Top Professional Poker Players Who Won Millions Playing Online
Everyone knows that playing poker for a living is not an easy gig. It takes serious skill, discipline and mental fortitude to succeed as a professional poker player. You have to be able to read your opponents like a book, manage risk carefully and maintain focus even when losing big. Most people who try their hand at poker as a career soon find out how brutal it can be in the long run. Statistically speaking, it’s almost impossible to turn a profit unless you’re one of the very best players in the world. Fortunately for those of us who enjoy the game and aren’t quite ready to give up our day job just yet, the internet has made playing online much more accessible than ever before. There are plenty of sites where you can play online poker for free or for real money with friends or strangers from all over the world! These pros have found success by switching things up and playing online exclusively instead of trying to make it as a brick-and-mortar pro first. Check out these top players who won millions playing online poker:
Chris “Jesus” Ferguson
Ferguson is a six-time WSOP bracelet winner and one of the most famous and accomplished poker players of all time. He also happens to be one of the biggest online poker players in the world. Ferguson started playing poker in the early 2000s and quickly earned a reputation as one of the best players in the game. He first started playing online after Black Friday shut down most brick-and-mortar poker rooms. He was so successful online that he was able to retire from the live poker circuit completely in 2015. Ferguson currently ranks as the top online poker player in the world and earned $19.4 million in 2018 alone.
Dan "Dudeman" Bouhan
Bouhan is one of the few players who has been able to translate his live poker success into a successful online career. He got his start in poker by playing in card rooms across the U.S. in the early 2000s. Bouhan’s first WSOP came in 2005 when he finished in 6th place at the $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha event. He took a break from the game in 2012 and returned as an online player in 2015. After Black Friday shut down most brick-and-mortar poker rooms, Bouhan made the switch to online poker and has been thriving ever since. He plays a variety of games at PokerStars, but his best game is Heads-Up Limit Hold’em. In 2018 alone, Bouhan earned $9.7 million.
Erik Seidel
This former WSOP Main Event champion is one of the most prolific online poker players of all time. He started playing poker in the mid-1980s at the Seven Card Stud table at the Grand Casino in Blackhawk, Colorado. Seidel spent most of the 1990s playing at the New York card rooms and made his first WSOP Main Event final table in 1995. He became a regular fixture in WSOP events after that and earned his first bracelet in 2001. Seidel made the transition to online poker in 2010 and has been playing almost exclusively online ever since. He plays mostly Pot-Limit Omaha and Pot-Limit Hold’em at PokerStars, where he made $13.7 million in 2018 alone.
Brian Hastings
Hastings is one of the top online tournament poker players in the world. He started playing poker in the early 2000s and quickly became known as one of the best online players in the country. Hastings played online exclusively for several years before making the switch to live poker in 2015. He first cashed in a WSOP event in 2013, finishing in 15th place at the $1,500 Seven Card Razz event. Hastings likely would have won the bracelet if it weren’t for the epic meltdown he experienced during the final table. He made a second WSOP final table in 2019 and finished in 4th place at the $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em event. Hastings is one of the most successful online poker players of all time. He has earned $20.9 million playing online poker in 2019 alone.
Conclusion
These top players have shown us that it is possible to make a very comfortable living playing online poker. They have proven that skill and mental fortitude are just as important as card luck when it comes to winning at poker. If you’re looking to make money playing poker instead of gambling in casinos, it’s worth trying out the online version. You never know, you could be the next online poker millionaire!
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