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WPT Winners

No matter the sport or activity, everyone wants to remember the winners. The World Poker Tour (WPT) has seen some players walk away with big winner’s checks and the kudos of beating the rest of the field. Many poker players have tasted success in the WPT, but some players stand out. Whether through continual success, impressive performances, or just their demeanor, some players always rise above the rest. The following five poker players are all rightly considered huge stars of the World Poker Tour and deserve praise and adulation.

Carlos Mortensen

Carlos Mortensen, known as El Matador, was born in Ecuador in 1972 but now lives in Madrid, Spain. Mortensen may have been the first Hispanic star of poker, but he is among the biggest poker players of modern times. Few can match his winnings or table finishes at major events.

Mortensen gained fame in October 2004 when he won $1,000,000 in the Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. At the end of Season 5, Mortensen won the WPT Championship on April 27, 2007, at the same venue. With a winning hand of the King of HeartsJack of Hearts, Mortensen defeated Kirk Morrison and took home $3,970,415.

Throughout his career, Mortensen has won over $10,000,000. In Season 8, he picked up his third WPT title at the Hollywood Poker Open in Indiana, winning $391,212. This win placed him among the greatest poker players in the WPT’s history.

Daniel Negreanu

Known for his charm and strategic play, Daniel Negreanu hails from Canada and was born in July 1974. He boasts two WPT Championship titles alongside four WSOP bracelets. As of March 2011, he ranked in the list of all-time career earnings. Negreanu’s success is impressive, given the many exalted players involved in the game.

The year 2004 was particularly stellar for Negreanu. He had a third-place finish in the Poker Stars Caribbean Poker Adventure in January, a second-place finish in the Party Poker Million tournament in March, and two first-place finishes in September and October. His first win came at the Borgata Poker Open in Atlantic City, where he earned over $1 million. The second win was at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic, with a prize of over $1,770,000.

Beyond the poker table, Negreanu has built a fine media career. He contributes columns, books, and makes cameo appearances in films like ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ and a music video with Katy Perry. The additional benefits from his big wins appeal to many people.

Tuan Le

One of the most recognized World Poker Tour players, Tuan Le originally hails from Paris and now resides in Los Angeles. He became a prominent figure in 2004. His victory in the World Poker Finals event in Connecticut was a significant achievement. At the final table on November 17, Le overcame Temperance Hutter with a hand of 6 of Any Color7 of Any Color, earning $1,549,588.

April 2005 saw Le winning the Series 3 WPT Championships final table with a King of Any ColorJack of Any Color hand. This victory over Paul Maxfield secured him $2,856,150. By the end of 2010, Le had achieved seven money finishes in the WPT, making him one of the most prolific players on the circuit.

Michael Mizrachi

Michael Mizrachi, born in January 1981, has established a strong reputation in the poker world. Known for his consistent performances, Mizrachi has amassed a significant amount of winnings. He has two WPT titles and 11 money finishes to his name. By September 2011, he had earned over $11 million in poker winnings.

In January 2005, during Season 3 of the WPT, Mizrachi finished fifth at the World Poker Open in Tunica and then won the L.A. Poker Classic on February 22. These successes netted him over $2 million in less than a month. In February 2006, he won the Borgata Winter Poker Open in Atlantic City, earning $1,173,373. These wins cemented his strong reputation for poker tournament play.

Gus Hansen

A player with a diverse background, Gus Hansen was born just outside Copenhagen, Denmark, in February 1974. Before turning to poker, Hansen was a respected backgammon player and youth tennis champion. In 1997, he shifted his focus to poker and quickly made a name for himself.

In Season 1 of the WPT, Hansen won the Five Diamond Poker Classic and the L.A. Poker Classic. His success continued in Season 2 with third and first-place finishes in the Five Diamond Poker Classic and Caribbean Poker Adventure. Hansen is one of three men inducted into the WPT Walk of Fame, alongside Doyle Brunson and James Garner. His distinction comes from being the first player to win three separate WPT tournaments and the WPT Bad Boys of Poker tournament.

Runner-up in Season 6 of the WPT, finishing second to David Chiu, Hansen has nine money finishes in the WPT. His place in the WPT Walk of Fame is well-deserved, reflecting his outstanding contributions to the game.

WPT Season	Year	WPT Winner
1	2002-2003	Gus Hansen
2	2003-2004	Erick Lindgren
3	2004-2005	Daniel Negreanu
4	2005-2006	Joe Bartholdi
5	2006-2007	JC Tran
6	2007-2008	Jonathan Little
7	2008-2009	Yevgeniy Timoshenko
8	2009-2010	David Williams
9	2010-2011	Scott Seiver
10	2011-2012	Marvin Rettenmaier
11	2012-2013	Matt Salsberg
12	2013-2014	Ravi Raghavan
13	2014-2015	Asher Conniff
14	2015-2016	Mike Shariati
15	2016-2017	Daniel Strelitz
16	2017-2018	Art Papazyan
17	2018-2019	Erkut Yilmaz
18	2019-2020	Alex Foxen
19	2020-2021	Brian Altman
20	2021-2022	Chad Eveslage