Phil Hellmuth Sister
Phil Hellmuth, at twenty-four years old, became the youngest person ever to win the World Series of Poker Main Event in 1989 by defeating two-time defending champion: Johnny Chan. Hellmuth held this record for twenty years until Peter Eastgate took his place in 2008. Hellmuth is probably best known for his WSOP performances. WATCH: Hellmuth & Negreanu Interview: Heads Up High Stakes Duel The pair bicker throughout the podcast ahead of their heads up match. Latest Ep Of The Chip Race Lands And it’s an absolute doozy. All Systems Are GO: PokerStars Michigan’s MICOOP Kicks Off For the first time ever, the Michigan Championship of Online Poker is running in the state. On 16-7-1964 Phil Hellmuth (nickname: The Poker Brat) was born in Madison, Wisconsin. He made his 20 million dollar fortune with World Series of Poker, Poker After Dark. The poker Player is married to Katherine Sanborn, his starsign is Cancer and he is now 56 years of age.
Gambling can get heated, so it’s only natural for some poker feuds to arise.
Obviously, no one likes handing over a ton of cash, and while poker games and tournaments are notorious for some big wins, it’s a given that unless you’re a winner, at some point you’re going to hand over some cash—Or a watch, or a wedding ring…We’re not here to judge.
But what happens when the bad feelings go beyond the loss you feel when handing over cash to the winner? When the poker table talk turns trash talk? A fight or a feud, typically—We’re here to share some of the biggest fights in the poker and gambling industry.
Read on to learn about 5 of the biggest feuds in poker/gambling of all time.
I’m Sorry Fifty: 50 Cent Vs. Randall Emmet
What’s now known as a historic weekend in poker, gambling and general celebrity-crossover news, film producer Randall Emmett (of Bravo fame and Gotti-infamy) and 50 Cent were involved in a back-and-forth via social media over a poker debt Emmett owed 50.
If you’re familiar with 50 Cent’s Instagram, you know you’re guaranteed to find A) ruthlessness and B) a #bronsoncognac hashtag. When Emmett failed to pay up in a timely fashion, Fifty took to social media to berate Emmett and demand his money by the following Monday.
The back-and-forth included 50 Cent taking shots at Emmett’s fiancée, Vanderpump Rules star Lala Kent and a now iconic texted plea from Emmett asking 50 Cent to stop which said, “I’m said sorry Fofty” and “I apologized”.
As you can probably tell, Fifty Cent didn’t offer mercy. The feud concluded with a stressed Emmett visiting the hospital for cardiac testing as he claimed the stress causes chest pain, a promise to deliver his money the following Monday and a reply from ‘Fofty’: “when the money hits the accounts everything comes down.”
I never ever want 50 cent to be mad at me
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) April 28, 2019
(Even celebrities weighed in on 50 Cent’s wrath.)
50 Cent had a timeline in mind and demanded his money from Emmett by Monday, using the hashtag #MoneyByMonday to, uh, encourage Emmett to pay up. Thankfully (for Emmett and Lala Kent, Emmett’s fiancée, who both endured a pretty embarrassing weekend) he had 50’s money by Monday, and Fofty ceased his social media fire.
PS—Can you believe it’s been a year since this infamous weekend? A moment lost too soon, but forever cherished.
Daniel Negreanu VS. Annie Duke
Daniel Negreanu pictured at Poker League Draft Day.
If you’re active in the online poker world, you likely know a little bit about at least one argument between Daniel Negreanu VS. Annie Duke. But did you know the Negreanu Vs. Duke feud is nearly two decades old? It sure does—Let’s (briefly) dive in.
Where do we begin with this one? This feud can be traced back to early 2000’s on the internet, where Negreanu began posting on poker forums about his experience playing professional poker. His posts began alluding to a female professional poker player who he was clearly not a fan of.
Eventually, her brother, another professional poker player, Howard Lederer realized the posts targeted his sister and wrote an open letter listing his issues with Negreanu, among these the fact that Negreanu refers to duke as ‘Annie Puke’. Not one to back down, Negreanu retaliated with details of taunts Duke allegedly made at him.
The two were seen playing poker together, but more internet posts from Negreanu confirmed his feelings for Duke hadn’t softened. Duke actually stayed fairly mum throughout the feud, but mentioned Negreanu in her book ‘Annie Duke: How I Raised, Folded, Bluffed, Flirted, Cursed, and Won Millions at the World Series’ as her ‘online bully’.
We could write a whole article about their 20-year feud, but essentially the two continued to trade barbs in the form of insults and critiques (despite a brief moment where Negreanu apologized)—One of the latest was a post Negreanu sharedin 2015, where Negreanu wrote a list critiquing Duke’s Epic Poker League (EPL) and opined she should be banned from the WSOP.
Phil Hellmuth VS. Everyone
Now, many poker players have feuds (the aforementioned Dan Negreanu being one that comes to mind!) but Phil Hellmuth is a guy that really takes the cake—He has feuds with quite a few big names in poker.
Here are just a few names in professional poker Phil Hellmuth has feuded with: Phil Ivey, Mike Matusow, Terrence Chan, Sam Grizzle (whose altercation with Hullmuth got physical) and Tom Dwan.
With the exception of his physical fight with Grizzle, Hellmuth has (for the most part) kept his feuds confined to the poker table, but a quick internet search will bring up many stories of Hellmuth’s feuds and fight.
Molly Bloom VS. Toby Maguire
This poker feud is a little different than others on our list—Not a feud per se, but an A-list illegal gambling ring investigated by the FBI and detailed in a book (and later a film directed by Aaron Sorkin, Molly’s Game) by the same woman who ran it, former skier, Molly Bloom.
For those not in-the-know, Molly Bloom wrote a little book called ’Molly’s Game: The True Story of the 26-Year-Old Woman Behind the Most Exclusive, High-Stakes Underground Poker Game in the World’ that shed a light on an illegal, celebrity poker game she helped manage (and would later go on to write a book about). In it, she detailed a weekly poker matches with A-list names like Ben Affleck, Leonardo DiCaprio, Rick Solomon (is he an A-lister?) and Toby Maguire, where the Spiderman star proved to be a controversial guest and opponent during these games.
Poker Phil Hellmuth
Among some of his more questionable tactics were bringing an automatic card shuffler and demanding it be used—And rented, at that, but also being a poor tipper and once even demanding Bloom barked like a seal …Seriously, we can’t make this up.
Bloom’s book named the actor only as ‘Tobey’, but described him as the “worst tipper, the best player, and the absolute worst loser”. Since, Maguire has faces his fair share of ire in the press that’s sullied his reputation slightly.
Although this is definitely not a traditional poker ‘feud’ and Maguire hasn’t exactly publicly defended himself (maybe due to an FBI investigation on the scheme), however, Bloom and Maguire certainly didn’t see eye-to-eye during the poker games, if the events in Bloom’s novel and the Sorkin-directed adaptation are true.
Jack McCall VS. Wild Bill Hickok
A portrait of Wild Bill Hickok.
Finally, we’re taking it way back to 1876—Although most people might consider this a straight-up murder rather than feud.
‘Wild Bill’ Hickok, was a prominent figure on the American frontier, was a gunfighter in the American West, known for his ‘wild west’ antics. He also enjoyed a good card game, and was a frequent poker player at the No. 10 Saloon.
On August 1, 1876, Wild Bill was playing a card game in Deadwood, South Dakota, which a man named Jack McCall joined. McCall proceeded to lose several hands, and Hickok offered him some money and advice—Maybe he should take a break from playing cards until he had more money.
The next day Hickock was playing a game of poker, and McCall stormed the saloon and shot Hickok on the back of the head. McCall was apprehended and later hanged.
Wild Bill’s murder was an infamous moment, mainly due to Wild Bill’s own gun skills, but also because he typically sat in a corner, so no one could catch him unaware—If only Wild Bill took usual seat that day.
Do you have a favourite gambling poker feud? We know we had tons of choices between feuds, but these are just a few that stuck out to us, from the famous rappers and producers, professional gamblers and A-list stars.
Which gambling related or poker feud stands out to you?
Phil Hellmuth Sister
Phil Hellmuth is a famous name in the world of professional poker. His reputation in the card game is so strong that he has won a record fifteen World Series of Poker bracelets running from 1989 to 2018. Hellmuth’s poker legacy includes his victories in the 1989 World Series of Poker (WSOP) and the 2012 World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) Main Events. With total winnings in live tournaments exceeding $21,750,000, Phil Hellmuth ranks twelfth on the money list of all time.
Who is Phil Hellmuth the Pro Poker Player? – Bio
His overly competitive personality and temperament towards his opponents in the game earned him the nickname “Poker Brat”, and Hellmuth certainly adopted it to reflect the fact that he hates to lose a game. This makes us curious to know who this professional poker player really is.
Phillip Jerome Hellmuth Jr. was born in Madison, Wisconsin on July 16, 1964, the first and oldest child with four younger siblings: Ann, David, Kerry, and Molly Hellmuth. His father, Phil Hellmuth Sr., was Dean of the University of Wisconsin, while his mother, Lynn Hellmuth, was a sculptor.
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For someone who grew up in a devout Catholic family and whose parents are academics, Hellmuth was not the flash of inspiration his father expected of him. From Madison West High School to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which he dropped out of after three years, the living poker legend may not be good with academic grades, but he is great at playing cards.
Poker Career
His journey to the game of poker began with his grandmother, whom he described as the most spirited card player he ever faced. During his studies, Hellmuth often indulged in Texas Hold’em poker games against his classmates in the Student Union. By competing in tournaments, he earned enough money, and with $20,000 at the age of 21, he headed for Las Vegas.
Several months passed, and exactly 14 months later Phil Hellmuth lost all that money in the game. He commuted between working in the cornfields for a few months to raise more money and competing for higher prizes until he earned enough to stay stable in Nevada’s city.
With high hopes and dreams of becoming a regular in the World Series of Poker, Hellmuth played his first tournament in the 1988 World Series of Poker, where he finished 33rd after losing to Johnny Chan, who became champion that year. Despite this, he made a comeback the following year, 1989, and at 24 became the youngest player to win the WSOP Main Event and beat Chan. His record was broken 18 years later, in 2008, by Peter Eastgate (22 years old).
Phil Hellmuth Wife Photo
Hellmuth subsequently cashed in eight major events – 1988, 1989, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2008, 2009, and 2015 – became the second player in WSOP history to win three bracelets in a WSOP during the 1993 World Series of Poker, and is currently the proud wearer of fifteen World Series of Poker bracelets. He won his 15th WSOP on July 11, 2018, in the $5,000 No-Limit Hold ’em event, where he took home a whopping $485,082.
Phil won the 2005 National Heads-Up Poker Championship. In 2007, the legend was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame, winning 14 amounts of cash and reaching five final tables on the World Poker Tour. His records at the WPT include: a fourth-place finish in the $3,000 No-Limit Hold ’em WPT event (2002); a third-place finish in the $10,000 No-Limit Hold ’em event at the World Poker Finals (2003); a sixth-place finish in the 2008 L.A. Poker Classic; a third-place finish in the 2010 Bay 101 Shooting Star event; a seventh-place finish in the $25,000 WPT World Championship; and a second-place finish in 2017 at the Bicycle Casino.
By 2017, Hellmuth had won over $1.5 million in WPT tournaments. Although he is known for his arrogant and cartoon-like outbursts of unsportsmanlike behavior after taking bad punches, Hellmuth said he was probably the most fun-loving guy off the poker table.
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Hellmuth, who is considered the world’s most decorated poker player, also appears as a player and commentator in episodes of Poker After Dark, which won its first tournament in the series in the first episode of season three. He walked away with $120,000 in prize money and won the same amount in the series two weeks later.
In 2000 and 2013, the poker champion competed for $106,250 and $300,000 in prize money after winning the Poker EM 7-Card Stud Main Event in Austria, beating 437 other players and finishing second in the National Heads-Up Poker Championship finals.
Beyond the game, he is the author of several poker books and instructional videos, including The Greatest Poker Hands ever Played, Poker Brat, Phil Hellmuth’s Million Dollar Poker System, and Ultimate White To Black Belt Course. He was also part of the team that developed the software for UltimateBet.
Wife and Family
Phil Hellmuth and his wife Katherine Sanborn married on March 31, 1990, and had two sons, Philip III and Nicholas. The family lives in Palo Alto, California. Katherine is a psychiatrist and works full-time at Stanford University. Apart from being there for his family, the poker brat is known for generously donating his quarters to society through charities.