Erik Seidel
Encyclopedia
Erik Seidel is an American
professional poker
player from Las Vegas
, Nevada
who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelet
s and a World Poker Tour
title.
In 2010, he was inducted as a member of the Poker Hall of Fame
.
. Originally a tournament backgammon
player for eight years, he eventually started playing the stock market
, and then moved on to poker.
He was one of the group of now famous players from the Mayfair Club
, including Stu Ungar
, Jay Heimowitz
, Mickey Appleman
, Howard Lederer
, Jason Lester
, Steve Zolotow
, Paul Magriel
and Dan Harrington
.
main event to Johnny Chan
. This final hand was featured in the movie Rounders. Seidel made the WSOP main event final table again in 1999, finishing in 4th place in the event won by Noel Furlong
.
He won his first WSOP bracelet in 1992 and won his eighth and most recent bracelet in 2007. Seidel has won bracelets in five different games, including Hold'em, Omaha, and Deuce to Seven Draw. Only four players in the history of the WSOP, world champions Phil Hellmuth
, Doyle Brunson
, Johnny Chan
, and Johnny Moss
, have won more bracelets than Seidel.
During the sixth season
of the World Poker Tour
, Seidel won the 2008 WPT Foxwoods Poker Classic, earning $992,890.
Seidel is part of the design team for Full Tilt Poker
.
In January 2007, Seidel finished in second place in the Aussie Millions
$100k event and took home $550,000(AUD), beaten by Erick Lindgren
in Heads-Up play when he moved all-in with KJ of hearts on a two-heart flop and Lindgren called with a pair of aces and his 7 kicker became an eventual straight.
In January 2008, Seidel finished in second place in the Aussie Millions $10k main event and won $1,000,000(AUD).
In March 2010, Seidel finished in second place in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship
and collected $250,000 after a 1-2 loss to Annie Duke
in the final.
In January 2011, Seidel finished 4th in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure High Roller Event for $295,960, then went on later that month to take 3rd in a A$100,000 buy-in Aussie Millions tournament for $618,139. Just five days later, Seidel pocketed $2,472,555 when he won the Super High Roller Event at the Aussie Millions.
In February 2011, Seidel won the High Roller Event at the LA Poker Classic for $144,570.
In March 2011, Seidel won the National Heads-Up Poker Championship
, defeating Chris Moneymaker
in the final. The $750,000 he collected for the win moved him into first place on the all-time tournament money list.
In April 2011, Seidel came just short of winning his second WPT title at the Hollywood Open. He came 2nd winning $155,103.
In May, 2011, Seidel won the $100K Super High Roller event at the WPT World Championship for $1,092,780. He defeated fellow Team Full Tilt member Erick Lindgren heads up for the title.
In August 2011, Seidel took second to David Rheem
in the $20,000 buy-in 6-Max No Limit Hold'em tournament at the inaugural Epic Poker League
for $604,330. This brought his earnings for 2011 to over $6.2 million.
As of 2011, his total live tournament winnings exceed $16,600,000, of which $4,352,051 have been won at the WSOP. His 60 WSOP cashes put him in 4th for all time, tied with Berry Johnston
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
player from Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelet
World Series of Poker bracelet
The World Series of Poker bracelet is considered the most coveted non-monetary prize a poker player can win. Since 1976, a bracelet has been awarded to the winner of every event at the annual WSOP. Even if the victory occurred before 1976, WSOP championships are now counted as "bracelets". ...
s and a World Poker Tour
World Poker Tour
The World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting the final table of each tournament. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who served as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that...
title.
In 2010, he was inducted as a member of the Poker Hall of Fame
Poker Hall of Fame
The Poker Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional poker playing in the United States. Founded and located in Las Vegas, Nevada, it was created in 1979 by Benny Binion, the owner of the Horseshoe Casino, to preserve the names and legacies of the world's greatest poker players and to serve...
.
Early life
Seidel was born in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Originally a tournament backgammon
Backgammon
Backgammon is one of the oldest board games for two players. The playing pieces are moved according to the roll of dice, and players win by removing all of their pieces from the board. There are many variants of backgammon, most of which share common traits...
player for eight years, he eventually started playing the stock market
Stock market
A stock market or equity market is a public entity for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an agreed price; these are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded privately.The size of the world stock market was estimated at about $36.6 trillion...
, and then moved on to poker.
He was one of the group of now famous players from the Mayfair Club
Mayfair Club
The Mayfair Club was a cardroom in New York. Originally starting as a bridge and backgammon club, it eventually became "the most touted card club in New York" until its abrupt closing by authorities in 2000." Unlike the other gamehalls in the city, The Mayfair Club kept a low profile in a basement...
, including Stu Ungar
Stu Ungar
Stuart Errol "Stu" Ungar was a professional poker and gin rummy player, widely regarded to have been the greatest Texas hold 'em and gin rummy player of all time....
, Jay Heimowitz
Jay Heimowitz
Jay B. Heimowitz is an American poker player from Bethel, New York. Heimowitz was one of the original players to help establish the Mayfair Club as a premier poker house....
, Mickey Appleman
Mickey Appleman
Mickey L. Appleman is an American professional poker player, sports bettor, and sports handicapper now living in Fort Lee, New Jersey...
, Howard Lederer
Howard Lederer
Howard Henry Lederer is an American professional poker player and brother of poker professional Annie Duke, and author and poet Katy Lederer. On September 20, 2011, the U.S...
, Jason Lester
Jason Lester
Jason Lester is a professional poker player who has lived in New York City, Los Angeles and Miami. He is also an exceptional backgammon player and has won many tournaments in the past, but now he focuses on poker. He came in 4th at the 2003 World Series of Poker , the year Chris Moneymaker won the...
, Steve Zolotow
Steve Zolotow
Steve Zolotow is an American businessman and professional poker player from Las Vegas, Nevada. He has won two bracelets at the World Series of Poker. He was one of the regulars at the famed Mayfair Club while he lived in New York City.-New York Years:...
, Paul Magriel
Paul Magriel
Paul David Magriel Jr. is an American professional backgammon player, poker player and author based in Las Vegas, Nevada.-Chess:Paul was New York State Junior Chess Champion at the age of 19, while a student at New York University....
and Dan Harrington
Dan Harrington
Dan Harrington is a professional poker player, best known for winning the main event world championship at the 1995 World Series of Poker. He has earned one World Poker Tour title, two WSOP bracelets, and over six million dollars in tournament cashes in his poker career...
.
Poker career
In his first major tournament, Seidel was runner-up in the 1988 World Series of Poker1988 World Series of Poker
-Preliminary events:-Final table:-Other High Finishes:NB: This list is restricted to top 30 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry....
main event to Johnny Chan
Johnny Chan (poker player)
Johnny Chan rather than his Chinese birth name. born in Guangzhou, China in 1957) is a Chinese American professional poker player. He has won 10 World Series of Poker bracelets, including 1987 and 1988 World Series of Poker main events consecutively....
. This final hand was featured in the movie Rounders. Seidel made the WSOP main event final table again in 1999, finishing in 4th place in the event won by Noel Furlong
Noel Furlong
J. J. Furlong is an Irish businessman and recreational poker player who won the 1999 World Series of Poker main event.-Early life:Furlong was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland...
.
He won his first WSOP bracelet in 1992 and won his eighth and most recent bracelet in 2007. Seidel has won bracelets in five different games, including Hold'em, Omaha, and Deuce to Seven Draw. Only four players in the history of the WSOP, world champions Phil Hellmuth
Phil Hellmuth
Phil Hellmuth is an American professional poker player. He is best known for holding a record 11 World Series of Poker bracelets, for winning the Main Event of the 1989 World Series of Poker and for his temperamental, "poker brat" personality...
, Doyle Brunson
Doyle Brunson
Doyle F. Brunson is an American professional poker player who has played professionally for over 50 years. He is the first two-time World Series of Poker main event champion to win consecutively, a Poker Hall of Fame inductee, and the author of several books on poker.Brunson is the first player to...
, Johnny Chan
Johnny Chan (poker player)
Johnny Chan rather than his Chinese birth name. born in Guangzhou, China in 1957) is a Chinese American professional poker player. He has won 10 World Series of Poker bracelets, including 1987 and 1988 World Series of Poker main events consecutively....
, and Johnny Moss
Johnny Moss
Johnny Moss was a gambler and professional poker player. He was the first winner of the World Series of Poker Main Event, at the time a cash game event in which he was awarded the title by the vote of his peers in 1970, He also twice won the current tournament format of the WSOP Main Event in...
, have won more bracelets than Seidel.
During the sixth season
World Poker Tour season 6 results
Below are the results of season six of the World Poker Tour .Towards the end of season 6 the World Poker Tour announced that they would award a Tiffany designed titanium and diamond championship bracelet for all previous 96 players....
of the World Poker Tour
World Poker Tour
The World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting the final table of each tournament. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who served as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that...
, Seidel won the 2008 WPT Foxwoods Poker Classic, earning $992,890.
Seidel is part of the design team for Full Tilt Poker
Full Tilt Poker
Full Tilt Poker is an online poker card room that opened in June 2004 with the involvement of poker professionals Howard Lederer, Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, Mike Matusow, Jennifer Harman and Chris Ferguson...
.
In January 2007, Seidel finished in second place in the Aussie Millions
Crown Australian Poker Championship
The Australian Poker Championship, commonly known as Aussie Millions, is a series of poker tournaments held at the Crown Casino, in Melbourne, Australia...
$100k event and took home $550,000(AUD), beaten by Erick Lindgren
Erick Lindgren
Erick A. Lindgren is an American professional poker player. He has won two World Poker Tour titles, one World Series of Poker bracelet, and more than seven million dollars in tournament earnings during his poker career.-Poker career:He won his first major tournament at the Bellagio in 2002 and...
in Heads-Up play when he moved all-in with KJ of hearts on a two-heart flop and Lindgren called with a pair of aces and his 7 kicker became an eventual straight.
In January 2008, Seidel finished in second place in the Aussie Millions $10k main event and won $1,000,000(AUD).
In March 2010, Seidel finished in second place in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship
National Heads-Up Poker Championship
-2006:- 2007 :-2008:In additional to the poker professionals, several poker-playing celebrities from other fields were invited: Gabe Kaplan, Don Cheadle, Jennifer Tilly, Shannon Elizabeth, Jason Alexander and Orel Hershiser. Also invited was Alisha Kunze of Greensburg, Indiana, who won her seat...
and collected $250,000 after a 1-2 loss to Annie Duke
Annie Duke
Annie Duke is a professional poker player and author who won a bracelet in the 2004 World Series of Poker $2,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better Event and was the winner of the 2004 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, where she earned the Winner-Take-All prize of $2,000,000...
in the final.
In January 2011, Seidel finished 4th in the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure High Roller Event for $295,960, then went on later that month to take 3rd in a A$100,000 buy-in Aussie Millions tournament for $618,139. Just five days later, Seidel pocketed $2,472,555 when he won the Super High Roller Event at the Aussie Millions.
In February 2011, Seidel won the High Roller Event at the LA Poker Classic for $144,570.
In March 2011, Seidel won the National Heads-Up Poker Championship
National Heads-Up Poker Championship
-2006:- 2007 :-2008:In additional to the poker professionals, several poker-playing celebrities from other fields were invited: Gabe Kaplan, Don Cheadle, Jennifer Tilly, Shannon Elizabeth, Jason Alexander and Orel Hershiser. Also invited was Alisha Kunze of Greensburg, Indiana, who won her seat...
, defeating Chris Moneymaker
Chris Moneymaker
Christopher Bryan Moneymaker is an American poker player who won the main event at the 2003 World Series of Poker . His 2003 win is said to have revolutionized poker because he was the first person to become a world champion by qualifying at an online poker site...
in the final. The $750,000 he collected for the win moved him into first place on the all-time tournament money list.
In April 2011, Seidel came just short of winning his second WPT title at the Hollywood Open. He came 2nd winning $155,103.
In May, 2011, Seidel won the $100K Super High Roller event at the WPT World Championship for $1,092,780. He defeated fellow Team Full Tilt member Erick Lindgren heads up for the title.
In August 2011, Seidel took second to David Rheem
David Rheem
Chino Rheem is a poker player from Los Angeles, California, and a reputed welcher. In November 2008, Rheem finished in seventh place at the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event, cashing for $1,772,650. He went out of this event on to Peter Eastgate's with Eastgate flopping a pair of queens on a...
in the $20,000 buy-in 6-Max No Limit Hold'em tournament at the inaugural Epic Poker League
Epic Poker League
The Epic Poker League is a series of poker tournaments begun in 2011 by Federated Sports + Gaming. Former World Series of Poker commissioner Jeffrey Pollack will serve as Executive Chairman, professional poker player Annie Duke will serve as Commissioner, and Matt Savage will be Tournament...
for $604,330. This brought his earnings for 2011 to over $6.2 million.
As of 2011, his total live tournament winnings exceed $16,600,000, of which $4,352,051 have been won at the WSOP. His 60 WSOP cashes put him in 4th for all time, tied with Berry Johnston
Berry Johnston
Berry Enfield Johnston is an American professional poker player. He is best known as the 1986 World Champion, but he has also won four other bracelets at the World Series of Poker in addition to cashes and wins in many other tournaments throughout his career.- Poker career :Johnston won the 1986...
.
World Series of Poker bracelets
Seidel has won eight WSOP bracelets.| Year | Tournament | Prize (US$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 1992 World Series of Poker The 1992 World Series of Poker was held at Binion's Horseshoe. Among notable participants was actor Telly Savalas of Kojak fame.-Preliminary events:-Main Event:... |
$2,500 Limit Betting (poker) In the game of poker, the play largely centers on the act of betting, and as such, a protocol has been developed to speed up play, lessen confusion, and increase security while playing... Hold'em |
$168,000 |
| 1993 1993 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 220 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter the tournament.-Final table:-Other High Finishes:NB: This list is restricted to top 30 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry.... |
$2,500 Omaha 8 or better | $94,000 |
| 1994 1994 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 268 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter the tournament. Since this was the 25th Anniversary of the event, the winner received $1,000,000, plus his/her weight in silver, in celebration of the WSOP's silver anniversary.-Final table:-Other... |
$5,000 Limit Hold'em | $210,000 |
| 1998 1998 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Final table:-Other High Finishes:NB: This list is restricted to top 30 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry.-External Links:*... |
$5,000 Deuce to Seven Draw Draw (poker) A poker player is drawing if they have a hand that is incomplete and needs further cards to become valuable. The hand itself is called a draw or drawing hand. For example, in seven-card stud, if four of a player's first five cards are all spades, but the hand is otherwise weak, they are drawing to... |
$132,700 |
| 2001 2001 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 613 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter what was the largest poker tournament ever played in a non-online casino at the time.-Final table:-Other High Finishes:... |
$3,000 No Limit Hold'em | $411,300 |
| 2003 2003 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 839 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter what was the largest poker tournament ever played in a brick and mortar casino at the time... |
$1,500 Pot Limit Betting (poker) In the game of poker, the play largely centers on the act of betting, and as such, a protocol has been developed to speed up play, lessen confusion, and increase security while playing... Omaha |
$146,100 |
| 2005 2005 World Series of Poker The 2005 World Series of Poker opened play on June 2, continuing through the Main Event No Limit World Championship starting on July 7. The conclusion of the Main Event on July 15 marked the close of play, and the largest prize in sports and/or television history at the time was awarded to the... |
$2,000 No Limit Hold'em | $611,795 |
| 2007 2007 World Series of Poker The 2007 World Series of Poker began on June 1, 2007. The $10,000 no-limit Texas hold 'em Main Event began on July 6 and was completed on the morning of July 18... |
$5,000 World Championship No-Limit Deuce to Seven Draw Lowball Lowball (poker) Some forms of poker, often called lowball, sometimes called low poker, reward poor poker hands . There are four common variations on this idea, differing in whether aces are treated as high cards or low cards, and whether or not straights and flushes are used. The methods are:* Ace-to-five low:... w/rebuys |
$538,835 |