Poker television series and went on to be the floorman for the Celebrity Poker Club spin-off.
In 1997, he had an 11th place finish in the pot-limit hold-em tournament at the World Series of Poker, an event won by Phil Hellmuth and featuring Tom McEvoy, Todd Brunson and Kathy Liebert. In 1998, he had a 15th place finish in the no-limit hold-em tournament at the World Series - a tournament also featuring Erik Seidel and Chris Ferguson.
His biggest cash win to date is a second-place finish at the Party Poker World Open in Maidstone, Kent, England on 3rd April 2005. He won $150,000.
Flood also appeared in the 2005 World Speed Poker Open.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $920,000.
In 2007, Flood won the Party Poker European Open, beating Darren Hickman in the final head-to-head and pocketing the first prize of $125,000. This was his first outright win in a televised tournament.
Charalambos “Bambos” Xanthos
February 4, 2008
Charalambos “Bambos” Xanthos is a Greek Cypriot hotel and restaurant owner based in London, England. Following on from being a backgammon player, he became a semi-professional poker player in 1993.
Xanthos learnt poker from his father in 1960.
He made numerous appearances on the Late Night Poker television series, and made the Grand Final in Season 2 (beating Victoria Coren’s pocket Aces along the way) and the Semi-Final in Season 5.
His biggest tournament cash was 2nd place behind Dave Colclough in the $1,500 no limit hold’em main event at the 2000 European Poker Classic, where he won £40,635.
Xanthos has made more final tables at the Grosvenor Victoria Casino than any other player.
He does not tend to play in tournaments outside of Europe, however as of 2007 his total live tournament winnings exceed $860,000.
Men Nguyen
February 4, 2008
Men “The Master” Nguyen (born 1954 in Phan Thiet, Vietnam) is a Vietnamese-American professional poker player.
Early years
In 1967, he dropped out of school at age 13 and became a bus driver to help support his family.
In early 1978, a staunch anti-Communist, he escaped from the Communist regime of Vietnam by boat and sailed with 87 compatriots to Pulau Besar in Malaysia.
In 1978, he received political asylum from the United States and settled in Los Angeles, California. In 1986 he would become an American citizen.
In 1984 he went on a junket to Las Vegas, Nevada and played poker for the first time in his life. He would continue to go every weekend and lose hundreds of dollars, earning him the nickname “Money Machine.” He quickly mastered the game, however, winning his first tournament in 1987.
With his poker winnings, he opened a dry cleaning business and furniture store, but sold them in 1990 because they took too much of his time and didn’t make enough money. Through these businesses he would, however, meet and work with many Vietnamese people who would fall under his tutelage.
Professional poker career
Nguyen has over 120 finishes in the money from 2000 to 2004, and has won more than 75 tournaments.
Nguyen is known for tutoring players, many of whom go on to be successful in their own right, including his cousins David Pham and Minh Nguyen. He is believed to have trained more tournament winners than anyone else, according to Benny Binion Behnen, grandson of Benny Binion. Men receives a portion of all his students’ winnings.
In 1991 one of his students gave him the nickname “The Master,” and now he is widely known as “Men the Master.” He donates a portion of the money he earns through tournaments and tutoring to charities in Vietnam, and in 1996 built a kindergarten in Vietnam.
Nguyen won the Card Player Magazine Player of the Year award in 1997, 2001, 2003 and 2005 and is widely revered as one of the most fearsome cash game and tournament players in the world.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $7,800,000.
World Series of Poker Bracelets
| Year | Tournament | Prize (US$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | $1,500 Seven-Card Stud | $120,600 |
| 1995 | $2,500 Seven-Card Stud Split | $96,000 |
| 1995 | $2,500 Limit Hold’em | $110,000 |
| 1996 | $2,500 Omaha 8 or Better | $110,000 |
| 2003 | $5,000 Seven Card Stud | $178,560 |
| 2003 | $1,500 Ace to Five Triple Draw Lowball | $43,520 |
Mason Malmuth
February 4, 2008
Mason Malmuth is an American poker player, and author of books on both poker and gambling. He is the owner of Two Plus Two Publishing, which publishes books and runs an online gambling discussion forum. The books are authored by himself, David Sklansky, and other writers including Dan Harrington, Bill Robertie, Ray Zee, Ed Miller, Nick Grudzien, and Alan Schoonmaker
Dewey Tomko
February 4, 2008
Dewey Tomko (born December 31, 1946 in Glassport, Pennsylvania) is an American former kindergarten teacher turned professional poker player, based in Winter Haven, Florida.
Tomko is chiefly noted as the runner-up in the World Series of Poker “WSOP” $10,000 no limit Texas hold’em main event in both 1982 (to Jack “Treetop” Straus) and 2001 (to Carlos Mortensen.)
Tomko began playing poker profitably as a 16-year-old in Pittsburgh pool halls which allowed him to finance his education. He worked as a kindergarten teacher, but often played poker through the night. Tomko realised that poker was more profitable than his job and invested a sum of his winnings into businesses while choosing to play poker full-time.
In addition to his WSOP success, Tomko has made two World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables. He finished runner-up in the 2003 Five Diamond World Poker Classic ($552,853) and in fourth place in the Costa Rica Classic ($14,650.)
Tomko has played every WSOP Main Event since 1974 which is currently the longest active streak.
Recently, Tomko took 3rd place in the 2005 WSOP Deuce to Seven Draw Lowball event worth $138,160.
Tomko is married with three children. His son Derek encouraged him to return to playing poker tournaments. (Tomko claims his son is a better player than he was at his age.)
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $3,800,000.
Rick Reilly chronicles a day with Dewey on a golf course in his book Who’s Your Caddy. In it, he contends that Tomko is not interested in competition if there is not a wager riding on it. Dewey is just as good a gambler on the golf course as he is sitting at a poker table. He notes that many PGA professionals will refuse to play him for money. On NBC’s “Poker After Dark,” Greg Raymer noted that pro golfer Rocco Mediate has said that if he had one person to putt for his life, it would be Tomko.
Matt Savage
February 4, 2008
Matt Savage is an American poker tournament director. He has officiated at a number of televised poker and gambling events, including the World Series of Poker (2002-2004), Bay 101’s Shooting Star stop on the World Poker Tour, Poker Dome Challenge and King of Vegas.
In 2001, along with Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher and David Lamb, Savage founded the Tournament Directors Association, an organization that works to standardize poker tournament rules worldwide. Savage was the inaugural inductee into the Poker Room Manager’s Hall of Fame in 2003.
Savage occasionally plays low buy-in poker tournaments. As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $11,500.
Kenna James
February 4, 2008
“Cowboy” Kenna James (born December 18, 1963 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American professional poker player who currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
James has finished in the money at twelve World Series of Poker events as of 2006. Of these, the only final table appearance was 4th place in the 2003 $2,500 no limit Texas hold’em event, for which he won $36,140.
James was the only player to win two satellite tournaments for the first season of the Ultimate Poker Challenge. He was eliminated from the semi-finals by Jennifer Harman when his pocket Kings ran into pocket Aces.
In August 2005, James finished in second place behind Alex Kahaner at the World Poker Tour Legends of Poker $5,000 No Limit hold ‘em tournament, earning a $588,210 prize.
In March 2006, James finished second to Mike Schneider in the fifth annual PartyPoker Million Cruise. James received $700,000 for this finish.
His most recent victory came in February 2006 at the LA Poker Classic when he won $242,251 playing no limit hold ‘em.
James is married to fellow poker professional Marsha Waggoner. He works with the Screaming Eagle Poker League and The Wounded Warrior Project. He donates 1% of all his tournament winnings to the Wounded Warrior Project in the name of the Screaming Eagle Poker League, and in 2006 he hosted a charity poker tournament that raised $70,000 for the organization.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $2,900,000.
