Patrik_Antonius
Introduction
Patrik Antonius, the Black Lotus or The Finn, as he is nicknamed, was born in Finland on the 13th December 1980. He is a Finnish professional poker player and has a few other achievements to his name. He is also a former tennis player, coach and a model for Vantaa Finland.
Patrik Antonius Discovers Poker
Patrik had never set out to become a professional poker player as he had a promising tennis career that he was pursuing. However, due to a severe back injury, his life led him to the green felt becoming a successful poker player. He stumbled upon Poker at 17, and as soon as he turned 18, he found his way into a local casino with his game of choice being Pot-Limit Omaha.
In 2003 Patrik discovered online Poker, a moment that truly defined his poker career. Moreover, he deposited $200 into his online account and has never looked back. He turned that $200 into $20 000 within a couple of months. His most significant cash came in 2012 when he finished as the runner up to Phil Ivey in the $250 000 Aussie Millions Challenge earning $1.2 million which was his second 7 figure score.
HighStakes DB stated that between 2008-2013 Patrik accumulated winnings over $11 million on Full Tilt and PokerStars playing a FinddaGrind. He won in the region of $6 million between 2007-2016. Furthermore, Antonius holds the record for the most prominent online poker pot win in poker history.
Conclusion
Patrik Antonius has no WSOP bracelets, but it’s because he focuses most of his energy on good cash games globally. Anyone who has seen him in action when playing High Stakes Poker or Poker After Dark knows he has the ability. His opponents know what they are up against when The Finn takes a seat.
Zeljko Ranogajec, aka John Wilson, comes from a family of Croatian immigrants. He was born in Hobart Australia on the 22 May 1961 and is a professional gambler and entrepreneur. Before becoming a professional gambler, Zeljko studied Commerce and Law at the University of Tasmania where his interest in card counting in Blackjack was tweaked when playing at the Wrest Point Casino.
He met his wife at the Casino as she worked there full time. He then decided to relocate to NSW and transferred his studies to the University of NSW. However, he dropped out to pursue his passion in advantage gambling.
Gambling Career
Zeljko started making frequent trips to Vegas and winning substantial amounts. However, he encountered problems getting his winnings back to Australia so hid it in strangeplaces. He eventually formed a card-counting team with three of his college friends. However, this came to an unfortunate end when one of the trios died in a motor vehicle accident. He was back to playing solo as the team then split up.
Amongst the Blackjack Fraternity Zeljko was regarded as one of the most prolific and innovative advantage players of all time. Eventually, the Australian Casinos banned him, but he had already anticipated that happening and had started branching out into other areas of advantage play. Namely Keno and Horse Racing where he has earned over a $1 Billion on average per annum.
Summing it Up
Zeljko Ranogajev is remarkable for so many reasons. He is one of the top gamblers worldwide. Still, more importantly, he donates millions of his winnings to a variety of different charities and one, in particular, is The Humpty Dumpty Foundation which purchases medical equipment for Children’s Hospitals.
Nowadays he is known as The Loch Ness Monster due to him being a reclusive person.
Introducing Phil Ivey
Phil Ivey is a professional American poker player who was born on the 1st of February 1977. He is the acclaimed winner of ten World Series of Poker bracelets, one World Poker Tour title and has competed at nine World Poker Tour Final tables. He is one of the best all-round players in the world and is known as the “Tiger Woods” of Poker.
As of 2018 Ivey’s total live tournament winnings exceed $26 250 000 and over $6 600 000 of his total winnings have come from flows of cash at W.S.O.P. He is currently ranked seventh on the all-time money list.
Rise and Fall of Phil Ivey
In 2000 Ivey a then 23-year-old established himself as one of the top up and coming players and secured his first bracelet. In 2002 Ivey showcased his skills at limit poker and won massive amounts in Limit Seven Card Stud, Split Poker, Limit Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo and Limit S.H.O.E. He also made two final tables and got 23rd place in the W.S.O.P. main event. In that timespan, Ivey collected four bracelets and received more than $400 000 in prize money. He had a good run, and 2009 was an incredible year for him and by then had his eighth bracelet at the age of 33.
His career, however, took a turn for the worst a few years later when he became embroiled in a legal war with East Coast Casino Borgata. He rose again in 2018 and had a few decent runs and is currently ranked number eight in the Poker World.
Conclusion
Ivey has had a lousy decade between legal battles and a rather messy divorce, but he has a history of making history. If anyone can rise from the Ashes, Phil Ivey can as he is one of the foremost legends in Poker.