About Lee Watkinson

Name	Lee Watkinson
Current Residence	Tacoma Wash.
Birth Place	Cheney Wash.

At a 2007 World Series of Poker final table made up of relatively unknown players, Lee Watkinson's name might have been the only one to ring any bells.

The Washington native holds a gold bracelet for winning the 2006 Pot-Limit Omaha World Championship, has nine WSOP cashes and two second-place finishes at World Poker Tour final tables.

Watkinson qualified for the 2007 Main Event through Full Tilt Poker, which meant that he had a shot at an extra $10 million from the poker site if he won. It wasn't to be this time around, though. He went out in eighth place.

A businessman by trade, Watkinson spends his spare time playing poker and the stock market. But the cause truest to his heart are animal rights causes, specifically a project he created with his fiancée.

The couple raise money to rescue and retire chimpanzees living in captivity and being used for movies and as test subjects in research labs. With a few years of work on the project already under his belt, Watkinson is making a commitment to rescue as many as possible to house in an animal sanctuary.

The $585,699 he won for placing eighth in the 2007 WSOP Main Event should go a long way toward Watkinson achieving his altruistic goals.

Trivia

Economics graduate
2007 WSOP Main Event eight-place finisher
Named Player of the Year in 2004 by CardPlayer Magazine

Lee Watkinson recent tournament placings

Place	Winnings	Tournament
21	$12,623	WSOP 2011, Event 57 - $5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo
2	$141,873	2009 WSOP, Event 48 - $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo
36	$22,671	2009 WSOP, Event 4 - $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em
5	$63,313	2008 WSOP, Event 38, Pot-Limit Hold'em
91	$5,784	2008 WSOP, Event 13, No-Limit Hold'em
14	$27,072	2008 WSOP, Event 8, World Championship Mixed Event
51	$9,839	2008 WSOP, Event 5, No-Limit Hold'em w/re-buys
9	$44,000	WPT Season 6, Bay 101 Shooting Star
7	$28,272	2007 WSOPC, Harrah's Rincon San Diego North
5	$282,779	WPT Season 6, Borgata Poker Classic
8	$585,699	2007 WSOP, Event 55, World Championship No-Limit Texas Hold'em
60	$8,067	2007 WSOP, Event 52, No-Limit Hold'em w/Re-Buys
107	$4,108	2007 WSOP, Event 27, No-Limit Hold'em
30	$4,524	2006 WSOP, Event 29, Pot-Limit Hold'em
1	$655,746	2006 WSOP, Event 16, Pot-Limit Omaha
45	$235,390	2005 WSOP, WSOP 2005 $10,000 World Championship Event
40	$6,790	2005 WSOP, Event 31, $5,000 No-limit Hold'em, Short-handed (6/table)
2	$578,375	WPT Season 3, Legends of Poker
2	$513,038	WPT Season 3, Mirage Poker Showdown