Top 5 of the Best Poker Players
- Bryn Kenney ($56,403,502)
- Justin Bonomo ($49,128,105)
- Daniel Negreanu ($42,053,305)
- Eric Seidel ($37,748,126)
- Dan Smith ($36,742,719)
1. Bryn Kenney – An Exceptional Poker Pro
| Nickname | BrynKenney |
|---|---|
| Nationality | USA |
| Total Live Earnings | $56,403,502 |
| Best Live Cash | $20,563,324 |
Who would have thought that Justin Bonomo’s place from the number one spot would be removed in such a short period of time? The yar of 2019 was quite profitable for Bryn Kenney as he amassed a fortune from the tournaments he enrolled. ALthough he was already established as one of the best poker players, Bryn topped the all-time poker money list and totalled more than $56 million dollars! Since Kenney is just 33 years old, he has a lot of time to increase his wealth and only the sky would be the limit!
2. Justin Bonomo – A Star is Born
| Nickname | ZeeJustin |
|---|---|
| Nationality | USA |
| Total Live Earnings | $49,128,105 |
| Best Live Cash | $10,000,000 |
Justin Bonomo known as ‘ZeeJustin’ was just 19 when he first played at a French poker tournament in 2005. 14 years later, he is now 33 and the rising star has now become a true legend standing on second place of the ‘All-Time Money List’ by the Hendon Mob Poker Database thanks to his $49,128,105 total live poker earnings. How did that happen? Well, a long story short, Justin was aiming for the stars since the beginning and in 2018 he got to finally prove to the world that he is one of the best poker players of all time!
The three-time WSOP bracelet winner has not missed a high roller poker event for the last decade and 2018 was surely his lucky year. Besides his other 10 wins all over the globe, Justin set the poker world on fire with his astonishing $10,000,000 prize at the WSOP $1 Million Big One for One Drop back at July last year. This rearranged the world’s best poker players chart and helped him climb all the way up to the first position by beating long-term poker favourites like Daniel Negreanu and Erik Seidel. Justin is also very active on social media and even had a personal blog for a while. And since we know how hard it is not to get inspired when you read about the world’s best poker players, we are prepared – we want to show you our page about some of the best poker bonus offers around!
3. Daniel Negreanu – The Poker Player of the Decade
| Nickname | Kid Poker |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Canada |
| Total Live Earnings | $42,053,305 |
| Best Live Cash | $8,288,001 |
Our next best poker player comes from Canada and has been on the professional poker scene since 1997. Currently, he’s been holding the second place on the ‘All-Time Money List’ right next to Justin Bonomo. As someone with a lot of live tournament experience, Daniel has won 6 WSOP bracelets and has even been recognised as the Best Poker Player of the Decade in 2014 by the Global Poker Index. Kid Poker is also the creator of the Daniel Negreanu masterclas where he shares professional poker tips and secrets.
Currently, his total live earnings come to $42,053,305 meaning we can see him going back to number 1 any time soon. Besides poker, Negreanu has made a few movies, music video, and TV series appearances and is a dedicated vegan since 2006. He is also involved in charity events and regularly donates to different foundations and environmental organizations.
4. Erik Seidel – A Highly Respected Player
| Nickname | Sly |
|---|---|
| Nationality | USA |
| Total Live Earnings | $37,748,126 |
| Best Live Cash | $2,472,555 |
Moving on to our number 4, Erik Seidel is one of the best poker players ever and has stood the test of time. Born in 1959, Seidel started by dropping out of college to become a professional Backgammon player, then he worked on Wallstreet for a while, and so until he finally discovered the greatness of poker. His career features the amazing 8 WSOP bracelet wins and his total poker earnings rank him on the 4th spot of our chart.
He’s been a member of the Poker Hall of Fame since 2010 and enjoys a highly professional reputation among his peers. If you’ve ever watched him play, you know he is that quiet and reserved guy who looks just like your friendly neighbour. As not a big fan of the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas, Erik loves to spend quality time with his two daughters and looks nothing like a pro poker wizard. But he is! A lot of young players have seen him as a true role model and we couldn’t agree more with that.
‘’Imagination is at the heart of the game. Just as there is no right way to write a song or paint a picture, there is no right way to play poker.’’ Erik Seidel
5. Dan Smith – a Future Poker Hall of Fame Inductee
| Nickname | King Dan |
|---|---|
| Nationality | USA |
| Total Live Earnings | $36,742,719 |
| Best Live Cash | $8,765,628 |
Next in our list of the best poker players, we have a name that has emerged on the scene decisively in the fifth spot. That would be Dan Smith – a great poker player from Manalapan, New Jersey. Just like many of his other colleagues, Dan decided to quit college and take up poker as a career – a decision that has proven to be very wise! Mr Smith is just 31 years old and has already won more than $35 million dollars with his biggest win being $8,765,628. Who knows, maybe one day he can become the top player of the list!
Best Poker Players – Honorable Mentions
The world’s best poker players today are already known for you, but we’ve decided to also include some honorable mentions. The players below have also once been in the top 5, but due to the fierce competitiveness of poker, have dropped to lower positions in the All-Time money list. Despite that fact, their stories are quite interesting: one is an entrepreneur in the field of psychology and the other has been involved in some of the biggest hight stakes poker games in the world. Without further ado, let’s check them out!
Fedor Holz – The Young Entrepreneur
| Nickname | CrownUpGuy |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Germany |
| Total Live Earnings | $32,556,377 |
| Best Live Cash | $6,000,000 |
The ‘The Crown-Up Guy’ or Germany’s boy is certainly our youngest and best poker player. He is only 27 years old but is already in the All-Time Money List. His sweet looks might really confuse everyone but what stands behind is even more surprising. Besides his undoubtedly huge success with professional poker tournaments, the young and talented Mr Holz is also a very successful entrepreneur as the founder and CEO of Primed Group – a start-up company all about psychology and motivation. Impressive, right?
But back to poker! Fedor has some pretty gigantic wins behind his back and says the poker success depends on discipline, deep poker thinking, and the ability of a person to accept losses. Although he ended up as a runner-up to Justin Bonomo at the $1,000,000 No Limit Hold’em – The Big One for One Drop in 2018, the German poker pro won his biggest cash so far. The $6,000,000 is what gave him the big push towards the top of the best poker players’ list. His genius IQ of 155 definitely sounds threatening, especially at such a young age and we believe he is just at the beginning of a legendary road to poker stardom.
“I think, especially in poker, there’s so much information that you can misinterpret. How good you run is such a big fallacy, you misinterpret all that information because there’s so much luck in there, you need such a big sample size.” Fedor Holz
Antonio Esfandiari – The Magician
| Nickname | The Magician |
|---|---|
| Nationality | USA |
| Total Live Earnings | $27,810,802 |
| Best Live Cash | $18,346,673 |
Esfandiari was born in Tehran but spent most of his adult life in the USA where his parents moved in 1988. His nickname ‘The Magician’ originates from his early career as a real magician. Call it meant to be, but his first magic tricks were all about chips. Yet somehow magic wasn’t enough, he wanted to grow and upgrade the magic skills. So, what better way to do that than with high-stakes poker? It’s just as tricky but way more rewarding!
Since then, Esfandiari has been on the world’s best poker players on the tournament scene and has done miracles including becoming the youngest player ever to win a million-dollar prize. His biggest live cash award though was in July 2012 when he earned the jaw-dropping $18,346,673 in the 43rd WSOP in Las Vegas. No doubt, Antonio is also one of the most attractive poker players on the green felt. He is always the centre of attention with his magic chip tricks on the tables, keeping all viewers well-entertained while he never misses a chance to scoop a big win and add another trophy to his collection.
Frequently Asked Questions About The Best Poker Players
Take a good look at the next section, as we have found and answered the internet’s most frequently asked questions about the best poker players.And if you have a long way to go before becoming a professional gambler, we advise you to start low and choose one of the best £5 deposit casino in the UK.
