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Mike "the mouth" Matusow
Known in poker circles as "the mouth", Mike Matusow is regarded to this day as possibly the best Omaha 8-or-better player in the world.
Born in Los Angeles in 1968, he had had more than his fair share of bullying in school, and that, coupled with an obvious genetic predisposition, led to his becoming one of the most notorious loud-mouths of the poker world. This is one poker player who’s learned earlier than anyone how to fend for himself.
Growing up, Mike Matusow was always attracted by activities that involved some sort of competition. He played pool, and was interested in car-racing, however, when attempting to become a mechanic, he got rejected on account of not having the right kind of studies the job required.
He first came into contact with poker at 18, when he began playing video poker in the Maxim Casino. The negative EV soon took its toll on him though, and he ended up stealing money from his mother's purse to pursue his antics, and later attending Gamblers Anonymous sessions to try to kick the habit.
The tuning point in his poker career came in the early 1990s when he got a job as a dealer at Sam's Town Poker room in Vegas. He had been well into Holdem already by that time, however, he never won any significant sums, and thus had to settle for watching others and studying their techniques.
The free poker lessons that he took on a daily basis soon paid their dividends. Having entered a smaller local tournament, Mike found himself a true winner for the first time in his career. That certainly whet his appetite for more of the sort, so he became a regular at these smaller local games. That's when he developed his Omaha skills that he's known for these days.
1997 was the year he would leap out of mediocrity and anonymity forever. It was the year when he first played in a WSOP tourney, finishing second in Omaha eight-or-better to none other than Scotty Nguyen, and bagging a nice sum of money in the process.
In 1999 he scored his first WSOP bracelet, in the $3,500 NL Holdem event, and that prompted him to set his goals even higher.
In 2001 he took part in the WSOP main event for the first time, and what a debut it was…
He made the final table, finishing in 6th place, and taking home a not-so-small fortune. The following year he scored another WSOP bracelet, but success-related issues were beginning to catch up with him.
2004 marked a low both in his personal life and his poker career. Getting knocked down and staying down though, has never been Mike Matusow's style. Following a six months incarceration for drugs charges, he came back with a vengeance and made the final table again in the 2005 WSOP main event.
All in all, his career winnings total about $5,600,000 and they include 21 WSOP money finishes, 2 bracelets, 6 WPT money finishes and 3 WPT final tables.
Having had a truly "up-and-down" poker career, Mike Matusow is indeed one of the most colorful personalities of the international poker scene.
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Mike Matusow aka "the mouth" is regarded to this day as the best Omaha 8-or-better player in the world : Poker Player
