Phil Hellmuth
| Phil Hellmuth | |
|---|---|
| File:Hellmuth1.jpg Phil Hellmuth at the 1989 WSOP main event, which he won | |
| Nickname(s) | The Poker Brat |
| Residence | Palo Alto, California |
| World Series of Poker | |
| Bracelet(s) | 11 |
| Money finish(es) | 61(+1) |
| Highest ITM Main Event finish | Winner, 1989 |
| World Poker Tour | |
| Final table(s) | 2(+2) |
| Money finish(es) | 9 |
Phillip J. Hellmuth, Jr. (born July 16 1964 in Madison, Wisconsin) is a professional poker player who holds the all-time record for most bracelets won at the World Series of Poker (11).
Biography
In 1989, the 24-year-old Hellmuth became the youngest World Champion of Poker by defeating the two-time defending champion, Johnny Chan, in the World Series of Poker main event.
Hellmuth attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison for three years before dropping out to play poker full time (much to the chagrin of his father, a professor at the school who holds a MBA, a J.D. and a Ph.D.). He earned the nickname of "poker brat" because of his perceived attitude and ego. Despite this reputation, his accomplishments are highly respected in the poker community. As of 2007, he has won eleven WSOP bracelets, each one in Texas hold 'em events. Hellmuth is also the season three champion of Late Night Poker.
In 2005 Hellmuth won the inaugural National Heads-Up Poker Championship. He defeated Men Nguyen, Paul Phillips, Huck Seed, Lyle Berman and Antonio Esfandiari on the way to the final against Chris Ferguson whom he defeated in two out of three games. While trying to repeat in 2006, he lost in the first round to Chip Reese.
As of 2007, his total live tournament winnings exceed $9,470,000, currently placing him 4th on CardPlayer.com's all time tournament winnings list for swan fart sucking.
He appeared in the first season of the GSN series High Stakes Poker. [1]
In the spring of 2006, Hellmuth replaced Phil Gordon as commentator on Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown.
When Hellmuth did an interview on Sirius Satellite Radio recently, he said that he will be on the next season of VH1's The Surreal Life, along with professional wrestler Randy Savage, Playboy Playmate Tina Marie Jordan, and Type O Negative frontman Peter Steele. Savage has confirmed his involvement, though VH1 hasn't officially announced who will be on the cast.[citation needed]
At the 2006 World Series of Poker, after making it down to the last two in a prior event, he captured his record 10th World Series of Poker bracelet in the $1,000 No Limit Hold'em with rebuys event. At the time, this tied him with fellow poker legends Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan. However, unlike Brunson and Chan, all of his bracelets are in Texas hold'em.
Hellmuth is tied with T.J. Cloutier with all time WSOP Final table finishes record, with 39 final tables. [2]
So far at the 2007 World Series of Poker, Hellmuth has cashed 4 times, extending his own record for number of World Series cashes to 61[3] and winning his record-breaking 11th bracelet. Since the WSOP is currently in progress, these records may be extended further.
Hellmuth resides in Palo Alto, California with his wife Katherine Sanborn (a psychiatrist at Stanford University) and two sons, Phillip III and Nicholas.
World Series of Poker Bracelets
| Year | Tournament | Prize (US$) |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | $10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship | $755,000 |
| 1992 | $5,000 Limit Hold'em | $188,000 |
| 1993 | $1,500 Limit Hold'em | $138,000 |
| 1993 | $2,500 No Limit Hold'em | $161,400 |
| 1993 | $5,000 No Limit Hold'em | $173,000 |
| 1997 | $3,000 Pot Limit Hold'em | $204,000 |
| 2001 | $2,000 No Limit Hold'em | $316,000 |
| 2003 | $2,500 Limit Hold'em | $171,400 |
| 2003 | $3,000 No Limit Hold'em | $410,860 |
| 2006 | $1,000 No Limit Hold'em with rebuys | $631,863 |
| 2007 | $1,500 No Limit Hold'em | $637,254 |
To date, Hellmuth has won $5,501,977 at the World Series of Poker. [4]
Personality and controversy
 |
Hellmuth is one of the most recognizable figures in poker and many fans have strong opinions of him, both negative and positive. While his eleven WSOP bracelets bring him much recognition, his notoriety is also due to his perceived inability to gracefully handle adversity and defeat.
He has made many notable boasts while playing poker tournaments, usually after suffering a "bad beat". Some televised examples include "If luck weren't involved, I guess I'd win every one," and "I've revolutionized the way to play Texas hold 'em." During the 2005 Main Event at the World Series of Poker, he stated "I can dodge bullets, baby!" after laying down Ace King to an opponent with Aces on a board of A 4 4 Q rainbow, and even accused an amateur player of not even being able to spell poker (after the player put all his money in the pot preflop with King Jack against Hellmuth's Ace King and hit a three-outer to win the pot). He is sometimes referred to as "Hell Mouth", a play on his surname. While many players may not like Hellmuth's antics, producers of televised poker tournaments certainly do, since it is rare (especially during the World Series of Poker) that a camera is not on him to capture a moment where he speaks his mind.
At the 2002 WSOP, while commentating with Gabe Kaplan, he offered to have his head shaved if amateur Robert Varkonyi, who was short-stacked at the time, could win the event. When Varkonyi won, Hellmuth followed through; ESPN's coverage of the event ends with Hellmuth's locks getting shorn.
Hellmuth wrote a book titled Poker Brat, which contains autobiographical material as well as poker advice.
While many professional players, amateurs, and fans alike consider his antics distasteful and abrasive at times, they respect his talent for the game and his personality when he is away from the table. It can be contended that Hellmuth engages in some bad etiquette purposely, since a large part of selling his image is as a "poker brat."
There are several instances where he does do helpful things for poker and its participants (fans and players alike). For example, during the WSOP 2005 main event final table, Card Player Magazine decided to have top pros like Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu, Jennifer Harman, and Erick Lindgren comment on the action live on streaming audio hand by hand until a champion was declared. The event lasted a substantial time, starting at around mid evening and lasting until early morning the next day. Despite all the other scheduled commentators leaving to go out to play poker or sleep, Hellmuth stayed behind the mic for the duration of the tournament in order to comment for the listeners. During the broadcast, Hellmuth turned 41 years old.
He has participated in numerous charities and events and also likes to voice his opinion in several segments during the World Series of Poker and in World Poker Tour events. He has also been in several podcasts related to poker, including Phil Gordon's coverage of the 2005 World Series of Poker.
In the first week of the show Poker After Dark on NBC, after fellow pros Shawn Sheikhan, Annie Duke, Steve Zolotow, Gus Hansen, and Huck Seed refused to stop talking while it was his turn to act on his hand after Duke raised him, he threatened to never play in these tournaments again and then he walked away. He eventually came back and was eliminated a few hands later. In week 5, after folding several hands in a row when someone would raise into him, he claimed his strategy was to fold and appear to be weak in order to set up for a big hand. However, when he eventually moved all-in to a reraise with pocket nines he was defeated by Phil Laak, who was holding pocket queens on the final night. Hellmuth's hand failed to improve, giving him a fourth-place finish.
Hellmuth as a business person
Hellmuth is involved in many endeavors away from the felt. He is the author of many articles for Card Player Magazine and poker books, including Play Poker like the Pros, Bad Beats and Lucky Draws, and The Greatest Poker Hands ever Played. He has made several instructional poker videos, including his Ultimate White to Black Belt Poker Course and Phil Hellmuth's Million Dollar Poker Secrets. Hellmuth is also a spokesperson for (and player at) UltimateBet, an online poker room. More recently, he has worked with Oakley to develop his signature series of poker style sunglasses as well as currently working on a clothing line. Hellmuth also appeared in promotional commercials for the Arena Football League during the 2006 season as well as an Infomercial promoting his Ultimate White to Black Belt Poker Course. It aired throughout the US. In an online interview with ESPN, he estimated that he could earn anywhere up to $400 million off the poker table.
In Popular Culture
- Phil Hellmuth was referenced in the American television comedy The Office in Season 2 Episode 22 "Casino Night". Michael says "If luck weren't involved, I would always be winning." Hellmuth infamously coined a similar phrase at the 2004 World Series of Poker.
References
External links
- Articles lacking sources from July 2006
- 1964 births
- Living people
- American poker players
- Late Night Poker series winners
- Poker commentators
- World Series of Poker bracelet winners
- World Series of Poker Main Event winners
- American gambling writers
- People from Madison, Wisconsin
- People from the San Francisco Bay Area