Phil Hellmuth

Phil Hellmuth

  • Name: Phil Hellmuth
  • Nickname: The Poker Brat
  • Current Residence: Palo Alto, Calif.
  • Birth Date: July 16, 1964
  • Birth Place: Madison, Wis.

As famous for his antics at the poker table and bad beat tirades as he is for his incredible record as a tournament player, Phil Hellmuth Jr. will always be known as the Poker Brat.

A living legend, Hellmuth joined Johnny Chan and Doyle Brunson in 2006 as one of only three poker players in history with ten WSOP bracelets to their names. But what separates Hellmuth from even this legendary pack is that all of his WSOP wins have come in...

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Trivia

  • Was inaugurated into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2007
  • Holds the record for most final table cashes at the WSOP
  • Almost $9 million in career tournament winnings
  • Youngest ever winner of the WSOP Main Event (1989)
  • Currently holding the record for most WSOP gold bracelets with 11 tournament wins
  • Sponsored by UltimateBet.com
  • Author of Play Poker Like the Pros

Recent Tournament Placings

Tournament Place Winnings
2009 WSOP, Event 56 - $5,000 Six-Handed No-Limit Hold'em 24th $26,823
2009 WSOP, Event 48 - $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 14th $11,347
2009 WSOP, Event 38 - $2,000 Limit Hold'em 17th $8,019
2009 WSOP, Event 34 - $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em 113th $3,231
2009 WSOP, Event 11 - $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em 29th $12,761
2009 Special, NBC National Heads-Up Championship 6th $75,000
WPT Season 7, Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic 93rd $21,620
2008 WSOPE, Event 2, H.O.R.S.E. 12th £6,188
2008 WSOP, Event 54, Main Event No-Limit Hold'em 45th $154,400
2008 WSOP, Event 51, H.O.R.S.E. 3rd $93,168
2008 WSOP, Event 47, 7-Card Stud Hi-Lo 8-or-Better 33rd $2,895
2008 WSOP, Event 32, No-Limit Hold'em 71st $6,604
2008 WSOP, Event 28, Pot-Limit Omaha w/Rebuys 8th $100,292
WPT Season 6, L.A. Poker Classic 6th $229,820
2007 WSOP, Event 52, No-Limit Hold'em w/re-buys 95th $4,840
2007 WSOP, Event 45, No-Limit Hold'em/Six Handed 31st $13,344
2007 WSOP, Event 34, Limit Hold'em 25th $7,761
2007 WSOP, Event 28, No-Limit Hold'em 6th $76,464
2007 WSOP, Event 15, No-Limit Hold'em 1st $637,254
WPT Season 5, WPT World Championship 18th $123,760
2006 WSOP, Event 45, No-Limit Hold'em 3rd $53,945
2006 WSOP, Event 41, No-Limit Hold'em 44th $5,498
2006 WSOP, Event 34, No-Limit Hold'em w/re-buys 1st $631,863
2006 WSOP, Event 30, No-Limit Hold'em- Short-Handed 6/table 44th $8,340
2006 WSOP, Event 24, Omaha Hi-Lo Split 6th $48,576
2006 WSOP, Event 9, No-Limit Hold'em 2nd $423,893
2006 WSOP, Event 7, Limit Hold'em 13th $10,309
2006 WSOP, Event 2, No-Limit Hold'em 67th $7,578
2005 WSOP, Event 19, $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha 10th $5,080
2005 WSOP, Event 4, $1,500 Limit Hold'em 42nd $4,200
2005 WSOP, Event 2, $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em 24th $15,905
WPT Specials, WPT Poker by the Book 3rd $0
2004 WSOP, Event 25, Pot-Limit Hold'em 7th $34,880
WPT Season 2, World Poker Finals 3rd $281,700
2003 WSOP, Event 32, No-Limit Hold'em 1st $410,860
2003 WSOP, Event 12, Limit Hold'em 1st $171,400
2003 WSOP, Event 9, H.O.R.S.E. 12th $3,160
WPT Season 1, Gold Rush 4th $34,000
2002 WSOP, Event 9, $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em - Gold... 2nd $17,000
2001 WSOP, Event 5, No-Limit Hold'em 1st $316,550
1997 WSOP, Event 15, Pot-Limit Hold'em 1st $204,000
1993 WSOP, Event 9, Limit Hold'em 1st $138,000
1993 WSOP, Event 8, No-Limit Hold'em 1st $161,400
1993 WSOP, Event 7, No-Limit Hold'em 1st $173,000
1993 WSOP, Event 20, No-Limit Deuce-to-Seven Lowball 2nd $72,500
1989 WSOP, Event 14, World Championship No-Limit Texas... 1st $755,000
1992 WSOP, Event 8, Limit Hold'em 1st $188,000
1992 WSOP, Event 4, Limit Hold'em 2nd $84,000
1994 WSOP, Event 4, No-Limit Hold'em 2nd $93,900
2001 WSOP, Event 23, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 2nd $103,785
2003 WSOP, Event 16, Pot-Limit Omaha 3rd $15,800
1992 WSOP, Event 18, No-Limit Deuce to Seven Lowball 4th $26,500
2000 WSOP, Event 14, $2,500 Pot-Limit Omaha 4th $29,250
2001 WSOP, World Series of Poker Main Event - 2001 5th $303,705
1988 WSOP, Event 6, Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo 5th $15,450
1989 WSOP, Event 4, Pot-Limit Omaha with Rebuys 5th $25,300
1990 WSOP, Event 13, No-Limit Hold'em 5th $32,500
1999 WSOP, Event 9, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 5th $20,925
2003 WSOP, Event 26, Limit Hold'em 6th $15,040
1996 WSOP, Event 13 $2,500 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 6th $12,375
2000 WSOP, Event 10, Pot-Limit Hold'em 6th $16,450
2001 WSOP, Event 10, Limit Hold'em 6th $19,555
1992 WSOP, Event 11, Pot-Limit Hold'em 8th $6,700
2002 WSOP, Event 6, Limit Omaha 8th $3,640
1992 WSOP, Event 2, No-Limit Hold'em 9th $5,715
2001 WSOP, Event 7, Limit Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo 9th $4,685
1999 WSOP, Event 7, No-Limit Hold'em 12th $9,210
1989 WSOP, Event 9, Limit Ace-to-Five Draw 13th $2,985
1998 WSOP, Event 8, Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 14th $4,080
2001 WSOP, Event 14, Pot-Limit Omaha 15th $4,910
2001 WSOP, Event 16, Limit Ace to Five Draw 15th $1,850
1998 WSOP, Event 5, Pot-Limit Omaha 16th $3,870

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Player Statistics

Cashes74
Total Winnings$6,751,398
First Place Finishes11
WSOP Bracelets11

Player Analysis of Phil Hellmuth ?

Description

Phil may go down as the pioneer in a method of playing a lot of hands and making small bets and raises that keep opponents in the pot, the theory being that he will make better decisions than they do on subsequent streets.

This strategy guarantees large fluctuations and has a lot to say for it against weak opposition. This method would not work as well in a cash game where there is no rush to build up a chip stack and by virtue of playing too many pots opponents can easily take the betting lead away.

In a tournament, the extra fear of going bust can keep your opponents at bay and the bad players are confused by what looks like mass hysteria to them. When Phil has his banter and his A-game working, he not only can control the table, but he can mesmerize the entire room.

Players who have been successful adopting a similar style are Gus Hansen, Layne Flack, Antonio Esfandiari, Alan Goehring, and to a small degree Daniel Negreanu.

Phil has assured me that he is a much better player than I give him credit for. He feels he has enough technical skill to win at higher limits, but when he has tried in the past, he often gotten derailed by his lack of self-control.

Best Game

Tournament No-Limit Hold'em

Weakness

Self-control

Phil Hellmuth's Score

6 5.9/10

  • Aggressiveness 7
  • Looseness 7
  • Limit 6
  • No-Limit 7
  • Side Games 3
  • Steam Control 2
  • Against Strong Players 5
  • Tournaments 7
  • Short-Handed 7
  • Against Weak Players 8

Amusing Anecdote

I first played with Phil in a No-Limit side game in Los Angeles in 1992. I didn’t pay attention to tournament poker back then, but I had heard that he was a cocky kid who had won a big tournament. He was playing fast and loose and showing his hands and needling people whenever he outplayed them.

Well, I was pretty cocky too. Phil opened for a raise, I re-raised and Phil called. After the flop, I bet, Phil raised and I re-raised him all-in. He thought for a while, showed me top pair and then folded. I showed him Deuce-Three off-suit which bore no relation to the flop.

Phil stood up and said, “Nice play buddy, but that’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done. Do you realize that giving me that kind of information is going to cost you all of your money? It’s because of players like you that I make millions of dollars a year playing poker.”

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Phil Hellmuth Photos

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Phil Hellmuth

Phil Hellmuth

Phil Hellmuth

Phil Hellmuth

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