the 2004 WSOP had over 2,500 entrants. In 2005 it'll be over 5,000. At the start of the 2003 WSOP there were 3 players with over $3,000,000 in career earnings. By the end of the 2005 there will be over 15. With another win and a 2nd place showing along with his 10th place at the 2004 WSOP Omaha he's shown anyone with 1/2 a brain that he's got the skills in bigtime tournament poker.

Wow, it's really sad that all of you take so much time and effort to bash a man that 99.9% of you would be scared Sh*tless to sit down at a table with. You should all leave Chris alone, and go back to your internet poker software, and play your free roll tourneys, because you obviously don't know sh*t about real poker... and yes, it's very different in real life, so before you go critizing the winner of the 2003 WSOP, tell me something : How much more money than him have you won? If you haven't won any more than him, you need to shut up, because obviously, he knows something you don't.

Moneymaker Is Amazing! Anyone Who Says Different Doesnt Know What They Are On About

1 title=51% LUCKY (Hellmuth,Moneymaker,ect)
2 title=50/50 LUCKY, GOOD(Chan,Brunson,ect)
3 title=51% GREAT, 49% LUCKY "STU UNGAR". "Everyone needs SOME luck in order to win" "No ones plays if the gun has ALL 6 shots"

You know yes he did get lucky, but yes he is a great player. Its one thing for a player to get lucky. But once a GOOD player gets lucky, watch out, cause he or she will win anytime, and thats what Chris did. Where was Moneymaker in 2004 WSOP?

Didn't the guy make a WPT final table this year,that proves he's got game.Nice 1 Chris.

I didn't see Moneymaker in the 2004 WSOP. Oops, I made a mistake. He was at the 2004 WSOP and was gone after playing for 2 or 3 hours, and then he lefted the casino.

chris moneymaker was out in 4 hours at wsop in 2004.has anyone here played a nolimit tourney and been busted out after 4 hours of play? If you have played poker for a while you know the answer to the question. as for moneymaker, it wasnt a fluke the the guy won. he is hard to read and played very well for someone who has never played a live tourney or even against any pros, you gotta give em that. all you people who watch him on espn, i bet that 99.9% of you would not be able to make the no fear moves he made at the table. the guy is not a god but id watch out for him to make more money in poker.

this is why you rag on him - cause he is lucky

Did I say 2 or 3 hours Moneymaker busted out? I'm sorry it was 4 hours. You know there is a difference between busting out in 3 hours and busting out in 4 hours. He was lucky to last 4 hours than 3 hours.

Moneymaker...what A Lucky Hick..good For Him..f The Pros

Listen Chris Money Maker can play poker. The Luck Factor if you have played poker long enough u should know that everyone even the pros get lucky on alot of hands. Skill is a major factor if Chris Moneymaker did not use that he would not be in the wsop on a internet site and he would not be the champion and he would not be second place on the wpt at the final table. So the people who are cracking on him and dont give him any respect need to shut the hell up learn how to play poker win the wsop and a wpt then mabey they can talk but they wont cuz they would have RESPECT.

Moneymacker had a good tourney that's all good job

Don't hate the player, hate the game! UGLY TUNA!

i love the tripple chin threat, moneymaker if your man enough for a challenge meet me at the 1 2 table at commerce casino

great game face, farha tried and tried and tried to read him and it didn't work, when he went all in, farha had the check mark after the flop and moneymaker went all in and farha had to fold because he couldnt read him, he's an excellent player, the poker face is everything

I Can't Believe Some Of You Idiots Think Moneymaker Is The Luckiest Man Alive..... Do You Really Think The Tv Shows Let You See Every Hand... Television Is All About Entertainment, Thats Why You Only See The Interesting/lucky/bad Beat Hands, Etc.... Moneymaker Didnt Just Turn Up With $10,000 He Beat Many People In Many Games To Get There.... You Dont Think Doyle Brunson Has Had 40 Years Of Luck Do You.... Give The Guy A Break He Is Better Than You Will Ever Be!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fuck off!... NO WAY was he simply 'just lucky'...... LUCKY is getting a full house twice in a row followed by a four of a kind... LUCKY is finding a wallet with $400 in it and not giving a damn about who owns it... LUCKY is winning the biggest jackpot lottery using the tried and tested 'pick the numbers that are the birthdates of your family members' method only to find out, later on, that you got your wifes birthdate wrong... SKILL is going ALL THE WAY from $40, winning some 2 or more seperate qualifying tournaments (whilst up against hundreds of opponents in each tournament), to finally then go on to beat nearly 1000 other players in your very first live tournament (with the added extra pressure of live International TV broadcasting cameras peering over your shoulder), pocketing 2.5 million, and being able to pack in a job you hate.

I used to think moneymaker sucked, but after watching his episode on the WPT and rewatching the WSOP, but now i think hes a pretty good player. Boyd made a great play at him and he made the best call of the tournament (or the part aired on TV). Yes he was lucky (flopping the nuts with queen jack vs lesters ace queen, brenes and iveys knockouts) but he still played good, probably better than Raymer did this year.

What the hell was your dad doing when you got lucky and caught 5 days worth of cards? i thought sammy was about to choke him after the way your smokey mountains ass pappy started jumping up and down.

GREAT JOB MONEYNAKER!!!!!! You give everyone that plays poker for the fun of it pride. A total underdog who wins it all $2.5 million to be exact. Sorry you had to finance your trip through your FATHER and a friend. Your dad is a real DUFFUS. Please leave him at home this year. GOOD LUCK at the 2004 WSOP!!

he might have had alot of luck in that tournement but it still took skill to do what he did.

NO limit hold 'em is half skill half luck. sure, moneymaker had luck in 2003, but u don't get to #1 in an 800+ man tourney with all luck. In 2004 Chris didn't get the cards-so what! don't hate the player, hate the game. Chris showed a lot of skill in 2003, and trust me, like Harrington, he will be back in the coming years.

You think Im lucky? Well, luck goes around to everyone from time to time. Every person ever to win the WSOP should consider themselves lucky, and I am no exception. I love playing this game, and Im very lucky to be able to do it professionally. There are some strange people on here, but I appreciate all the kind words from people. See you all at the tables.

Is it luck, is it skill? Doesnt matter, point is we love watching Moneymaker play. He sold the 2003 WSOP on TV... If it wasnt for him, we'd be yawning all the way through the smack-talking, greaseyhaired Farhas, Devilfishes, and Nguyens. First-timer Moneymaker sat solid like a rock and took the purse home. And to see a fellow Tennessean up there made it all the more worthwhile. Great job Chris, look forward to seeing you win again soon.

best damn rookie I have ever seen

You people who talk about taking Moneymaker's roll are great. Why are you taking Chris' money? Did you get sick of beating Chan, Ivey, and Hellmuth? That leads me to my opening point. First, anyone can get into this forum and create any story they want. Thus, I do not believe any of you who claim to have taken money off of Chris. Second, even if you took a few thousand off Moneymaker, do you think he cares. He has another 2 million plus dollars to play with. Not to mention winnings in the Bay 101 and other events and ring games that never get published. As for getting "lucky" in the WSOP in 2003. Of course he got lucky. Anyone who wins a major tournament like that needs to get lucky. Yes, he caught the 8 against Humberto, but what poker player hasn't caught a card to win a large pot in a ring game or tournament. Also, look at some of the bad plays that helped Moneymaker. Chan puts all his chips at risk on a draw? Boyd puts most of his stack on the line with Ace/King after a flop where he hit nothing? Those seem like pretty weak plays that Moneymaker took advantage of. Congrats to him for refusing to be bullied by pro players and people trying to buy pots. Also, recognize the ESPN factor. They are trying to build ratings. Of course they are going to show people catching cards. It is more exciting. How much fun would it be to watch KK beat QQ in an all in situation. I suspect that ESPN was trying to show how luck, skill, and a few good cards played a part in Moneymaker's victory. Additionally, over the course of a week long event like the main event at the WSOP thousands of hands are played by each of the players. Since so many hands are played good and bad beats eventually even out, as does the quality of poor and great flops that hit for each of the players, as well as their starting hands. The winner of the tournament is usually the player who makes the best plays when the luck is in his or her favor. At the 2003 WSOP main event Chris Moneymaker took advantage of great flops and great starting hands when he got them.In Phil Helmuth's book he writes that the trick is to "finish the job" and go on to win the event when you are lucky enough to win a coin flip pot. What Phil is saying is that when you get lucky take advantage. Chris Moneymaker got lucky and "finished the job." Exactly like any pro would. Thank you for reading now you can go back to playing your ring games against Moneymaker and resume taking his money. Not that any one believes you.

Chris wont win again - sad!

It's hard to repeat as the winner in the Main Event at the WSOP. I believe only Johnny Chan and Amarillo Slim repeated as WSOP Main Event champs.

Moneymaker is a great player but he got help from his father, who said Farha was bluffing because he shuffled his chips with his left hand.