Max Pescatori: A Look at His Road to Success in the World Series of Poker

Known for his unique nickname 'the Italian Pirate,' Max Pescatori is definitely one of the most successful professional card players in the World Series of Poker. Even without talking about it, his record clearly reflects his greatness on top of the poker table. His impressive WSOP stats now include two championship bracelets, 19 money finishes, as well as career winnings of $1,290,832. Add to that, he also took some time competing in different WSOP Circuit Events, from which he has amassed total earnings valued at $67,797.

Pescatori's WSOP career started in 2004, when he signed up for two prestigious events scheduled for the 35th Annual World Series of Poker. Although he did not finish in the top 10 in both events, he was still able to pull off decent performances, including a 28th place finish at the $1,500 Limit Holdem Event 4 and a 26th place performance at the $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low-8 or Better event. After these all-important events, he then played in the 2004/2005 WSOP Circuit Event that took place at Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey. In the end, he captured the top prize at the $1,500 Limit Holdem, which earned him a decent prize of $10,800.

In the 2005 season, Pescatori played in six events for the 36th Annual World Series of Poker, including a 25th place finish at the $1,500 Seven-Card Stud Event 8, a 53rd place performance at the $2,000 Limit Holdem Event 10, and an outstanding fifth place ending at the $2,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Event 12. The other half of his performances for the 36th Annual World Series of Poker included a 19th place finish at the $2,500 Omaha Hi-Low-8 or Better, a 72nd place ending at the $2,000 No-Limit Holdem Event 29, and a 13th place performance at the $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Event 35.

After a solid season, Pescatori played at the 2005/2006 WSOP Circuit Event held at Harrah's Las Vegas in Nevada, where he won the top prize of $47,491 at the $2,000 No-Limit Holdem event. In 2006, he signed up for three super exciting events for the 37th Annual World Series of Poker including a 21st place finish in the $2,000 No-Limit Holdem Event 6 and a 34th place performance in the $1,500 No-Limit Holdem Event 43. However, it was at the $2,500 No-Limit Holdem Event 13 where he hit the grand prize of $682,389 and earned his very first official WSOP championship bracelet.

In the 2007 season, Pescatori played in three different events for the 38th Annual World Series of Poker, one of which was the $5,000 No-Limit Holdem Event 22 where he placed 27th overall for a $20,034-prize. Moving further, he participated in four separate events for the 39th Annual World Series of Poker in 2008. In this season, his best performance was a first place finish at the $2,500 Pot-Limit Holdem/Omaha event, where he earned his second overall WSOP championship bracelet as well as the grand pot valued at $246,471.