Moneymaker was playing the $20 and $40 buy-ins tournaments regularly. He bought in to a $39 tournament in 2003, one which was a pathway to the World Series of Poker. Winning the tournament, Chris got a freeroll into a World Series of Poker satellite event. Vying with 63 other players, Chris won the satellite event. Suddenly, Chris had a freeroll into the $10,000 buy-in World Series of Poker Main Event.
Chris entered a field of over 700 players. He had to scrape together the money to visit Vegas, including a loan from his friend, David Gamble, in exchange for a percentage of Chris’s winnings. The first day of the tournament, Chris was placed at a table that included Johnny Chan, who appeared in Rounders, and Phil Ivey, considered by many to be the best player in the world at the time.
As the tournament continued, Chris would build the biggest chip stack. He would knock out several of the biggest names in the sport, eventually squaring off with veteran Sam Farha for the championship. Chris would eventually win, taking home $2.5 million dollars.
More importantly, Moneymaker became a household name.
