Poker Player - Freddy Deeb
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When they start listing the best all around poker players in the world, it doesn’t take long to get to the name Freddy Deeb.
Kassem “Freddy” Deeb came to the United States from Lebanon at the age of 19. He is one of the most recognizable players in the world, and one of the greatest cash game players around. He is a regular on High Stakes Poker, and also at the Big Game at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Deeb’s past is interesting. While in college at Utah State, a civil war broke out in Lebanon, and he lost touch with his parents, who had been sending him money for school. Deeb could not work because he was on a student visa, so he started gambling. He left school just a few hours short of a degree in mechanical engineering.
Deeb’s poker career started getting attention when he began playing in tournaments regularly. His cash game prowess had long been legendary, but he earned TV time for World Poker Tour and World Series of Poker events. He earned his first WSOP bracelet in 1996 in the Deuce to Seven draw event, picking up a first prize of $146,000.
He also won a WPT event in 2004, earning a cool million. He has been competitive in the WSOP main event, finishing in the top 20 twice, finishing 17th in 1995 and 13th in 2003, the year Chris Moneymaker won. Deeb’s legend was cemented when he won the biggest tournament of his career in 2007. Deeb won the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E. event at the World Series of Poker. The H.O.R.S.E. event is widely considered to be the pro’s event, as it tests all poker skills. The event feature Hold ‘Em, Omaha, Razz, Stud and Omaha Eight or better.
Deeb’s win earned him $2.7 million and the respect of the poker world. Deeb has earned over $3 million in WSOP events and has 24 cashes. A father of four, Deeb, born in 1955, spends most of his time in Vegas. When Deeb started playing poker, he scratched up enough for a small bankroll and played low limit games in Reno, gradually working his way up. Deeb never worked as anything but a poker pro.
Deeb used an aggressive postflop style and an uncanny ability to read people to become one of the best poker players in the world.
Overall, in tournament play, Deeb has 50 cashes, $5.7 in earnings and two bracelets. Until the HORSE title, not many people outside the U.S. realized just how good Deeb was. Like Todd Brunson, he won most of his money in the cash games in Vegas, and those players generally don’t get recognized like the tournament players do. Regardless, Deeb had become well known before the HORSE win. But that cemented him as a superstar.
His six major tournament wins make him one of the most feared players anywhere. Deeb is a fun-loving, witty player at the table, but he has a keen sense and an uncanny ability to read opponents easily. Deeb will continue to be a threat in any tournament he signs up for. His incredibly skilled play and ability to win when he makes a final table puts him in rarified air. The HORSE win was one of the richest tournaments in the world, and the richest outside the Main Event.
Kassem “Freddy” Deeb is one of the best players in the world.
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