Daniel Negreanu: The Young Prodigy

Daniel Negreanu is not the conventional type of poker face. He presents a cheerful, lively and smiley-faced individual who could be mistaken for an average Joe. But his poker prowess is beyond looks and is more than skin deep.

Negreanu holds the 2004 Player of the Year title according to ESPN, Card Player Magazine and the World Poker Tour. He is one of the most prominent players who are under the radar and stands as the voice of the younger generation of pros.

Negreanu's popular nickname is Kid Poker and he has the capability of comprehending his opponent's actions. According to Negreanu, his preferred poker event is Pot-limit Hold'em. The year 2004 was his best year for he has accumulated $ 4.4 million in winnings, participated at 11 final tables in several tournaments, and earned his 3rd World Series of Poker bracelet in the Limit Hold'em event. Daniel Negreanu's parents were from Romania and they migrated to Toronto, Canada in1967.

Daniel was born in 1974, and is the youngest of the of two Negreanu boys. At age twenty one, he decided to move to Las Vegas in order to pursue a career in poker. Vegas is where he found his calling and it gave him the opportunity he's been seeking. At age twenty three, he was awarded with the title Youngest World Series of Poker Champion of 1998. Until 2004, he held on to his title.

Negreanu has always been dedicated in promoting and elevating poker as a sport, and he even said he will do everything to make the public realize that poker is a reputable profession though it may seem unconventional and untraditional. Negreanu manages a website called fullcontactpoker.com and he is also an active participation at pokerschoolonline.com. At fullcontactpoker.com, Negreanu is a tutor and he has catered to several celebrity poker fanatics such as Tobey Maguire, who has made luck in some poker tournaments. This website also features Negreanu's blog which features his comments on accusations about his reputation of being an alcoholic.

Daniel Negreanu has his own favorite poker pros in the circuit namely Phil Ivey and Jennifer Harman. He's not short in admiration for his colleagues and even extends his support like in Ivey's case, where Negreanu volunteered to shoulder the $ 80,000 bill payable to the rehabilitation center where Ivey was brought due to drug abuse.

Daniel's last name is quite foreign-sounding and people have been pronouncing it in many ways, but he doesn't mind. Negreanu currently lives with his wife in Las Vegas, Nevada.