Jennifer Shahade grew up in Philadelphia. Her father Mike was a master chess player and her mother Sally a professor at Drexel University, but at night the two would count cards at the blackjack tables in Atlantic City. Jennifer and her older brother Greg each took up chess as well, and both excelled at the master level, competing against the best all over the world. The NYU graduate was the first woman to ever win the U.S. Junior Open, and was also a two-time U.S. Women's Chess Champion. She is the director of the women's program at the U.S. Chess Federation and is also a board member of the Women's Chess Hall of Fame. But Shahade is also a top-notch poker player, and has been competing as a mindsports ambassador for PokerStars since 2014. She has numerous scores on her tournament resume, most notably taking down the $10,000 high roller open-face Chinese pineapple event in Prague. Most recently, she authored Chess Queens: The True Story Of A Chess Champion And The Greatest Female Players Of All Time. She is also the host of The Grid podcast, which analyzes key hands played by professional poker players. Highlights from this interview include the body goes to the potty, card-counting parents, a sibling rivalry, competing in Brazil, Spain, Iceland, Russia, and India, luck in poker, sweating a $50,000 chess match with Tom Dwan, a big win in Prague, working as a bridge caddie, using Ms. Pac-Man to flirt, a seven-hour game, hula chess, gambling in yoga class, Lake Bell, omelet salad, a fortunate couch landing, waking up in a fire in Belize, going to NYU during 9/11, and crushing on Vanilla Ice.
Ben Rolle, known to most of the poker world as Bencb, is one of the greatest online tournament players in the game today. The 33-year-old German was a standout junior soccer player, but turned to online poker after college and grinded his way to the highest stakes available. He has won many millions during his career, most notably chopping the World Championship of Online Poker $100,000 Super High Roller with Fedor Holz for $1.2 million. Originally an anonymous player, it wasn't until the summer of 2019 that he revealed his identity. Eager to share his knowledge with others, Rolle started Raise Your Edge poker training, and also streams his play on Twitch. Then last year, he was named as an ambassador for Team PokerStars. When he's not playing or teaching, he works with his champion Esports club Acend. Highlights from this interview include scoring six goals in one game, injuries and ego, going broke three times early on, how a vacation in Sicily changed his game, why you don't want...
Brek Schutten is a family man with five children that spends his days working as a nurse in the intensive care unit. But that hasn't stopped the Michigan native from dominating the live tournament circuit for more than a year now. The 34-year-old topped a record-field of 2,482 entries in the 2021 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open to win a life-changing $1,261,095, and in the months since has parlayed that score into even more cash. After making two final tables at the Poker Masters last September for a combined $162,900, Schutten took down the $15,000 high roller at the Wynn in March for $219,300. This summer he packed up the family for a trip to Las Vegas, where he opened with a win in the MGM Grand Mystery Bounty event for a total of $71,000. Then at the World Series of Poker, Schutten jumped into the big high rollers, taking fifth in the $25,000 event for $323,730 and second in the $50,000 event for $820,808. He now has $3.4 million in live tournament earnings. Highlights from this interview include finding poker through a radio ad, why he got into nursing, being cool under pressure, 15 big blinds and a dream, celebrating in Florida with Mickey Mouse, gambling on himself, battling Jake Schindler for the poker community, House vs. Grey's Anatomy, bagging groceries with big bro, a backyard batting cage, being kicked out of the band, Padme Amidala and brown sugar rice, and getting mistaken for David Peters.
Brad Owen discovered poker while in high school, learning the game by studying poker software his dad brought home from work. He continued to play throughout college and even as he earned his masters degree in accounting, but a nine-to-five job was never in the cards for the Santa Rosa, California native. Owen ultimately gave up his day job as a CPA to move to Las Vegas and try his hand at professional poker. He spent years grinding away anonymously at the cash game tables, but wanted a way he could share his journey with his friends and family back home. Taking a cue from his good friend Andrew Neeme, Owen started his own YouTube channel, vlogging his poker sessions for all to see. A little over five years later, Owen has become one of the most popular vloggers on YouTube. The 34-year-old has racked up more than 600,000 subscribers, which puts him alongside Daniel Negreanu as the most watched poker channels online today. In 2019, he won Poker Personality of the Year at the Global Poker Awards, and this year, he added the Best Vlogger award to his mantel. When he's not filming his play, Owen stays busy with Meet-Up Games (MUGs) that take place all over the country, including his very own poker room. Owen recently became a minority owner of The Lodge Card Club House near Austin, Texas along with Doug Polk and the aforementioned Neeme. Owen is also the newest brand ambassador for the World Poker Tour and will be appearing at various events throughout the season. Highlights from this interview include flipping rundown card rooms with dad, learning poker from a CD-ROM, main event nightmares, almost deleting his first video, inventing nicknames for hands, how the vlog affects play, buying a poker room, being poker's Jim Halpert, rocking out as 'Central Idea,' being an inactive CPA, having sleep envy, avoiding sharks in open water, telling dad jokes, and the karma of cleaning up the casino parking lot.
Kane Kalas grew up near Philadelphia where his father and baseball hall of famer Harry Kalas worked as the play by play commentator for the Phillies for nearly 40 years. He could have joined the family business like his brother Todd, who broadcasts for the Houston Astros, but while he was in college he got bit by the poker bug. Kalas was particularly aggressive building his bankroll online, and only took a few months before he was playing at Rail Heaven on Full Tilt for stakes as high as $500-$1,000 no-limit. The baritone opera singer ventured into the live arena after Black Friday and found success on the tournament trail, including a runner-up finish at the WPT Borgata Poker Open for more than $500,000. Then in 2018, Kalas won the biggest cash game pot in televised poker history, banking $2.18 million in a hand against Jason Koon at the Triton Montenegro series. Over the years the hedge fund manager has also done broadcasting work for a number of poker shows and tours including the WSOP, Triton, WPT Deepstacks, HPT, Hard Rock Poker Open, Poker Night In America, Hustler Casino Live, Live at the Bike, and PokerGO. Although he doesn't work in baseball, the 32-year-old still lends his voice to the Phillies every season on opening day to sing the Star Spangled Banner. Highlights from this interview include performing for stadiums, an operatic voice, his movie role, battling Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey, a strategically chosen online name, winning a record-breaking pot, poker broadcasting, launching a hedge fund, comparing poker greats, saying no to dancing in Footloose, High Hopes, losing a $60,000 tennis prop bet, the noticeable absence of Nate Dogg, Rick Rolling, and challenging everyone to Final Fantasy Tactics.
Phil Galfond has made his mark on pretty much every part of the poker world. Not only is the Maryland native considered one of the best to ever play the game, but he's also been recognized as a prolific poker coach, and even operated his own online poker site, Run It Once. The 37-year-old recently sold that site to Rush Street Interactive, which is planning to enter the regulated US online poker market. His training site, which shares the same name, features elite poker coaches and recently unveiled Galfond's comprehensive pot-limit Omaha strategy course. The high-stakes pro is regarded as one of the best PLO players in the world today, and has been solidifying that reputation with his ongoing Galfond Challenge, taking on all comers while laying odds. He is currently 4-0, including a €900,000 comeback win. Although he mostly focuses on cash games, he has found success in tournaments, winning three bracelets at the World Series of Poker. Highlights from this interview include scoring four touchdowns with a broken arm, Phil Hellmuth's alma mater, the guy who got him into poker, an eye-opening losing summer, winning notoriety with a bracelet, a desire to teach others, coming out of 'retirement,' doubting himself during the challenge, the problem with focusing on solvers, what it takes to start an online poker site, selling his company, avoiding soap operas, shooting his shot over Twitter, a $700,000 five-card draw pot, answering the phone at Domino's, and how many slices of pizza he can eat in ten minutes.
"Miami" John Cernuto is a true ironman of the live poker tournament circuit. The longtime grinder holds the record and a sizable lead for the most cashes ever with 540 and counting. To put that into perspective, 16-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth has just shy of 350. Cernuto, who has three WSOP bracelets of his own, is now 78 years old but is still out on the tournament trail recording cashes. Just last week he made two final tables in Las Vegas, before hitting the road to California and Texas to find some more action. With more than 60 posted wins under his belt and hundreds of final tables, perhaps no one else was more suited to writing a book about the subject of deal making in tournaments. Cernuto recently teamed up with Card Player columnist Dr. Alan Schoonmaker and Jan Siroky for Make Better Poker Tournament Deals, available now on Amazon. Highlights from this interview include getting his nickname at the Stardust, the call of the racetrack, check-raising his mother, tracking planes in the '70s, being a stress junkie, getting fired by President Reagan, winning two live tournaments at the same time, money over bracelets, getting one of the first online poker sponsorships, playing $500-$1,000 with a Prince of Arabia, repossessing Larry Csonka's car, being a professional accordion player, poker endurance, the lucky lemon bowl, the scorpion house, and the guy he thinks will breaks his cash record.
Scotty Nguyen has the ultimate poker success story. After escaping almost certain death in the Vietnam War and surviving almost a month stranded at sea, the teenager eventually found himself in the United States looking for a piece of the American dream. Always a hustler, it wasn't long before Nguyen discovered poker, first paying bills as a dealer, and then trying his luck on "the other side of the table." An incredible two-week trip to Lake Tahoe saw his bankroll grow from $200 to nearly half a million, and by the end of the month, he had fleeced Las Vegas to get to the seven-figure mark. The fast-living 'Prince of Poker' didn't hold on to the money, however, at least not at first. After a last-second satellite win, he managed to squeak into the 1998 WSOP main event, and ultimately took it down for $1 million. Along the way, he achieved poker immortality by uttering the now famous line, "If you call it's gonna be all over, baby!" The Poker Hall of Famer has five WSOP bracelets in total, including the 2008 $50,000 Poker Players Championship which he won for nearly $2 million, and a World Poker Tour title. With $12.7 million in total live tournament earnings, Nguyen is Vietnam's all-time money list leader. Highlights from this episode include fleeing Vietnam, being stranded at sea, hustling in Taiwan, escaping Illinois, stealing his high school diploma, the boss who chose his name, from busboy to poker dealer, winning a million in less than month, Stu Ungar's motivation, appearing on Conan O'Brien, Bobby's Room beats, an 80-hour session, and whether or not pregnant women are lucky. Nguyen is set to release a brand-new poker training course soon, which you can learn more about by following him on Twitter @TheScottyNguyen or Instagram @ScottyNguyenBaby.
Chris Brewer discovered poker while competing at the 2012 Olympic Trials, getting hooked after playing in a $5 home game. The San Diego native's first love was running, which led him to the 32-time national champion University of Oregon Ducks track and field team. He built his bankroll while in college, and graduated ready to take on the world as a professional player. With some aggressive shot taking and a desire to play the biggest game in the room, it wasn't long until Brewer found himself playing against some of the best players in the world. In fact, during the pandemic he played stakes as high as $1,000-$2,000 no-limit! When the live tournament circuit resumed, Brewer turned his attention to high rollers. He made 22 final tables in 2021, winning two titles and more than $3 million en route to a ninth-place finish in the Card Player Player of the Year race. Highlights from this interview include the drawer full of championship rings, chasing the four-minute mile, Nike fashion police, competing at the Olympic trials, being 'faster' than Usain Bolt, a near-death experience, graduating from the $1-$2 games, paying a guy to go all-in, emptying the box, heads-up matches with Andy Stacks, winning a $560k pot against Michael Addamo, getting crushed by money bubbles, tilting Daniel Negreanu, cashing in on the election, and being a ghost pepper.
Dan Cates discovered poker in high school, and wasted no time immersing himself in the game online. By the time he dropped out of college, the man known as 'jungleman12' had already risen to the highest stakes and won millions against some of the top players in the world. According to HighStakesDB.com, Cates is one of the biggest high-stakes online cash game earners of all time. As it turns out, the Maryland native has also been a big winner on the live tournament circuit. In 2014, he finished runner-up in the €100,000 EPT Grand Final high roller for $1.7 million, and in 2019 he pocketed a combined $2.65 million in the Triton Super High Roller series. Last fall, the 32-year-old broke through at the World Series of Poker, picking up his first bracelet and $954,020 in the prestigious $50,000 buy-in Poker Players Championship. He now has nearly $10 million in live tournament earnings. Highlights from this interview include climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, high school scrap paper games, bui...