Over the weekend, Phil Ivey placed second to Dan Shak in the $100,000 Challenge at the 2010 Aussie Millions Poker Championship at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia. For his efforts, Ivey won $553,776 ($600,000 AUD), vaulting him into the top position on the all-time live tournament money list. His total of $12,813,990 is now $381,623 ahead of Daniel Negreanu‘s $12,432,367.
For his part, Negreanu has been far from a sore “loser.” In fact, Negreanu expressed his admiration for Ivey in his poker journal on his website, FullContactPoker.com:
“It’s my belief that Phil Ivey is the best poker player in the world, and that includes every format,” wrote Negreanu. “I’ve played live with him, and cash, Hold’em, Stud, Omaha, whatever, and he is just the most consistently good player at everything – include [sic] online based on what his results look like. I don’t think anyone has won more money online, live play, or tournament poker, than Ivey. Pretty strong.”
Fortunately, Negreanu does not feel like this turn of events diminishes his place in the poker world, nor should he. Like any good competitor, Negreanu is using Ivey’s success as an impetus to achieve even more in his career.
“It’s actually kind of fun for me,” Negreanu blogged after Day 1 of the 2010 WPT Southern Poker Championship at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi, Mississippi. “I’m glad he did so well because it motivates me to try and pass him again. I was up about $200,000 so I think I’ll need to finish 2nd or 1st to regain the lead. Should be a fun year from that perspective.”
“Kid Poker” also commented on Ivey’s mindset, saying, “Another misconception about Ivey is that he ‘Doesn’t really care.’ He does. He definitely cares, because he is a competitor. It’s not all about the money for him, otherwise he wouldn’t bother. I think he’s got something to prove in 2010. Not to the poker world, everyone with half a brain knows that Ivey is the best. I think he has something to prove to himself. 2010 could be a monster year for him.”
In the last half year, Phil Ivey has won nearly $2,000,000 on the live tournament circuit, allowing him to overtake such players as Phil Hellmuth, Jamie Gold, Joe Hachem, and Scotty Nguyen on the all-time money list (based on current money standings), in addition to Negreanu. While his Aussie Millions take was sizable, Ivey’s rise on the leader board was aided primarily by his seventh place finish in the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, where he won $1,404,014. He also won two bracelets during the 2009 WSOP, bringing his lifetime total to seven.
If it is any consolation for Negreanu, he remains ahead of Ivey on the inflation-adjusted money list (thanks to thehendonmob.com for this information), $13,816,957 to $13,305,078. He is still second on that list, though, to Hellmuth, whose inflation-adjusted total is $13,876,255.
