Phil Ivey has been labeled as the best poker contender on the planet by many of the top professionals. Phil was born in Riverside, CA and moved to New Jersey before his first birthday. His grandfather taught Phil penny-ante Five-Card Stud poker. From that point on, Phil was hooked on poker and wished to discover everything he possibly could about poker. He routinely would tell his grandparents that he was planning on being a professional poker player. He didn’t allow the negative feedback from others annihilate his ambition of being one of the strongest poker competitors in the world.
Phil started competing seriously after getting a fake ID with the name of Jerome. He practiced his techniques at the poker rooms of Atlantic City. The first number of years for him were a teaching experience and winning 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 won his 1st WSOP bracelet, in a $2, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha match. At the last table he defeated a number of the well known pros including but not limited to "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He decided to take his skills to the successive level and moved out west to Vegas. He continues to participate in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the greatest players in the world. Ivey credits his achievements to dedication and an undying love for the game of poker. Phil says that he’s picking up skills every day and is incredibly humble about his accomplishments. Phil knows he makes errors every single game of poker and always strives to get better.
Despite the fact that Ivey has come first in some big-time tournaments, he favors destroying money games on a normal basis.