Phil Ivey has been branded as the greatest poker competitor on the planet by quite a few of the top pros. Phil was born in Riverside, CA and moved to New Jersey before his first birthday. His grandpa showed him to one cent-ante 5-Card Stud poker. From that point on, Phil was addicted to poker and wanted to discover anything he possibly could about poker. He routinely told his parents that he wanted to be a professional poker player. He did not let the negative comments from others kill his ambition of being one of the strongest poker players on the planet.

He began playing seriously after getting a fake ID with the name of Jerome. He sharpened his skills at the casinos in Atlantic City. The first number of years for him were a teaching period and coming away with a win wasn’t a regular thing at the time. He made his mark at the 2000 WSOP where he achieved two final tables and came away with his first WSOP bracelet, in a two dollar, 500 Pot-Limit Omaha match. At the final table he defeated a number of the better known pros including "Amarillo Slim" Preston, David "Devilfish" Ulliot, and Phil Hellmuth, Jr.

Phil made a decision to take his game to the successive level and moved out west to Sin City. He continues to play in "The Big Game" at the Bellagio with the greatest players in the world. Phil credits his success to hard work and an immeasurable love for the game of poker. Phil says that he is learning every single day and is quite humble about his accomplishments. He knows he makes blunders every single game of poker and constantly strives to improve.

Despite the fact that Phil has won some big tournaments, he favors winning money games on a normal basis.