To celebrate the its 75th anniversary, the US NBA announced a ranking of the 75 best players of all time, and they did something similar in the editorial staff of Card Player magazine. There, the idea arose to name the 50 best poker players of the last 50 years, and while it may seem easy at first, in reality it is a really challenging task. Everyone plays the same game, but the possibilites are so many - cash vs tournaments, online vs live, holdem vs omaha, cashouts vs bracelets.

Looking at these criteria alone, it is immediately clear that a relatively simple task conceals many nooks and crannies, so it is clear that such a ranking will be widely discussed and many will not agree with it. Either way, the editors of Card Player chose a methodology in which the players were first divided into three stages:

• Old-school players: 70s a 80s,
• Pre-boom players: those who discovered and mastered the game before the Moneymaker era and the beginning of poker streams
• Post-boom generation: massive number of players who made it to poker, thanks to Moneymaker, TV broadcasts or online poker

The editors also honestly focused on the stability and resilience of players against the father time - so that they choose not only "one-hit wonders" but players who have excelled in the game for a long time. A total of 107 players were nominated, of whom it was very difficult to make the final 50. In the end, it mainly contains players from 30 to 50 years of age, and the USA has a predominant representation here. Out of the top 50 players on the all-time money list, 23 individuals got here, and from the poker hall of fame, 18 members qualified out of 60 members.

Timothy Adams

Currently, the 35-year-old Canadian high roller specialist has dedicated more than half of his life to poker, during which he has won $26.3 million in live tournaments, making him currently ranked 19th in global ATML. He has one WSOP bracelet, a Triton title, two SHRB titles and another more than $4 million played online under the nickname Tim0thee.

Michael Addamo

Although the pioneers of poker and long-standing stalwarts deserve their respect, we cannot forget the most infamous poker name of the past year. Former chess super talent and still only a 28-year-old Australian representative, has been appearing in poker since 2012, but he was etched in everyone's memory mainly thanks to 2021. After this year, his poker biography is full of amazing triumphs - four WSOP bracelets, SHRB title, a purple jacket from the Poker Masters and nearly $18 million live poker winnings.

Patrik Antonius

Former model and tennis player Patrik Antonius has for many years been the most successful Finnish player and one of the most famous names in world poker. Already in 1999, he became one of the first prominent stars of online poker, then won the EPT in Baden in 2005, and since then many have considered him a poker legend to this day. Interesting fact, Antonius is still the second biggest winner in the online cash game tables.

Mikita Badziakouski

Out of nowhere in 2015 the Belarusian player Mikita Badziakouski suddenly appeared on the scene, and has been winning everything that comes his way from that moment on. Whether it's online or live poker, where he has already won more than $33 million, you would definitely not want to compete with this boy.

Billy Baxter

He started with sports betting at a young age, later went through hard gambling in almost every possible game, until he finally revealed poker at eighteen and knew right away that it was the right thing to do. A 82-year-old native of Georgia is rightly considered one of the best lowball players in history, with seven WSOP bracelets in non-Holdem disciplines as a proof. Billy also became famous for stacking Stu Ungar in the WSOP during difficult times, or for helping to secure lower taxes for poker players in a lawsuit against the US government.

Justin Bonomo

Already at the age of 19, he appeared on the final table of the EPT Deauville, but after this success, he permanently moved from playing Magic The Gathering to poker. Since then, his star has been rising, and currently has dozens of titles, including four WSOP bracelets, three SHRB titles, and last but not least, more than $57 million in winnings, thanks to which is head to head with Bryn Kenney for world all-time money list.

Doyle Brunson

Any name on this list would have some doubters, but the legendary Doyle Brunson has no reason not to be on this list. One of the last to remeber the beginnings of poker, rough casino life and gangster stories, he made his way from a promising basketball player to a two-time ME WSOP champion. Even though they tried to shoot him, kill him, rob him, or even the cancer tried to get him, Doyle still overcomes all obstacles and we wish him a lot of strength and success for his 88 years!

Daniel Cates

The Maryland native began playing video games as an ordinary child, from which he switched to online poker at the age of 17. From that moment on, he was constantly rising in the stakes ladders and forced himself to move forward so that he could defeat his opponents. Already at the age of 20, he started playing the biggest stakes available, and he has remained in these waters to this day (currently he is third in the online cash game history tables). He showed his eccentricity to the last year, when he won the most challenging tournament in the world, the Poker Players Championship, with blue hair in a Dragon Ball Z costume.

Johnny Chan

At the age of eleven, he got from Hong Kong to the USA, where he tried cards for the first time in family restaurant after the closing. He graduated from college in Houston, but immediately after that he moved to Vegas, where he embarked on a career as a professional poker player. He won his first bracelet in 1985, but became best known for his back-to-back win at the 1987/88 WSOP (this triumph also appeared in movie The Rounders). Let's not forget that the golden hat-trick could have been completed in 1989, when it was blown up by the young and unknown Phil Hellmuth....

Stephen Chidwick

With the exception of Dave "Devilfish" Ulliot, no British player has made such a strong impact as Stephen Chidwick. The online nickname "stevie444" has gradually become the star of all major live events, with a WSOP bracelet, a U.S. Poker Open title and a total of almost $40 million. In addition, many competitors from the highest stakes consider Chidwick to be the most challenging opponent, which only highlights his qualities.

In the next part of this article, we will introduce another 20 players of this ranking next week, who would you like to see there?

Source: CardPlayer magazine