Tony Bloom
Encyclopedia
Anthony Grant "Tony" Bloom (born 20 March 1970 in Brighton
, Sussex
) is a football club chairman and successful poker
player.
He appeared in the Late Night Poker
television series and also has a final table appearance on the World Poker Tour
. Tony also made back-to-back final table appearances in the first two Poker Million
events. His first major win came in January 2004 when he won the Australasian Poker Championship
in Melbourne, collecting a first prize of around AUD 420,000($320,000, £180,000)).
Bloom won the £5,000 No Limit Hold'em VC Poker Cup
Final in London
on 5 August 2005 and won the £200,000 ($351,401) first prize.
He also had a fourth place finish in the 2005 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions
. After being eliminated, Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
told him of the "great respect" he had for Bloom's game{Citation needed].
Bloom was a member of the winning British team in the Poker Nations Cup
. He is considered one of the most popular players on the circuit, and considers Mike Sexton
to be his favourite player.
As of 2008, his total live tournament winnings exceed $1,500,000. Bloom won AU$600,0000 for his second place finish in the High Rollers Challenge, event 8 of the Australian Poker Millions tournament held in Melbourne in Jan 2009.
Bloom fell short of the million pound grand prize in the Poker Million
IX event held in London on 10 December 2010. He finished second behind Gus Hansen
.
club Brighton & Hove Albion
. He succeeded Dick Knight after securing a 95% shareholding in the club and investing £93 million into the development of the club's new ground, the American Express Community Stadium
at Falmer.
Upon taking-over the club Bloom declared his love of the game, "I've been a football fan and a gambler since the age of about seven or eight. My interest in both developed at the same time." Bloom is a longtime fan of Brighton and his family has had a long association with the club: his uncle Ray is a director and his grandfather, Harry, was vice-chairman during the 1970s. Since becoming chairman he has appointed former Uruguay international Gus Poyet as manager and together they led Brighton to promotion from Football League One
as champions in 2011.
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
) is a football club chairman and successful poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
player.
Poker and betting
Bloom made a name for himself as a successful sports bettor and property investor. His nickname, The Lizard, is an alias given to him by an old friend, who claimed he had alligator blood.He appeared in the Late Night Poker
Late Night Poker
Late Night Poker is the pioneering television show that helped pave the way for the explosion of interest in poker in the 2000's. With it's ground breaking use of "under the table" cameras that enabled the viewer to see each player's cards, the show became a cult hit on Channel 4 UK when it first...
television series and also has a final table appearance on 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...
. Tony also made back-to-back final table appearances in the first two Poker Million
Poker Million
The Poker Million has been a televised European poker tournament since its inception in November 2000. The final debuted to 30 million viewers and has since remained popular. It was created by UK gaming outfit Ladbrokes with the help of sports promotion firm Matchroom Sport...
events. His first major win came in January 2004 when he won the Australasian Poker Championship
Crown Australian Poker Championship
The Australian Poker Championship, commonly known as Aussie Millions, is a series of poker tournaments held at the Crown Casino, in Melbourne, Australia...
in Melbourne, collecting a first prize of around AUD 420,000($320,000, £180,000)).
Bloom won the £5,000 No Limit Hold'em VC Poker Cup
Victor Chandler Poker Cup
The Victor Chandler Poker Cup was a poker tournament held in 2004 and 2005 in England for broadcast on Sky Sports....
Final in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 5 August 2005 and won the £200,000 ($351,401) first prize.
He also had a fourth place finish in 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...
. After being eliminated, Phil Hellmuth, Jr.
Phil Hellmuth
Phil Hellmuth is an American professional poker player. He is best known for holding a record 11 World Series of Poker bracelets, for winning the Main Event of the 1989 World Series of Poker and for his temperamental, "poker brat" personality...
told him of the "great respect" he had for Bloom's game{Citation needed].
Bloom was a member of the winning British team in the Poker Nations Cup
Poker Nations Cup
The Poker Nations Cup is an international poker tournament, televised on Channel 4 from March 2006 onwards.The series is commentated by Jesse May and Barny Boatman. Padraig Parkinson covered for Boatman in preliminary match 2....
. He is considered one of the most popular players on the circuit, and considers Mike Sexton
Mike Sexton
Michael Richard Sexton is an American professional poker player and commentator. He is a member of the Poker Hall of Fame.-Early years:...
to be his favourite player.
As of 2008, his total live tournament winnings exceed $1,500,000. Bloom won AU$600,0000 for his second place finish in the High Rollers Challenge, event 8 of the Australian Poker Millions tournament held in Melbourne in Jan 2009.
Bloom fell short of the million pound grand prize in the Poker Million
Poker Million
The Poker Million has been a televised European poker tournament since its inception in November 2000. The final debuted to 30 million viewers and has since remained popular. It was created by UK gaming outfit Ladbrokes with the help of sports promotion firm Matchroom Sport...
IX event held in London on 10 December 2010. He finished second behind Gus Hansen
Gus Hansen
Gustav "Gus" Hansen is a professional Danish poker player who lives in Monaco. In his poker career, Hansen has won three World Poker Tour open titles, the 2007 Aussie Millions main event and was the season one winner of the Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament...
.
Football chairman
Since 2009 Bloom has been the chairman of Football League ChampionshipFootball League Championship
The Football League Championship is the highest division of The Football League and second-highest division overall in the English football league system after the Premier League...
club Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club are an English association football club based in the coastal city of Brighton & Hove, East Sussex. They currently play in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system....
. He succeeded Dick Knight after securing a 95% shareholding in the club and investing £93 million into the development of the club's new ground, the American Express Community Stadium
Falmer Stadium
Falmer Stadium, known for sponsorship purposes as the American Express Community Stadium, or The Amex, is a football stadium near the village of Falmer in Brighton and Hove and is the home of Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.. The stadium was handed over from the developers to the club on 31 May 2011...
at Falmer.
Upon taking-over the club Bloom declared his love of the game, "I've been a football fan and a gambler since the age of about seven or eight. My interest in both developed at the same time." Bloom is a longtime fan of Brighton and his family has had a long association with the club: his uncle Ray is a director and his grandfather, Harry, was vice-chairman during the 1970s. Since becoming chairman he has appointed former Uruguay international Gus Poyet as manager and together they led Brighton to promotion from Football League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
as champions in 2011.