Personalities in Poker: Chris Moneymaker

Some names just fit perfectly, even if they were born with it and Chris Moneymaker is one of those people with a lucky last name. It already fit him perfectly as an accountant - as one of the great reasons that poker became huge again, it fits even better. Chris Moneymaker made the amazing leap from satellite tournament to televised main event player, putting his heart and guts on the line versus some of the most powerful forces and personalities that a player could ever face at the 2003 World Series of Poker. This has had the amazing effect of proving to the world that anyone can make it if they try. With forty dollars he managed to win well over two million, a return of investment ratio that no one can argue with.

Chris Moneymaker's sortie into the World Series of Poker main event, Texas Hold'em, was one that would show his heart and ferocity. There are naturally plenty of detractors running around. These detractors call him lucky while simultaneously ignoring the generally understood idea that luck does play a factor in any hand of poker. Chris Moneymaker is not a beginner by any means though is also in no way a professional, at least before the epic 2003 World Series of Poker. Things change when you're under the scrutiny of potentially millions of people around the world, but Chris Moneymaker would not choke. He would not buckle, instead thriving under pressure. Phil Ivey and Johnny Chan are among the many people who would stand in the way but they would not succeed.

There are a number of believable sources that suggest that Chris Moneymaker, in the opposite grain as people like Phil Hellmuth, is a gentleman who brings class to the table. Bad boys may get good press but that doesn't faze Moneymaker at all. He remains solidly on his feet as a champion, not seeking out attention though not running away from it either. This perhaps comes from his upbringing and supportive family, who even helped him raise the money he needed to get to the tournament in the first place, of course in exchange for a cut of whatever he would win.

Beyond the table, Chris Moneymaker acts as a spokesman with class for the game, even donating some of his winnings towards right and proper cancer research. While he only plays occasionally, it remains to be seen if Chris Moneymaker would eventually make a true return appearance to the World Series of Poker.