World Poker Tour

Mike Matusow “The Mouth“

Hometown
Los Angeles, CA

Birthday
April 30

Total Winnings
$1,558,759

Mike Matusow is man of emotion. Ever in need of a challenge, the Los Angeles native has long been known for being outspoken and aggressive. Early hobbies of building race cars, bowling, and billiards fed his need for competition. They weren’t enough. In the early 1990's, he found a job that put him right in the center of the competitive gaming world. Working as dealer at Sam's Town Hotel and Gambling Hall in Las Vegas gave him a start in the poker world. Though he didn't realize it at the time, that taste of the world would take him places that he hadn't imagined.

During his time as a poker dealer, Matusow learned every detail of the game, studied players, and took mental notes of everything he witnessed. Finally, he entered a small poker tournament and won it. The success prompted him to play more tournaments, build his bankroll, and enter the cash game scene. Local players quickly realized that he was a skillful player, especially in hold'em and Omaha variations. He also became known as a vocal, emotional player engaging in banter at the tables that made him both friends and enemies. Though he has experience both the extreme highs and deep lows of poker, the love of competition and cards has kept him in the game and eventually endeared him to most who know him.

Mike won his first major tournament at the World Series of Poker in 1999, taking home a bracelet in the $3500 no-limit hold'em event. In 2002, he won his second bracelet in the $5000 Omaha hi-lo split tournament. Since then, he has become a familiar face on the World Poker Tour. Matusow has several WPT final tables to his credit. He’s been seen at the Aruba Poker Classic where he finished third, on the famed Bad Boys of Poker II event as the runner-up, and at the final table of the Bellagio Cup III as the second place finisher. In 2005, Matusow won the WSOP Tournament of Champions for $1 million. With more than 11 years of playing poker professionally under his belt, as well as some perspective gained through the years of experiences, Mike is working with two writers on the biography of his life.