The Greatest Poker Players of All Time

By Clinton Courier | May 18, 2022 |

Poker, a classic gambling game, is one of the most played card games at Poker Rooms Unaffected by Gamstop, not to mention one of the most interesting. Hence, deciding who the greatest poker players of all time are is not easy for most poker enthusiasts. The standards used as a benchmark go beyond just winnings in a poker tournament. It is wise to consider players’ style, achievements, and personality alongside their money in the decision-making process. The games’ flexibility makes it possible to have a different perspective on who would make the cut on a list of the greatest poker players. Without further ado, the most outstanding poker players include the following in no particular order.

DOYLE BRUNSON

Doyle Brunson is popularly referred to as the “The Godfather of Poker” because in the poker world, he is more or less the leader of the pack. Currently, it is on record that he is the only player who has steadily continued to compete at a high level for five decades. Brunson started his sports competing career as a college basketball star and an NBA prospect. Somehow, he diverted his love to playing poker, and he became one of the best players in the game in the 1970s.

Brunson is among the elite set of four players to win 10 WSOP bracelets; others are Phil Hellmuth, Johnny Chan, and Phil Ivey. He also won two Main Event titles in 1976 and 1977. The most remarkable thing about Brunson’s wins is that he has always been more of a cash game specialist. He was irregular at poker tournaments, and he always had great success in the events he played. At the age of 85, he still plays in some of the biggest cash games in the world.

Brunson’s son Todd Brunson is also well known as a Poker Hall of Famer, primarily because he wrote the most famous poker strategy book ever, “Super System.” The book remains relevant today.

JUSTIN BONOMO

Justin Bonomo, popularly called ZeeJustin, started gaining prominence and recognition while playing online poker during the poker boom. Even though Justin made mistakes with multi-accounting early in his poker career, he has worked hard to overcome his reputation and prove his ethics change by following the poker rules.

Bonomo started making final tables in Europe in 2005 and 2006 and won his first WSOP bracelet in 2014 and the subsequent second in 2018. Zeejustin’s most notable single cash event is the WSOP Big One for One Drop in 2018, where he won $10,000,000.

Today, Zeejustin remains a dominating force in the online poker world. He has about $44.6 million in cash winnings topping all other poker players. His earnings come in high roller tournaments at the game’s highest stakes and against some of the best competitors.

PHIL IVEY

Phil Ivey is commonly called the “tiger woods of poker.” This title he earned by being one of the youngest top poker players in the world. He started playing poker early in Atlantic city using fake IDs because he was still young. He won his first WSOP bracelet at the age of 23 and three more in one summer in 2002. His live tournament winnings amount to over $26 Million. He made a bad reputation in his career for breaking poker rules; however, despite these ethical issues, Phil has been able to win 10 WSOP bracelets, a WPT title, and earn admiration from his peers. In 2017, the poker world of fame elected Phil Ivey as a member making him one of the poker legends. As one of the youngest notable professional poker players, his fame increased during the poker boom with his involvement in online poker.

PHIL HELLMUTH JR.

Phil Hellmuth Jr. started playing in poker tournaments very young. His first attempt at the World Series of Poker dates back to 1988 when he came out in the 33^rd position. Surprisingly, the following year, he won the tournament the next year, beating all the players who beat him earlier. He earned the name ‘poker brat’ because of his erratic reactions to losses captured in several videos on the internet. Despite his bratty responses, he is the youngest World Series of Poker champion ever at 24 years. He is very prominent in the online poker scene, and he has over $25 million in career winnings.

BRYN KENNEY

Bryn Kenney, also known as Mega Crusher, began playing poker when he turned 16. He has undertaken huge wins and losses in his online poker career. He has earned the title of an uncompromising player amongst his peers, and his remarkable skills have made him a consistent finisher in the game. He earned his position as one of the greatest poker players when he won a World Series of Poker (WSP) bracelet in 2014 and made 32 finishes in money. He went up on the ranking of richest poker players in 2019 when he won $20.5 million at Triton Million in London. Bryn Kenney has made over $56 Million in online poker earnings, and he is still winning bigger games with high stakes.

JOHNNY MOSS

Johnny Moss is popularly called the Grandfather of poker. He started as a roadside gambler in texas, and the total sum of his winnings from those games is un-verified. However, as a professional poker player, he is the first winner of the World Series of Poker Main Event; since then, he has won 2 others, 9 WSP bracelets, and about $1.25 Million in winnings. As a legend in poker tournaments, he is the first professional poker player to be inducted into the poker wall of fame.

DANIEL NEGREANU

Daniel is a Canadian professional poker player popularly called kid poker by his fans. He has won 6 WSP bracelets and two poker tour championships. In 2014, Global Poker Index recognized him as the best poker player of the decade. Aside from that, he is the first professional poker player to be named player of the year by the WSOP. He has about $33 Million in winnings. Furthermore, Daniel holds the record as the most significant online poker winner.