Almost all sports competitions have a category for men and a category for women. The world of professional poker is a rare case of competition where both male and female players can compete at the same table. In fact, over the past few years, the number of women playing poker has increased.
Woman Playing Poker
This is in part thanks to the accessibility of online casinos. Not only can you easily make deposits and claim promos nowadays, but you can also get quick casino cashouts with Wagering Advisors recommendations. It’s a review site that lists all of the operators with fast withdrawal features that many players find appealing.
Here we will talk about female pro players or women in poker. So, if you want to find out who they are, and how well they are performing make sure to stick around.
Vanessa Selbst
Currently the champion in women's poker, in terms of earnings, is Vanessa Selbst. The New Yorker has won more than a dozen top-tier tournaments and has earned more than 11 million dollars. Yet unlike many other pro-players, Vanessa is very humble. She even enters the competitions thinking she will lose. This isn’t a result of anxiety or pessimism. In her own words, Vanessa feels she is being realistic and she has a point. In Poker players lose 95% of the time. It’s all about the 5% win rate and making it count that helps differentiate casuals from professionals.
Kristen Bicknell
Kristen has been into poker since college years, and it’s one of the best players in Canada. She was named a player of the year 3 times, and has 3 WOSP bracelets:
- 2013 - Ladies No Limit Hold’em Championship
- 2016 - Bounty No Limit Hold’em
- 2020 - Online No Limit Hold’em
So far she has more than 6 million in winnings, and she is still competing. Undoubtedly, she has managed to refine her skill thanks to years of play, and thanks to frequent practice in online tournaments.
Maria Ho
Maria is a Taiwanese player from the US, who has been in the world of professional poker since 2007. She had amazing success in the WOSP tournament that year and continued to play in all of the big events. So far, she has acquired over 4 million USD in prize money, and in 2019 she has won a title for the best Broadcaster of the year.
Annette Obrestad
Annette is a player from Norway who won her first big tournament at a very young age. The Norwegian prodigy began her career by competing online, and in those competitions, she won almost 800,000 USD. Back in 2018, her accumulated earnings from poker were nearly 4 million USD. She has one bracelet from the 2007 No Limit Hold'Em, but she is still young (35 years) so her bracelet collection is likely to grow.
Kathy Liebert
When it comes to ladies in gambling tournaments, Kathy is a true veteran. She has been competing since the 90s, and she reached the finals for the first time in 1997. Currently, she ranks 2, just behind Vanessa Selbst, and she has competed in finals 6 times in her career. Libert has one WOSP bracelet from the 2004 tournament Limit Hold’em Shootout, and she has nearly 7 million USD in prize money winnings.
Annie Duke
As the only woman to win the 2010 NBC National Heads-up Poker Championship, Annie has rightfully earned the nickname Dutches of Poker. She has over 4 million USD in live tournament winnings, and she won more than 1.6 million USD in WOSP tournaments alone. Dutches has one WOSP bracelet from the 2004 Omaha High-Low tournament, but she hasn’t made an appearance for a long time. As a result, many assume she has left her professional poker days behind.
Liv Boeree
The so-called Iron Maiden from the UK popped up on everyone’s radar back in 2010, after winning the EPT Main Event, She was even coached by Annie Duke, and she won her WOSP bracelet in 2017’s Tag Team No Limit Hold'Em Championship. Currently, her winnings are just shy of 4 million, but it seems she has no ambition to continue pursuing tournament prizes. She is now a public speaker and a TV celebrity who produces a show that focuses on science.
Conclusion
Although the number of women in poker tournaments has increased, their participation rate is still hovering around 4% and 5%. Yes, the ability to gamble online and practice has served as a good encouragement, but it’s stories like these that serve as a better call to action. As you can see, none of the players get to win consistently or have to project confidence to be good at the game. It’s all about the experience, and finding good teachers.