Phil Ivey has been branded as the best poker competitor in the world by most of the top professionals. He was born in Riverside, CA and relocated to NJ before his first birthday. His grandpa taught him penny-ante 5-Card Stud poker. From that point on, he was hooked on poker and wished to discover every little thing he possibly could about poker. Phil routinely told his grandparents that he wanted to be a professional poker player. He didn’t allow the detrimental feedback from others destroy his dream of becoming one of the greatest poker competitors on the planet.
Phil began competing seriously after acquiring a false ID with the name of Jerome. He honed his game at the poker rooms of Atlantic City. The beginning few years for Phil were a teaching experience and coming away with a win wasn’t a normal thing at the time. He made his mark at the 2000 World Series of Poker when he achieved 2 final tables and came away with his first WSOP bracelet, in a two dollar, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha game. At the final table he destroyed quite a few of the well known professionals including "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
Phil made a decision to take his game to the successive level and headed out west to Las Vegas. He continues to play in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the greatest players in the world. Ivey credits his success to discipline and a continuing passion for poker. He states that he is learning every single day and is quite humble about his accomplishments. He knows he makes mistakes in each session of poker and always aspires to get better.
Despite the fact that Ivey has come first in some big-time tournaments, he favors winning money games on a normal basis.