Erik Seidel – One of the Few Remaining of the Old Generation of Poker

Erik Seidel prefers to spend his time out of the limelight of the new poker world, however all that was changed when he was thrust into the spotlight in the poker film “Rounders”.

During the film clips from the 1988 WSOP are repeatedly shown which show Erik losing the final hand of the main event to Johnny Chan who is Matt Damon’s characters’ idol.

He also has one of the best poker records around with 8 World Series of Poker bracelets, a World Poker Tour title and $21.5 million in career winnings.

Backgammon in the Big Apple

Seidel was born in New York and grew up in the big apple. He started out as a professional backgammon player and spent eight years on the pro circuit. After this he moved into the stock market and worked on Wall Street for years whilst spending his spare time playing poker.

This changed when Seidel was made redundant after the market crash in 1987 and he turned his attention full time to poker. He became a regular at New York’s famous Mayfair Club where he played regularly against the best players in the country and undoubtedly where he picked up most of his skills.

The famous moment in the World Series of Poker Main Event in 1988 was in fact Seidel’s first WSOP and even though he lost to Johnny Chan heads up, it was a great performance in his first WSOP, and this was also part of the Johnny Chan back to back main event wins which will always be part of poker history.

Taking Poker Seriously

We’ve already mentioned perhaps the most famous moment of Erik’s although this probably one of the more insignificant moments in terms of his poker career.

After his storming first WSOP he moved out to Las Vegas with his Wife to take poker seriously and play in the biggest games and tournaments in the country. He never looked back from that decision.

Erik adds a World Poker Tour title to his existing haul of WSOP bracelets

During his career Seidel has been a consistent and successful player. He won his first WSOP bracelet in 1994 in the $5,000 Limit Holdem event and this was just the start of an amazing World Series of Poker record.

Since then he has gone on to win a total of eight WSOP bracelets and many more final table appearances including four final tables in one year in 2005. He is currently tied in fourth place in the all time bracelet count along with poker legend Johnny Moss. The only players who have won more bracelets than Erik are Doyle Brunson, Johnny Chan, Phil Helmuth and Phil Ivey.

Erik has won 8 WSOP bracelets and has total career tournament earnings of a staggering $21million

Erik is also on the list of Top 10 earners of all time in the WSOP with his biggest cash coming in 2005 when he won his seventh WSOP bracelet picking up $600,000 for the win. His total career tournament earnings are a staggering $21.5 million.

Original Member of Team Full Tilt

Erik Seidel was an original shareholder and investor in Full Tilt Poker. Along with that he was part of Team Full Tilt which used their celebrity status to promote and grow the company. He played a big role in shaping the online poker room’s success.

If you see this avatar on Full Tilt Poker then you are playing with Erik Seidel!

Although Erik is no longer an owner of Full Tilt Poker you can find him playing at the tables on Full Tilt Poker and chatting with his fans while he plays.