Many players play for fun or lower stakes than these players. The golden rule for casual players is sticking to a budget. However, this isn’t possible when you’re in a professional poker game playing for and with millions of dollars. Fans find this highly entertaining and it’s no wonder that poker is a spectator sport.
Hey man, your story hits very close to home for me. I also had big wins, and was care free when I started. I play blackjack which is a much different beast than poker,but still gambling. At my best point I was up 45k in profit with very little losses to my name. I've now been trying to quit. At this point in time I have my rent money. Smith,Levere,andKurtzman: Poker Player Behavior After Big Wins and Big Losses ManagementScience55(9),pp.1547–1555,©2009INFORMS 1549 towardtheendoftheday,presumablybecausepeo. Estimated losses: $25 millions. Former member of Team Full Tilt and two-time WSOP and WPT winner, Erick “E-dog” Lindgren counts among the poker players who made the most money of all time: as of 2016, he ranks 38th in the All Time Money List of poker with over $10 million in tournament earnings.
Poker is a popular table game that has moved onto the online platform with great success. When rookie players start, they tend to have big dreams of going home with life-altering piles of cash. They might even watch their heroes raking in big wins during events, but what they don’t often see is that with every big poker game, event, or tournament is not without putting a lot on the line.
Playing in the big time comes with unfathomable risks which is why it is not for the faint of heart.
- He gulps down a cup of ginseng tea and slams $500k on the table, loses. Another bet, this time $600k, loses again. Three more hands continued the same way until he reduced his bet to $300k and he finally wins one hand. He is furious that he lost all his big bets and his only win was his “small” bet.
- Losses are an inevitable part of life, and of course, poker. Even the best players don’t always win. But what’s even more important than winning is how you recover from tough losses. Only when you approach the game in the right way, as we’ve instructed you in our article, will you be able to handle poker losses properly.
Big Gambling Losses
This is a list of professional poker players that suffered some pretty painful losses:
#1 – Gus Hansen
Unfortunately for this player, no other professional poker player comes close to these losses. Nearing a loss of an accumulative $19 million, it is safe to say that Hansen has suffered the biggest in history. He was once one of the top poker players of all time, however, poker and Lady Luck has not gone easy on him since.
There is no other player that comes close to the losses that Hansen suffered.
#2 – Ben Sulsky
During 2012 alone, Sulsky had made raked in an accumulated total of almost $4 million. Almost on a powerful streak, 2013, unfortunately, did not have the same results for the player. Due to higher-level opponents, he was unfortunately out of his league that year. This became prominent when he lost nearly $3 million during the first 3 months of the New Year.
#3 – Phil Ivey
This player, unfortunately, suffered a loss of $5 million of his whopping $21.45 million in live tournaments. After sometime struggling at the table he then fought for his spot at the top until this player became a really big name in poker, however, his reputation took a hit after this big loss.
#4 – Brian Townsend
This poker enthusiast began playing in the big leagues in the 2000s. His appearance in the 2011 World Series is where the downfall begins. After an increase in winnings led to a rise in stakes, his fall occurred gradually. He accumulated a loss of $4.5 million by the end of his game.
Big Poker Losses
Losses are far from uncommon occurrences in the world of poker as it is an extremely turbulent betting game; however, these take the cake. It must take a lot of willpower for players to get back into the game after such disheartening losses. These unfortunate losses were likely unavoidable, especially at a professional level where the stakes are so high. There are way more out there, some smaller, some may be bigger, but they all have one thing in common – you win some, you lose some.