Begin:Phil Ivey
rakes in millions of chips for a living, which is why he is a devoted fan of
the “Bills” American football offers a different dynamic to the sport in terms
of their rowdy and seemingly over-the-top fans. These football team’s fans –
more often than not – become staples in live games or follow them religiously
every Sunday or Monday. Being the most popular sport in the United States, the
diversity of fandom in the sport also reflects from their high profile fans
like US President Barack Obama who is known for his unwavering loyalty to
sports especially the NFL’s Chicago Bears, and former US Secretary of
State Condoleezza Rice who proudly cheers for the Cleveland Brownseven
during the Jim Brown era; some “not-so normal” fans also made a name for
themselves with the Kansas City Chiefs’ Arrowman and the other New York team’s
Fireman Ed. For our Buffalo Bills, our team’s fan base has some serious star
power in itself, with singer/actor Meat Loaf, and the outspoken billionaire
Donald Trump. But not many know that even the “Tiger Woods of Poker,” Phil
Ivey, is an avid supporter of the Bills.
Phillip Dennis
Ivey Jr. can often be seen at the tables wearing comfortable sporty clothes
along with his huge Beats headphones. He wears his team’s colors
proudly, while tackling his opponents with slick bluffs, and patient traps –
two of the reasons why he’s regarded by many as the best all-around poker
player on the planet. Ivey started to hone his poker skills by going up against
his co-workers at a New Jersey
telemarketing firm during the late 1990s. Growing up near Atlantic City, he used a fake identification
card to sneak inside casinos like the Taj Mahal Resort and Casino in
Boardwalk, and play Seven Card Stud for long hours. From there, Phil Ivey’s
poker legacy soared to new and amazing heights. The wealth of his
accomplishments includes nine World Series of Poker bracelets – three of those
coming from the 2002 season, being the first player to beat the legendary
Amarillo Slim heads-up at a WSOP final table, and a string of money finishes in
the Main Event. His successful streak in poker carried on even to the Partypoker.com sponsored
World Poker Tour events, in which he managed to cash in a whopping $3 million
in WPT tournament earnings. Today, Phil Ivey is sitting pretty at number four
on the all time money list with almost $18 million, just a couple of million
dollars behind Antonio Esfandiari, Sam Trickett, and Phil Hellmuth. And with
the upcoming NFL season just a couple of months away, Phil Ivey has another
reason to smile about. His Buffalo Bills took a step towards the right
direction with the hiring of a new coaching staff led bySyracuse University football
coach, Doug Marrone. This will increase the chances of running back CJ Spiller
to show everyone what he’s capable of, and for their rookie quarterback EJ
Manuel to develop his untapped potential in an offence-first coaching system.
Fans of the
Buffalo Bills – including Phil Ivey – have September 8 marked on their
calendars in anticipation of their week 1 game against the New England
Patriots on their home field. With a new coaching staff, a new philosophy,
and a new outlook on the pitch, this year looks promising for the Buffalo Bills
and their thousands of adoring fans. Maybe this can be the year the Bills crash
the playoff picture, after a 13-year layoff. The end.
No comments:
Post a Comment