Mike Matusow
Encyclopedia
Michael Matusow is an American professional poker player, residing in Henderson, Nevada
. Matusow's nickname of "The Mouth" reflects his reputation for trash-talking at the poker table. He is also known for sometimes ruining hours or days of good play with a single spectacular misjudgment, (known as a "Mike Matusow Blow-up" or "Mike Matusow Meltdown").
Matusow began playing poker seriously in the early 1990s, first while working as a poker dealer
, then as a professional player. His successes include being a three-time World Series of Poker
bracelet winner, and the winner of the 2005 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions
.
in the Maxim Casino
at the age of 18, which he played regularly, to the extent that he suffered from repetitive strain injury
in his shoulders and arms. He occasionally stole money from his mother's purse and at one point attended Gamblers Anonymous
meetings. Matusow was taught Texas hold 'em
in 1989 by a rounder
named Steve Samaroff.
(WSOP), Matusow paid part of Scotty Nguyen
's entrance fee into a satellite event for the $10,000 no limit
Texas hold 'em main event. Nguyen went on to win, and gave $333,333 to Matusow in return for his partial stake. In 1999, Matusow won his first WSOP bracelet, winning the $3,500 No Limit Hold'em event defeating Alex Brenes
heads-up to win the title.
In 2001
, he finished 6th place in the WSOP $10,000 no limit Hold 'em main event. Matusow says that the decisive hand was when he was bluffed
by eventual champion Juan Carlos Mortensen
, but did not trust his instincts to call.
At the 2002 WSOP, Matusow won his second bracelet by winning the $5,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split 8 or Better event. He defeated his friend and fellow professional poker player Daniel Negreanu
to win the tournament.
In the 2005 WSOP
, Matusow finished 9th out of 5,619 players in the main event, winning $1,000,000. Several months later, he won the WSOP Tournament of Champions
in a heads-up battle against Hoyt Corkins
, earning another $1,000,000 in the process, making him the first player to win two million dollar prizes in the same year. He also placed third in the Tournament of Champions the following year, winning $250,000.
At the 2008 WSOP, Matusow won a third bracelet in the $5000 No Limit 2–7 Draw with rebuys event defeating Jeff Lisandro
heads up for the $537,862 first prize. Later in the same year he finished 30th out of 6,844 players in the Main Event, making yet another deep run in the Main Event.
(WPT) final table at the UltimateBet Aruba Classic, earning $250,000 for 3rd place. In 2006, he finished runner-up to Tony G
in the WPT Bad Boys of Poker II in heads-up play. Matusow also appeared in Poker Superstars III
, where he made it to the Elite Eight. In the winner-take-all championship match, Matusow beat seven other players to win $500,000. He also appeared in the second, third, fourth and sixth season of High Stakes Poker
. In September 2006, Mike made his debut on the European Poker Tour
(EPT) in Barcelona; however, he was eliminated on the first day. In early 2007, Matusow appeared on two episodes of Poker After Dark
where he finished 3rd and 2nd respectively. He plays online poker
under the following aliases: "dill pickle" (UltimateBet); "mrpokejoke" (PokerStars
); and "Mike Matusow" (Full Tilt Poker
, where he is also a member of "Team Full Tilt").
In July 2007, Matusow won $671,320 after coming in second place at the World Poker Tour
Bellagio Cup III
Championship after online pro Kevin Saul
defeated him during heads-up play. On November 11, 2008 at the World Poker Tour
Foxwoods World Poker Finals
, Matusow made another WPT final table, He was eliminated after his didn't improve against Jonathan Little
's hand of , he finished in 6th place, earning $124,048.
As of 2010, his total live tournament winnings exceed $7,400,000. $3,140,713 of his winnings have come at the WSOP.
He has also dealt with being overweight, detailed on ESPN's broadcast of the 2007 WSOP. During that tournament, Mike made a $100,000 bet with Ted Forrest
that he could get down to 181 pounds by June 3, 2008. Mike won the bet on June 3, weighing in at 179 pounds. Matusow resides in a 3700 square feet (343.7 m²) home in Henderson (with a cathedral ceiling) and bought a $90,000 BMW 645 CI cabriolet
from a $750,000 winning session at online poker. He often wears a gold chain with the Hebrew symbol 'chai
' around his neck. Additionally, Matusow hosted Card Player's poker radio show/podcast
, the Circuit, before being replaced by Gavin Smith and Joe Sebok
. He was also the host of Card Player's now defunct online video segment, "The Mouthpiece." In one particular episode, Mike discussed the controversial Ultimatebet.com superuser cheating scandal, as well seeking legal action as a victim of the scandal against the main perpetrator, former World Series of Poker Champion Russ Hamilton
.
In 2009 Mike Matusow signed a contract with Deepstacks.com to become the Dean of Deepstacks University, an interactive poker training site.
Matusow wrote an autobiography entitled Check Raising the Devil that was released May 12, 2009.
Matusow currently does a Poker online Live show entitled, "Mike The Mouth Live" at scottmatusow.com/radio Each Thursday at 3 P.M Pacific Time
Henderson, Nevada
-Demographics:According to the 2000 census, there were 175,381 people, 66,331 households, and 47,095 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,200.8 people per square mile . There were 71,149 housing units at an average density of 892.8 per square mile...
. Matusow's nickname of "The Mouth" reflects his reputation for trash-talking at the poker table. He is also known for sometimes ruining hours or days of good play with a single spectacular misjudgment, (known as a "Mike Matusow Blow-up" or "Mike Matusow Meltdown").
Matusow began playing poker seriously in the early 1990s, first while working as a poker dealer
Poker dealer
A poker dealer distributes cards to players and manages the action at a poker table.-Professional dealers:Any casino with a poker room must hire a staff of dealers. Casinos generally pay dealers minimum wage. However, a dealer's primary source of income is not salary, but tips from players*...
, then as a professional player. His successes include being a three-time World Series of Poker
World Series of Poker
The World Series of Poker is a world-renowned series of poker tournaments held annually in Las Vegas and, since 2005, sponsored by Harrah's Entertainment...
bracelet winner, and the winner of the 2005 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions
World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions
The World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions is an invitational freeroll poker event. Wins in this event do not count as official WSOP bracelets, but the winner receives a large trophy in the shape of the official World Series of Poker logo. In 2010, the WSOP Tournament of Champions returned...
.
Early years
Matusow's first experience of poker was playing video pokerVideo poker
Video poker is a casino game based on five-card draw poker. It is played on a computerized console similar in size to a slot machine.-History:...
in the Maxim Casino
Westin Causarina Las Vegas Hotel, Casino & Spa
The Westin Casuarina Las Vegas Hotel, Casino & Spa is a resort and casino in Paradise, Nevada. It is located at the intersection of Flamingo Boulevard and Koval Lane, just east of the Las Vegas Strip. The Westin Casuarina is managed and owned by Columbia Sussex, under franchise from Starwood Hotels...
at the age of 18, which he played regularly, to the extent that he suffered from repetitive strain injury
Repetitive strain injury
Repetitive strain injury is an injury of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems that may be caused by...
in his shoulders and arms. He occasionally stole money from his mother's purse and at one point attended Gamblers Anonymous
Gamblers Anonymous
Gamblers Anonymous is a twelve-step program for problem gamblers. GA began in Los Angeles on September 13, 1957. As of 2005 there were over 1000 GA meetings in the United States and meetings established in the United Kingdom, Spain, New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Israel, Kenya, Uganda, Korea and...
meetings. Matusow was taught Texas hold 'em
Texas hold 'em
Texas Hold 'em is a variation of the standard card game of poker. The game consists of two cards being dealt face down to each player and then five community cards being placed face-up by the dealer—a series of three then two additional single cards , with...
in 1989 by a rounder
Card sharp
A card sharp is a person who uses skill and deception to win at poker or other card games...
named Steve Samaroff.
World Series of Poker
At the 1998 World Series of Poker1998 World Series of Poker
-Preliminary events:-Final table:-Other High Finishes:NB: This list is restricted to top 30 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry.-External Links:*...
(WSOP), Matusow paid part of Scotty Nguyen
Scotty Nguyen
Thuận B. "Scotty" Nguyễn is a Vietnamese American professional poker player who is a five time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, most notably as the winner of the 1998 World Series of Poker Main Event and the 2008 WSOP $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. World Championship...
's entrance fee into a satellite event for the $10,000 no limit
Betting (poker)
In the game of poker, the play largely centers on the act of betting, and as such, a protocol has been developed to speed up play, lessen confusion, and increase security while playing...
Texas hold 'em main event. Nguyen went on to win, and gave $333,333 to Matusow in return for his partial stake. In 1999, Matusow won his first WSOP bracelet, winning the $3,500 No Limit Hold'em event defeating Alex Brenes
Alex Brenes
Alex Brenes is a Costa Rican professional poker player.Brenes was the winner of a World Poker Tour title in 2005 and is the younger brother of professional poker players Humberto Brenes and Eric Brenes, the three of them together are known as "Godfather of Costa Rican players,"...
heads-up to win the title.
In 2001
2001 World Series of Poker
-Preliminary events:-Main Event:There were 613 entrants to the main event. Each paid $10,000 to enter what was the largest poker tournament ever played in a non-online casino at the time.-Final table:-Other High Finishes:...
, he finished 6th place in the WSOP $10,000 no limit Hold 'em main event. Matusow says that the decisive hand was when he was bluffed
Bluff (poker)
In the card game of poker, a bluff is a bet or raise made with a hand which is not thought to be the best hand. To bluff is to make such a bet. The objective of a bluff is to induce a fold by at least one opponent who holds a better hand. The size and frequency of a bluff determines its...
by eventual champion Juan Carlos Mortensen
Carlos Mortensen
Juan Carlos Mortensen is an Ecuadorian professional poker player of Danish descent and the only Hispanic Main Event winner of the World Series of Poker. Mortensen is known for his loose play, bluffing tactics, and interesting chip-stacking style.Mortensen moved from Spain to the United States in...
, but did not trust his instincts to call.
At the 2002 WSOP, Matusow won his second bracelet by winning the $5,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split 8 or Better event. He defeated his friend and fellow professional poker player Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu
Daniel Negreanu is a Canadian professional poker player. He has won four World Series of Poker bracelets and two World Poker Tour Championship titles. He is currently ranked second in the all-time career earnings list and is the star of poker game show Million Dollar Challenge. He plays a big...
to win the tournament.
In the 2005 WSOP
2005 World Series of Poker
The 2005 World Series of Poker opened play on June 2, continuing through the Main Event No Limit World Championship starting on July 7. The conclusion of the Main Event on July 15 marked the close of play, and the largest prize in sports and/or television history at the time was awarded to the...
, Matusow finished 9th out of 5,619 players in the main event, winning $1,000,000. Several months later, he won the WSOP Tournament of Champions
World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions
The World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions is an invitational freeroll poker event. Wins in this event do not count as official WSOP bracelets, but the winner receives a large trophy in the shape of the official World Series of Poker logo. In 2010, the WSOP Tournament of Champions returned...
in a heads-up battle against Hoyt Corkins
Hoyt Corkins
Hoyt Bricken Corkins is an American professional poker player.He also has three children in Chelsei Corkins, Brittney Corkins, and Ashley Roundtre...
, earning another $1,000,000 in the process, making him the first player to win two million dollar prizes in the same year. He also placed third in the Tournament of Champions the following year, winning $250,000.
At the 2008 WSOP, Matusow won a third bracelet in the $5000 No Limit 2–7 Draw with rebuys event defeating Jeff Lisandro
Jeff Lisandro
Jeffrey Lisandro is an Australian professional poker player, now residing in Salerno, Italy. Lisandro is known by many to be a cash game specialist, but is a well-known face on the poker tournament circuit and is regarded as one of the premier Seven Card Stud players in the world...
heads up for the $537,862 first prize. Later in the same year he finished 30th out of 6,844 players in the Main Event, making yet another deep run in the Main Event.
World Series of Poker Bracelets
| Year | Event | Prize Money |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 1999 World Series of Poker -Preliminary events:-Final table:-Other High Finishes:NB: This list is restricted to top 30 finishers with an existing Wikipedia entry.-External Links:*... |
$3,500 No Limit Hold 'em | $265,475 |
| 2002 2002 World Series of Poker The 2002 World Series of Poker was held at Binion's Horseshoe.This edition was historically notable for two reasons. It was the first WSOP in which pocket cams were installed to allow broadcasters to show the players' hole cards, although only for the Main Event... |
$5,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split 8 or Better | $148,520 |
| 2008 2008 World Series of Poker The 2008 World Series of Poker was the 39th annual World Series of Poker . Held in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino, the series began on May 30, 2008, and featured 55 poker championships in several variants. All events but the $10,000 World Championship No Limit Texas hold... |
$5,000 No Limit 2–7 Draw w/Rebuys | $537,862 |
Other poker events
In October 2004, Matusow made his first World Poker TourWorld Poker Tour
The World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting the final table of each tournament. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who served as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that...
(WPT) final table at the UltimateBet Aruba Classic, earning $250,000 for 3rd place. In 2006, he finished runner-up to Tony G
Tony G
Antanas Guoga , more commonly known as Tony G, is a businessman and professional poker player. As a child, he was the Rubik's Cube champion of Lithuania before moving to Melbourne, Australia at the age of 11. He has played poker since the age of 18, and is known for his outlandish table talk and...
in the WPT Bad Boys of Poker II in heads-up play. Matusow also appeared in Poker Superstars III
Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament
The Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament is a series of no limit Texas hold 'em poker tournaments. The first season is available on NTSC DVD. It airs on Fox Sports Net in the United States, Rogers Sportsnet in Canada and ftn in the United Kingdom.-Crew:...
, where he made it to the Elite Eight. In the winner-take-all championship match, Matusow beat seven other players to win $500,000. He also appeared in the second, third, fourth and sixth season of High Stakes Poker
High Stakes Poker
High Stakes Poker is a cash game poker television program broadcast by the cable television network GSN in the United States. The poker variant played on the show is no limit Texas hold 'em. It premiered on January 16, 2006 and ended on December 17, 2007 and it returns back on March 1, 2009 and is...
. In September 2006, Mike made his debut on the European Poker Tour
European Poker Tour
The Pokerstars European Poker Tour is a series of poker tournaments similar to those in the World Poker Tour , created by John Duthie, winner of the inaugural Poker Million tournament. It began in 2004 as part of the worldwide explosion in Texas Hold 'em popularity...
(EPT) in Barcelona; however, he was eliminated on the first day. In early 2007, Matusow appeared on two episodes of Poker After Dark
Poker After Dark
Poker After Dark was an hour-long poker television program on NBC. The show made its debut on January 1, 2007, and was cancelled as another victim of the "Black Friday" criminal case due to the show's sponsorship by Full Tilt Poker, one of that case's defendants. on September 23, 2011 For its first...
where he finished 3rd and 2nd respectively. He plays online poker
Online poker
Online poker is the game of poker played over the Internet. It has been partly responsible for a dramatic increase in the number of poker players worldwide...
under the following aliases: "dill pickle" (UltimateBet); "mrpokejoke" (PokerStars
PokerStars
PokerStars is the largest online poker cardroom in the world. PokerStars' satellite tournaments produced the 2003 World Series of Poker champion, Chris Moneymaker. 1983 champion Tom McEvoy, 2005 champion Joe Hachem, 2009 champion Joe Cada and 2010 champion Jonathan Duhamel and others also represent...
); and "Mike Matusow" (Full Tilt Poker
Full Tilt Poker
Full Tilt Poker is an online poker card room that opened in June 2004 with the involvement of poker professionals Howard Lederer, Phil Ivey, Andy Bloch, Mike Matusow, Jennifer Harman and Chris Ferguson...
, where he is also a member of "Team Full Tilt").
In July 2007, Matusow won $671,320 after coming in second place at the World Poker Tour
World Poker Tour
The World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting the final table of each tournament. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who served as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that...
Bellagio Cup III
World Poker Tour season 6 results
Below are the results of season six of the World Poker Tour .Towards the end of season 6 the World Poker Tour announced that they would award a Tiffany designed titanium and diamond championship bracelet for all previous 96 players....
Championship after online pro Kevin Saul
Kevin Saul
Kevin Saul is an American professional poker player from Forest Park, Illinois.Saul is known for his online nickname "BeL0WaB0Ve" on sites such as PokerStars, Bodog and UltimateBet and is also known by the name "GetPWN3D" on Full Tilt Poker...
defeated him during heads-up play. On November 11, 2008 at the World Poker Tour
World Poker Tour
The World Poker Tour is a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting the final table of each tournament. It was started in the United States by attorney/television producer Steven Lipscomb, who served as CEO of WPT Enterprises , the firm that...
Foxwoods World Poker Finals
World Poker Tour season 7 results
- Spanish Championship:* Casino: Casino Barcelona, Barcelona * Buy-in: €5,000* 5-Day Event: Friday, May 23, 2008 to Tuesday, May 27, 2008* Number of Entries: 253* Total Prize Pool: €1,278,396...
, Matusow made another WPT final table, He was eliminated after his didn't improve against Jonathan Little
Jonathan Little
Jonathan Little is an American professional poker player who won both the World Poker Tour's Season VI Mirage Poker Showdown and Season VII Foxwoods World Poker Finals and won the WPT Season VI Player of the Year award.- Biography :Little was a student at the University of West Florida studying...
's hand of , he finished in 6th place, earning $124,048.
As of 2010, his total live tournament winnings exceed $7,400,000. $3,140,713 of his winnings have come at the WSOP.
Personal life
Matusow is both loved and disliked by many poker fans. At the 2007 WSOP Main Event final table, Tournament Director Jack Effel asked the audience to recognize one of Effel's "favorite" players. The fans cheered and booed. Matusow has had several personal problems. He has battled drug issues, including a six-month stint in jail in 2004 and 2005 after being caught with cocaine. An undercover police officer pretended to befriend Matusow and gain his trust. After several months of an official Las Vegas Metro Police "Sting Operation", Matusow was arrested and charged with 6 category A Felonies, all drug related. A Plea deal was later reached where Matusow was incarcerated in The Clark County Dentention Center for 6 months.He has also dealt with being overweight, detailed on ESPN's broadcast of the 2007 WSOP. During that tournament, Mike made a $100,000 bet with Ted Forrest
Ted Forrest
Ted Forrest is an American professional poker player, currently residing in Las Vegas, Nevada.- Tournament Wins:...
that he could get down to 181 pounds by June 3, 2008. Mike won the bet on June 3, weighing in at 179 pounds. Matusow resides in a 3700 square feet (343.7 m²) home in Henderson (with a cathedral ceiling) and bought a $90,000 BMW 645 CI cabriolet
BMW E63/E64
The BMW E63/E64 is the current model of the BMW 6 Series of luxury coupés, introduced in Autumn 2003 in Frankfurt Motor Show by German car manufacturer BMW. It comes as either a coupé or cabriolet and in several engine variants ranging from a 3 litre straight-6 to 5 litre V10 in the M6 model...
from a $750,000 winning session at online poker. He often wears a gold chain with the Hebrew symbol 'chai
Chai (symbol)
Chai is a symbol and word that figures prominently in Jewish culture. It consists of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet Chet and Yod .The Hebrew word "living" is related to the term for "life", chaim; ḥayyim....
' around his neck. Additionally, Matusow hosted Card Player's poker radio show/podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
, the Circuit, before being replaced by Gavin Smith and Joe Sebok
Joe Sebok
Joe Sebok is a professional poker player from San Francisco, California. His stepfather, Barry Greenstein, is also a professional poker player. He is known as "The Cub" because he calls Greenstein "Bear." Beginning professional play in 2005, as of 2009, his total live tournament winnings exceed...
. He was also the host of Card Player's now defunct online video segment, "The Mouthpiece." In one particular episode, Mike discussed the controversial Ultimatebet.com superuser cheating scandal, as well seeking legal action as a victim of the scandal against the main perpetrator, former World Series of Poker Champion Russ Hamilton
Russ Hamilton
Russ Hamilton was the 1994 World Series of Poker main event champion. He defeated Hugh Vincent in heads-up play to win $1 million in first-prize money, as well as his body weight in silver. Following his World Series win, Hamilton served as a consultant for Ultimate Bet, an online poker server...
.
In 2009 Mike Matusow signed a contract with Deepstacks.com to become the Dean of Deepstacks University, an interactive poker training site.
Matusow wrote an autobiography entitled Check Raising the Devil that was released May 12, 2009.
Matusow currently does a Poker online Live show entitled, "Mike The Mouth Live" at scottmatusow.com/radio Each Thursday at 3 P.M Pacific Time