Phil Laak “"Unabomber"“

Hometown
Dublin, Ireland

Total Winnings
$396,645

Phil Laak, a.k.a. the "Unabomber," earned his nickname for his habit of playing in a hooded sweatshirt cinched up tight, and sunglasses. He has always loved puzzles, games, and thinking. Even though he holds a degree in mechanical engineering, he knows that he does not know. Even though Laak may try to play down his intelligence, his poker accomplishments, which even include defeating a robot, indicate he is one smart cookie.

Laak rose to notoriety in the poker world during Season II of the WPT. He final tabled the Legends of Poker at the Bicycle Casino, but his real breakout moment came at the WPT Invitational. He ran around the stage, joked around with friend and fellow final tablist Antonio Esfandiari, wrapped his hood around his face, and locked up a WPT title. In 2005, Laak came close to adding a WSOP bracelet to his list of accomplishments, but he finished second to Johnny Chan in what was Chan’s tenth bracelet win. Laak made another WPT final table just a few months after that at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic, but once again finished in sixth place.

Laak hasn’t been back in the WPT spotlight since, but he has racked up a number of other poker achievements. He and fellow LA cash game grinder Ali Eslami made headlines in 2007 when they defeated a poker bot designed by the University of Alberta. In 2009, Laak was back on the tournament grind, winning the invitational PartyPoker World Open V for $250,000. It looked like a serious ATV accident would sideline Laak from the poker action, but he made a remarkable recovery in time to play the 2010 WSOP Europe. Sporting a cast and a Mohawk, Laak picked up his first WSOP bracelet in the £2,500 Six-Handed No Limit Hold’em event. That win and his other cashes over the years puts Laak’s lifetime tournament earnings at more than $2.5 million.