08:25
07 Jun

Poker is often portrayed as a game for lone wolves with no allegiances, but it is also a great spectators sport and with that comes the sense of competition that sometimes goes beyond the individual, touching higher concepts like national pride and the sense of companionship with our fellow poker playing countryman. Many poker enthusiasts find themselves wondering which country has the best poker players in the world and that's precisely the question we'll attempt to answer today.

Instead of trying to come up with some arbitrary way of figuring out which country has the best poker players, let's use some of the arbitrary ways that are already well established. Since high stakes cash games and tournaments are by far the most relevant forms of poker for the viewers we'll take a look at top places in various poker rankings like the All-time Tournament Money List, Highstakesdb.com, the list of multiple WSOP bracelet winners and current Global Poker Index Player of the Year race.

As we said, the biggest number of poker players is located in the USA. Because of this, it doesn’t need to surprise us why a person from the United States is the best poker player in the world. Bryn Kenney’s career started in 2007. Since then his success kept growing. The game of poker is one of those games. The poor poker strategies devised by players at the poker table mostly causes this. Therefore, poker players, beginners and professionals alike, are always devising means to step up their game tactics to world-class levels. These gathered facts are what inspired this article.

All Time Tournament Money List

• 1st Canada Daniel Negreanu $ 32,412,487
• 2nd United States Erik Seidel $ 29,083,817
• 3rd United States Antonio Esfandiari $ 26,730,570
• 4th United States Daniel Colman $ 25,337,721
• 5th United States Phil Ivey $ 23,856,035
• 6th United States Scott Seiver $ 21,209,508
• 7th United States Phil Hellmuth Jr $ 20,910,195
• 8th England Sam Trickett $ 20,557,091
• 9th Indonesia John Juanda $ 18,111,006
• 10th Canada Jonathan Duhamel $ 17,605,726

Players from the United States of America dominate the All Time Tournament Money List with six representants, though it's important to point out that the most important place on the list belongs to the beloved Canadian poker ambassador Daniel Negreanu. Jonathan Duhamel who's closing the top 10 helps ensure the overall second place for the country which best-known exports include talented, polite people and maple syrup. Sam Trickett and John Juanda are the lone representants of their respective nations.

Highstakesdb.com

• 1st United States Phil Ivey $19,242,744
• 2nd Finland Patrik Antonius $11,315,549
• 3rd United States Daniel 'jungleman12' Cates $10,270,847
• 4th United States Di 'Urindanger' Dang $7,411,127
• 5th United States Phil 'OMGClayAiken' Galfond $6,599,839
• 6th Finland Patrik 'FinddaGrind Antonius 145566 $5,716,052
• 7th United States Ben 'Sauce123' Sulsky $4,847,605
• 8th United States Ashton 'theASHMAN103' Griffin $4,843,362
• 9th Finland Jens 'Jeans89' Kyllönen $4,837,151
• 10th United States Abe 'EazyPeazy' Mosseri $4,160,304

If we switch our focus from top tournament winners to top cash game winners we can still see players from the United States dominating the top 10 list. As poker players often like to say: 'Story checks out'. It's important to point out that Finland makes a strong showing with Patrik Antonius being the only player who managed to show up on the list twice under two different screen names which is very impressive.

Multiple WSOP Bracelet Winners

• 1st United States Phil Hellmuth 14
• 2nd United States Doyle Brunson 10
• 3rd China Johnny Chan 10
• 4th United States Phil Ivey 10
• 5th United States Johnny Moss 9
• 6th United States Erik Seidel 8
• 7th United States Billy Baxter 7
• 8th Vietnam Men Nguyen 7
• 9th United States T.J. Cloutier 6
• 10th United States Layne Flack 6
• 11th United States Ted Forrest 6
• 12th United States Jay Heimowitz 6
• 13th Italy Jeff Lisandro 6
• 14th Canada Daniel Negreanu 6

The Best Poker Players In The World

A rather exclusive club of players who managed to win six or more WSOP bracelets continues the story of American players dominance with lone representants of China, Vietnam, Canada and Italy.

Global Poker Index 2016 Player of the Year Race

• #1 Canada Alan Ari 'Ari' Engel 2,262.23 pts
• #2 Germany Fedor Holz 2,207.90 pts
• #3 United States Steve O'Dwyer 2,184.01 pts
• #4 United States Chance Kornuth 2,124.36 pts
• #5 United States Samuel Panzica 2,059.07 pts
• #6 United States Brian Altman 2,053.77 pts
• #7 United States Bryn Kenney 2,005.31 pts
• #8 Germany Dominik Nitsche 888Poker 1,981.62 pts
• #9 United States Jason Wheeler 1,975.24 pts
• #10 Argentina Ivan Luca 1,917.31 pts

Even if we ignore the lifetime achievements and look at something a bit more fresh and current we're still getting the same story.

God Bless America

At this point, it's hard to deny that the United States might be the nation of the best poker players in the world. They have a long poker tradition and they are the ones responsible for making the game popular. Going by the top places in various poker rankings is obviously an imperfect way of comparing the player skill of the entire nations, but no matter how many arguments about 'quantity over quality' we'll try to make and no matter how amazing young German players are doing recently in live poker tournaments the fact that birthplace of poker has the highest number of successful poker players is only natural and makes a lot of sense.

Poker is a game that is famous throughout the world. There are many casinos where one can easily play and win big. Now, every poker player would have the opinion that they are the best when it comes to winning but only a few of them could actually be considered the best poker players in the world. The debate for the best in the world is highly discussed.

Most definitely even you would have an opinion of the best poker players or would think that they are the best in the business. However, when it comes to deciding who the best is, it is important to be subjective and look at what their winnings have to say and the players that they have beaten along the way. This list that has been prepared represents only the top poker players in the world and is unbiased. As always, it is encouraged to engage in안전놀이터if you want to have a good time.

1. Justin Bonomo

The poker player needs no introduction. He has taken the world by a storm since his early poker career that began when he was only 16 years of age. At such a young age, he had managed to transform just a $500 deposit at the Paradise Poker into a whopping pot of $10,000. As the years followed, Justin became the youngest player in the world to ever feature in a televised final table event in which he took home $40,815.

Ever since, he has placed on number 1 at more than 20 events worldwide which includes the 2018 WSOP Big One for One Drop in which he won $10,000,000, $5,000,000 and $4,823,077, and the 2012 EPT Grand Final. His net worth is $44,040,711 according to various sources which is huge for someone so young. If you are looking for a name for inspiration then Justin Bonomo is your guy.

2. Daniel Negreanu

Another popular name which has made it big in the world of poker is Daniel Negreanu. He has been named by the Global Poker Index as the player of the decade for 2004 to 2013 which is a huge accomplishment in itself. His is a name that is most respected in the poker world.

Daniel holds at present 7 cashes for $1,000,000 or more. One of the largest which he took was for winning the Big One for One Drop at the WSOP in 2014 in which he won $8,280,000. Furthermore, he is the only player to have won World Series bracelets in Australia, Europe and Las Vegas. According to many sources, it is believed that Daniel Negreanu has a net worth of $39,830,195.

3. Erik Seidel

Erik is one of the best poker players in the world. He began his career in Poker before the internet poker boom. Getting a second place finish for the WSOP Main Event in 1988 he quickly made a name for himself. In the movie Rounder’s, his knockout hand had even been immortalized.

Then, in 2011 with million dollar winnings on two continents that highlighted his terrific year in which he made more than $6.5 Million. His current net worth is known to be $34,782,419 as per many news reports.

4. Fedor Holz

The German high roller has risen to fame ever since his 2016 winnings in which the year had been extremely successful for the young star. Fedor Holz is a true champion when it comes to all things poker. Holz had received his first bracelet from WSOP in the 2016 season as he won a whopping $111,111 at the No Limit Hold’ Em for One Drop which was just weeks after securing the 2^nd place title at the Super High Roller Bowl.

Top Professional Poker Players

Holz seems to continue to grow as he even got an amazing 2^nd place at the 2018 WSOP in which he won $6M. His current net worth is argued to be $32,556,379 and there are no signs of the young player slowing down.

Best Poker Player Ever Rankings

5. David Peters

Ever since he saw Chris Moneymaker win it big in 2003, David Peters converted to online poker and has gone on to have a highly successful career in poker. He has won over 9 separate cashes of over $1M which has pushed him into the league of big poker names.

Even though he has only won one bracelet, Peters has won about 50 cash finishes just in WSOP alone as well as with qualifying to 8 final tables. He has won poker matches throughout the world and his name is revered. With a net worth of $30,106,263 David has made it big. His signature finishes have earned him the reputation of being one of the best poker players in the world.

6. Daniel Colman

The poker star is best known for his big win at the Big One for One Drop at the 2014 WSOP. Daniel Colman has made many winnings in his successful career. It is due to his second-largest win in poker tournament history that made him immediately join the hall of fame. At the No Limit hold’ Em WSOP in 2014, he won $15,306,668 which is a huge amount of money.

Daniel has also received various player awards throughout the years including his 2014 BLUFF Player of the year award. Another award which he won in the same year was the 2014 Card Player Magazine Player of the year award. With so much credit owing to his name, Daniel has a net worth of $28,925,059.

7. Antonio Esfandiari

List Best Poker Players In The World

Finally, the list of the best poker players in the world would not be complete without including the poker player who made the single largest payout at a poker tournament. Antonio Esfandiari is the name that we are talking about. He won $18M at the WSOP Big One for One Drop which sets him at the top. He has a current net worth of $27,728,437 according to many sources. Starting out back in 2004, Antonio quickly made a name for himself.