Phil Ivey has been referred to as the best poker contender in the world by most of the top-ranked pros. Phil was born in Riverside, CA and moved to New Jersey before his first birthday. His grandfather introduced him to one cent-ante 5-Card Stud poker. From then on on, he was hooked on poker and wished to pickup anything he possibly could about poker. Phil routinely told his parents that he wanted to be a professional poker player. Phil did not allow the adverse comments from other people destroy his ambition of becoming one of the greatest poker competitors on the planet.
Phil started playing seriously after acquiring a fake ID by the name of Jerome. He sharpened his skills at the poker rooms of Atlantic City. The first number of years for him were a learning experience and coming away with a win was not a common thing at the time. He made his mark at the 2000 World Series of Poker where he achieved 2 final tables and came away with his first WSOP bracelet, in a $2, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha match. At the final table he defeated a number of the well known professionals which includes "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
He decided to take his skills to the next level and headed out west to Sin City. Phil continues to compete in in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the greatest players in the world. Ivey credits his achievements to hard work and an immeasurable love for the game of poker. He says that he is learning every single day and is quite abashed about his accomplishments. Phil knows he makes mistakes in each session of poker and constantly strives to improve.
Even though Phil has come first in some big-time tournaments, he favors winning money games on a normal basis.