Erik Seidel
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Introduction
The talented Erik Seidel is not only a versatile player, he is also highly succesful in most games. Seidel won 8 WSOP bracelets in 6 different types of event. |
Profile
Erik Seidel started playing backgammon for money in the late 70's when he was 17. Being a native New Yorker he attended Brooklyn College, and spent much of his time at the legendary Mayfair Club. During a trip to Vegas for a backgammon tournament Erik played some low-limit poker and was eager to play a local game at the Mayfair when he returned. It didn't take long before the Mayfair was spreading a poker game almost every night. Some of the regulars were Dan Harrington, Howard Lederer, Mickey Appleman, Jay Heimowitz, Steve Zolotow and Noli Francisco.
In 1985 Erik took a job as a Wall street trader, looking for a more stable income source. After the market crash in '87 he was left without a job and returned to the Mayfair and poker. A few months later, with the backing of some of his New York friends, Erik headed off to the World Series of Poker. He played 9 one table sattelites for the main event, and scored zero. So Erik had to buy into the main event of 1988, which would be his first major poker tournament. When the game was down to two players, it was Johnny Chan and Erik Seidel who were left. The final hand between them was made famous by the movie Rounders, but unfortunately this hand also meant Erik ended 2nd. Seidel considered himself lucky to have made it to the final table, much less heads up with Johnny Chan : "It was awful to be in that spot, and be so unprepared." The $280,000 payoff certainly left him with a healthy bankroll to continue to play tournaments, but Erik chose to go back to New York to become an independant options market maker on the AMEX. During this time he made frequent trips to Las Vegas, participating in several tournaments and high-stakes cash games.
In 1992 Erik won his first WSOP bracelet in the $2500 limit hold'em event and the two years after that he won 2 more: the Omaha eight-or-better $2500 event in '93 and $5000 limit hold'em in 1994. After these successes the move to Vegas seemed only logical so he convinced his wife to move from New York. Since then Seidel is regarded as one of the best and most consistent players in the world. In 1998 Erik adds another bracelet to his collection by winning the $5000 Deuce to Seven Draw, and in the following years he proves to be just as successful, taking him to a total of Eight bracelets! Erik has a passion for music, independent films and tennis. By playing tennis he stays in good physical as well as mental shape to continue winning poker games. His wife remarked that "I never thought he'd make another final table ever again with so many more people playing," but he proves her wrong. He is just too good to stop.
Erik Seidel's WSOP Bracelets
| Year | Tournament | Prize
| | 1992 | $2,500 Limit Hold'em | $168,000 | | 1993 | $2,500 Omaha 8 or better | $94,000 | | 1994 | $5,000 Limit Hold'em
| $210,000 | | 1998 | $5,000 Deuce to Seven Draw | $132,700 | | 2001 | $3,000 No Limit Hold'em
| $411,300 | | 2003 | $1,500 Pot Limit Omaha | $146,100 | | 2005 | $2,000 No Limit Hold'em | $611,795 | | 2007 | $5,000 World Championship No-Limit
Deuce to Seven Draw Lowball w/rebuys
| $538,835 |
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