As one of the biggest celebrity poker stars of the 1990s, Kid Poker needs little introduction. Daniel Negreanu, better known as “Kid Poker,” is one of the most successful poker professionals in history. He has won numerous tournaments and is considered one of the top 10 poker players of all time. Despite enjoying career highs and outright celebrity status for the best of two decades, the legendary poker pro has gone a little off the radar in recent years. Where is Kid Poker now?
Who is Kid Poker?
Kid Poker is a Canadian professional poker player currently recognized as the third biggest live poker tournament event winner. Born in 1974 in Toronto to Romanian parents, Daniel Negreanu started as a rounder after dropping out of school. Moving to Las Vegas at age 22 to pursue his dreams of professional poker stardom, Negreanu won a pro tournament in 1997, winning three in a row. He initially learned his trade at the poker table, playing at charity casinos while keeping an eye out for illegal cash games.
Influence on the Canadian Online Casino Market
Kid Poker is regarded as one of the most famous gamblers to have emerged from Canada, a country well-known for its love of gambling and poker. Canada is a country that embraced the online casino action, having a strong reputation among other casino markets. While the recent boom in Canadian online casino, as demonstrated by these casino brands, has a lot to do with legislative changes, can’t deny Negreanu’s influence on the country’s online casino culture. There is no doubt that Dan has been one of the biggest idols for many young players. He’s an excellent player who has become a fan favorite because he’s charismatic and entertaining. Viewers can’t get enough of him!
The Archetypal Celebrity Poker Pro
With big bankrolls, some celebrities play Texas Hold’em for fun, and they’ve even become quite good at it! Although many celebrities have turned their hand to poker and enjoyed notable success, Negreanu was one of the first poker players to enjoy celebrity status in his own right. He has appeared in various poker-themed television shows as a pundit and player (including Late Night Poker and Ultimate Poker Challenge), making him instantly recognizable to the public and propelling his fame. Along with a few other big names in the poker circuit, like Dan Bilzerian, Patrik Antonius, and T. J. Cloutier, Kid Poker’s star power stretches way beyond the confines of the poker table. He has also generated press coverage as the former partner of Evelyn Ng, another celebrity poker player who he allegedly mentored.
Peak Playing Career & Tournament Wins
Having secured 2 World Poker Title (WPT) championship wins and 6 World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets throughout his career, Kid Poker’s record speaks for itself. Negreanu has proven himself a monster at the poker table, picking up his first WSOP title at the 1998 $2,000 Pot Limit Hold ’em tournament. After securing a $2,000 S.H.O.E. bracelet from the WSOP in 2003, he bagged Player of the Year awards from Card Player and the WSOP. 2004 proved an excellent year for Negreanu, who would also pick up wins at the WSOP $2,000 Limit Hold ’em, WPT $10,000 Borgata Poker Open, and WPT $15,000 Five Diamond World Poker Classic tournaments.
Negreanu would achieve his next WSOP bracelet in 2008, again winning the $2,000 Limit Hold ’em tournament and a prize of $204,847. His last bracelets won at the WSOP were awarded in 2013, when he secured prizes in the €25,600, High Roller No Limit Hold ’em tournament and $10,000 No Limit Hold ’em Main Event. For his participation at the latter event, Negreanu would win a whopping $1,038,825. Kid Poker had another notable brush with the WSOP in 2014, when he was placed as runner-up in The Big One for One Drop tournament. Negreanu could still go home despite not winning the competition with a huge payout of $8,288,001. Kid Poker also picked up wins at the Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) $5,200 PL Omaha [6-Max] tournament in 2013 and the World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP) $2,100 HORSE Championship $200K GTD in 2016. In 2016, he also bagged a staggering $1 million payout after participating in Shark Cage, a high-stakes tournament hosted by PokerStars.net. Negreanu is expected to have amassed a hefty total of more than $42,000,000 in prize money. This makes him one of the most successful poker pros ever, second only to Bryn Kenney and Justin Bonomo’s earnings at the table.
Kid Poker Away from the Table
As you might expect from a tournament-winning player who achieved bonafide celebrity status in the early 2000s, Negreanu has made his fair share of appearances away from the table. Negreanu has enjoyed roles and cameos in various movies and TV shows, including Lucky You, The Grand, Sports Science, Mr. D, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. He even appeared as a poker player in the music video for the hit Katy Perry song “Waking Up In Vegas.” Negreanu has also spent time campaigning for PETA, playing chess, and streaming the video game Hearthstone when not on the screen. He is so enthusiastic about Hearthstone that he even appeared in a show match against fellow WTP champion and pro gamer Bertrand Grospellier in 2015, achieving a 3-1 win.
The Return of Kid Poker
Although he may not have picked up any official WSOP bracelets since 2013, Daniel Negreanu is still very active in poker. Their first signing with Poker Stars way back in 2007, he remained a valued Team PokerStars member up to 2019. The following year, Kid Poker made a much-publicized public appearance with a grudge match against Doug Polk, a pro player with whom he has a long-running feud. Although Negreanu would go on to lose this grudge match and another public bout with Phil Hellmuth in 2021, Kid Poker is back with a bang. Most recently, he made headlines in October 2022 for bagging a
$3.312 million payout at the 2022 Super High Roller Bowl VII, a winning pot generated from a $300,000 buy-in. So keep your eyes on Kid Poker at a poker tournament near you!
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