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WSOP champions: Where are they now, Part 9

May 22, 2008

This is the ninth article in a 10-part series taking a look at the World Series of Poker champions from the very first to the most recent and at what they’ve done since in the world of poker.

From nobody to somebody could be the theme for this week’s look back at past World Series of Poker champions. The 2002, 2003, and 2004 champions all seemed to come out of nowhere to win the Main Event and give hope to all the average Joes out there looking for a big score.

Robert Varkonyi (2002)

A complete unknown in the poker world when he won the 2002 WSOP Main Event, Robert Varkonyi has stayed mostly invisible in the years since he triumphed over the heavily favored Julian Gardner. In fact, only last year did Varkonyi claim his second career WSOP cash, finishing 177th out of 6,358 players for $51,398.

Outside of his two runs in the world’s richest tournament, Varkonyi’s career record consists of only four cashes, none of them in events with buy-ins over $1,500. The $33,720 he has earned in those tournaments comes up short of the $40,089 his wife Olga has earned in her four career cashes.

The Varkonyis have been sponsored by Interpoker for some time, so they aren’t unfamiliar faces on the tournament trail. Still, the two only play a few major tournaments a year, mostly on the East Coast within a day’s drive from their home in Great Neck, New York.

Away from the poker tables, Varkonyi has kept himself busy since 2002. He appeared in an instructional video called “Wise Guys on Texas Hold’em” with some cast members from HBO’s The Sopranos. He has also worked as a consultant to an online gaming software company and developed and marketed his own casino game.

In a decade full of memorable names and faces among poker’s world champions, Robert Varkonyi stands out more for his everyman qualities than for his prowess at the table.

Chris Moneymaker (2003)

WSOP champions: Where are they now, Part 9

Chris Moneymaker wants you to be the next PokerStars qualifier to win the WSOP.

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