Brand Ambassadors
JOHNNY CHAN
Forever immortalized in the movie Rounders, Poker Hall of Fame member Johnny Chan was one of poker’s first superstars after winning back-to-back World Series of Poker Main Event Championships, a feat that hasn’t been repeated since. Chan was given the nickname “Orient Express” after defeating all nine players at the final table of the 1981 American Cup poker tournament in less than one hour. Chan’s 10 WSOP bracelets tie him with Phil Ivey and Doyle Brunson for second most bracelets earned by a player. Chan, with an impressive $8.6 million dollars in tournament winnings, can often be found in the biggest cash games in Macau and Las Vegas.
Know The Pros: Johnny Chan collaborated with Mark Karowe to release Play Poker Like Johnny Chan, an instructional book on several different types of poker, and Million Dollar Hold’em: Winning Big in Limit Cash Games, which focuses on limit hold’em strategy.
Member: Poker Hall of Fame
DAVID BENYAMINE
Currently second on France’s all-time money list, David Benyamine has been winning tournaments since 1999. Finding success on the three major poker tours, the World Series of Poker, the European Poker Tour and the World Poker Tour, Benyamine has racked up over $7 million in tournament winnings.
Know the Pros: Benyamine once played poker for over two-and-a-half days straight in the Big Game. Rumor has it that 60 hours into his session, he was down over a million but went on a rush and ended up breaking even.
TODD BRUNSON
Being the son of legendary Doyle Brunson, one might think Todd Brunson learned to play poker before he learned to walk. But it wasn’t until after high school that Brunson played in his first poker game when he accompanied his father to Australia. Brunson has stepped out of his father’s shadow, racking up 42 World Series of Poker cashes including one bracelet to cement his own legacy. As part of the “Corporation,” it’s said Brunson won over $13.5 million for the group in a two-day span as chronicled in the 2005 book, The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King.
Know the Pros: Todd Brunson’s nickname “Darkhorse” comes from a tournament he played early in his career, where he was reckoned to be a huge underdog.
TED FORREST
It was 1993 when Ted Forrest catapulted to poker fame and became known as one of the best all around poker players in the world. Besides winning three World Series of Poker bracelets that year, he made a total of eight final tables in multiple disciplines, making himself a household name in the Poker world. Forrest went on to win over $6 million in live tournaments, collecting two additional bracelets before claiming his sixth and nearly a seventh bracelet this year at the 2014 WSOP, ending a seven-year drought without a tournament victory. Collecting bracelets isn’t Forrest’s only hobby though; some outrageous prop bets have also contributed to his legacy, including the dramatic weight-loss prop bet with Mike Matusow that reportedly netted him $2 million.
Know the Pros: Ted Forrest is a successful high-stakes cash game player and is part of the “Corporation” that played against billionaire Andy Beal.
LAYNE FLACK
Layne “Back to Back” Flack got his nickname after winning two tournaments in two days on two separate occasions, first at the 1999 Legends of Poker and again at the 2003 Four Queens Poker Classic. Additionally, Flack won two World Series of Poker bracelets in 2002 and 2003, an impressive feat that’s one for the record books. Flack has been grinding the tournament circuit and claiming victories to the tune of nearly $5 million in live tournament winnings for the last twenty years. He proved he still has some major skills with six cashes at the 2014 World Series of Poker, including one final table. Even more recently, Flack can be found on an upcoming episode of Poker Night in America on the CBS Sports Network.
Know the Pros: Layne Flack once bet that a 220-pound man could run a six-minute mile for $250,000. To his dismay, the man’s leg cramped up on the first lap. He also bet $100,000 that Ted Forrest couldn’t bowl a 100 game. Ted bowled it.
JENNIFER HARMAN
Known primarily as a high-stakes cash game player, Jennifer Harman paved the way for women to be competitive in the poker world. As a member of the Women Poker Hall of Fame, she was the first woman to win two World Series of Poker bracelets in open events, and she did it before the poker boom. Her nearly $3 million in tournament winnings pales in comparison to her success in the infamous “Big Game” inside Bobby’s Room. She was also the only female member of the famed “Corporation” that took on Billionaire banker Andy Beal in some of the highest games played.
Know the Pros: Jennifer Harman founded Creating Organ Donation Awareness (CODA), a non-profit organization to raise money for the organ donation cause.
Member: Poker Hall of Fame
TOTO LEONIDAS
Alfredo “Toto” Leonidas was born in the Philippines, but it wasn’t until he moved to California, where he now resides, that Leonidas began learning the game of poker. His breakout year came in 2003 when he won his first and only World Series of Poker bracelet and the United States Poker Championship a few months later. Nicknamed “The Ripper” because of his aggressive style of play, Leonidas racked up over $3 million in live tournament winnings.
Know the Pros: In 2009, Leonidas made it to his first final table on the World Poker Tour at the Bicycle Casino Legends of Poker Event.
JEFF LISANDRO
While Jeff Lisandro’s fortune was made in real estate investing, his over $5 million in tournament winnings has secured his place as one of poker’s elite. With cashes at the World Series of Poker, World Series of Poker Europe, Aussie Millions, European Poker Tour, Asian Pacific Poker Tour and the World Poker Tour, it’s no wonder Lisandro is known as “The Iceman” because of his calm demeanor in the face of stiff competition. Lisandro, joins fellow Breakout Gaming pro Ted Forrest as one of four players to win three bracelets in the same WSOP and the only player since the poker boom.
Know the Pros: Jeff Lisandro once took up a prop bet challenge laid down by Daniel Negreanu and Erick Lindgren. They challenged any pair to win more WSOP Player of the Year points that them in 2009. Lisandro and Barry Greenstein took up the challenge and won.
HUCK SEED
Huck Seed is as well-known for his outrageous prop bets as he is for becoming poker’s world champion after winning the 1996 World Series of Poker Main Event. Some of his rumored prop bets include running marathons with no prior training, attempting to run a 4:39-minute mile and doing standing back flips, which at 6’7” tall is no easy feat. His success at the WSOP and on the World Poker Tour has led to over $7 million in live tournament winnings and four WSOP bracelets.
Know the Pros: Huck Seed grew up in Corvallis, MT and earned all-state honors in basketball, attended Caltech to pursue a degree in electrical engineering, and was a marquee player on the basketball team.
VLADIMIR SHCHEMELEV
Vladimir Shchemelev is a dangerous combination of a successful businessman and talented poker player in one aggressive package. Schemelev made his mark in the poker world in 2010 when he became the first-ever player to make 3 final tables in a $10,000 or higher buy-in tournament at the World Series of Poker, which included a runner-up finish in the $50,000 Players’ Championship. It was two years later in 2013 that he would earn his first bracelet and followed that up with four more cashes in 2014.
Know the Pros: Vladimir Shchemelev owns and operates a bank in St. Petersburg.
