Legends of Poker - T.J. Cloutier

Thomas James Cloutier was born nearly 70 years ago on 13 October 1939 in Albany, California. With its 69 years of age, Cloutier is one of the oldest and most experienced players in poker. E was also a talented athlete and excels in almost any American sport, whether it was baseball, basketball and American football.

It was not surprising, therefore, that TJ has received a scholarship to the University of California at Berkley for his talent in baseball and American football. Cloutier was a great linebacker and has managed to secure a place in the team of college and doing the latter, he played in the oldest championship in the world of American football, the Rose Bowl. Although California has lost against Iowa, Cloutier appeared to start a career. However, Cloutier was forced to leave the University when her mother fell ill, because he is that his father had to earn money to pay for medicine for her.

Shortly after, T.J. was called to join the army American, who was not a rarity in those days as America was fighting several wars during that period. Here began the great career of poker Cloutier, who was seen during his time that the army has played his first hand of poker. There is much that Cloutier wanted to become a feared opponent among his comrades in arms. At however, was much more inclined towards a career as a player of American football, that is what has continued to do after finishing his military service. He signed a contract with the Montreal Allouettes of Canada and later went to their rivals, the Toronto Argonauts.

Cloutier has been a successful player in the Canadian Football League until it was forced to abandon the game. This time was the same Cloutier to suffer physically, a knee injury has abruptly ended his football career. Here was when he resumed playing poker. Just when he was about to enter the game something hampered his path and prevented the start of his career as a poker player. His father and his brother-in-law had an intention to open their business. It would be named Best Quality Foods, but the business failed, and this was added to the downward spiral that Cloutier was living at that time because his first marriage was about to end.

To escape from all this, T.J. decided to move to Texas, where he started working for a major oil company. Working on an oil platform spent some time on board the platform, and then passed the same period of time at home before returning back on board. In this way, Cloutier had a lot of free time. During his time at home he had started to work as a caddy at a golf course. Texas is, of course, the birthplace of Holdem poker, and it became the birthplace of the career of poker Cloutier. After a couple of years the game has become so profitable for him to be always looking for new games in the region. E became a real player of the road, and was always where we played the best games, even if that meant traveling far from home. He started to make more money playing poker that working on the oil platform, so he decided that it would be a good time to become a professional poker full time.

From 1983 onwards Cloutier played the big tournaments, and recorded his first win was in April of that year when he won a tournament No Limit from $ 2500 in Las Vegas by winning about $ 43,000. In that year he also made his debut with the WSOP and, although not had much success that year, not so long before the victories. Even the things of his private life began to get better. In 1984 he married his wife Joy, which is still married. From 1985 on, Cloutier has managed to place a premium at least 1 year to the WSOP tournament, except for 1986 and 2008. No wonder then that T.J. is regarded as one of the players most stable and constant in the world of poker. The first collection of Cloutier to the WSOP could not have been better in 1985 came second in the WSOP Main Event, winning $ 280,000, after losing in heads-up against Bill Smith when the A-3 of Cloutier could not improve against pair of 3 Smith. Only 2 years later Cloutier has managed to win his first WSOP bracelet after he won the $ 1,000 Limit Omaha event and won $ 72,000.

In the following year still managed to reach the final table of poker tournament more important in the world. This time it ended in the 5th place that gave Johnny Chan his second consecutive victory in the Main Event. But Cloutier has not been successful only in the WSOP events. In 1990 he won two other tournaments from $ 10,000 buy-in in Las Vegas, gaining nearly half a million dollars with victories. In 1994 he managed to win not one but two WSOP bracelets in a year, before winning the $ 1500 Omaha Hi / Lo event ($ 135,000), and then securing the victory only ten days later the $ 2500 Pot Limit Holdem event ($ 163,000). The list of the results of tournaments Cloutier is long but, even if we consider only those big, there are still enough to talk about.

Over the years T.J. has won more than sixty tournaments, along with numerous placements at a premium. In 1996 he had 4 WSOP final tables before winning his 4th bracelet in 1998. He completed his trilogy Omaha becoming the first player ever to win bracelets in the events Limit Omaha, Omaha Hi / Lo and Pot Limit Omaha. His 4th bracelet arrived after having defeated Doyle Brunson in heads-up, and was rewarded with $ 136,000. But this is nothing compared to his collection ten days later, after reaching his third final table WSOP in his career. Unfortunately Cloutier has not been able to once again turn to him the final table and finished at 3rd place behind Kevin McBride and Scotty Nguyen, winning $ 437,000. It is not too long before Cloutier battesse this record prize of his career since, only two years later, was sitting once again at a final table of the Main Event. With a field of 512 players Cloutier was able to get in the top 5 for the fourth time in their careers. For the second time came allheads-up for the most coveted prize in poker. But it was Chris Ferguson who won the event at the end when his A-9 beat the AQ of Cloutier after a 9 has fallen to flop. The question remains, however, if a double up here would have been enough for Cloutier, since it was entered into heads-up with a chip disadvantage of 10:1. In the end, however, has received nearly $ 900,000 for his second place.

The successes of Cloutier took place mainly in America and he has never felt the need to often play poker abroad. His biggest win outside the U.S. were $ 31,000 for his third place in the Master Classics of Poker Main Event in Amsterdam in 2000 and $ 13,000 for his 20th place at the EPT Copenhagen in 2007. T.J. knew exactly where there were a lot of money and has continued to reach final tables and awards to the WSOP. In 2004, Cloutier took his 5th bracelet after winning the $ 1500 Razz event ($ 90,500), followed by his 6th bracelet a year later after winning the $ 5000 Pot Limit Holdem event ($ 657,100), making it become one of greatest legends of poker without a bracelet of the WSOP Main Event. His victory in 2005 was even more special was that after a collapse at the poker table during a WPT event in Aruba. Cloutier was immediately flown to America where he was diagnosed with brain cancer. Not long after his health has suffered another blow after having had a heart attack. He understood that it would be appropriate for him to cool off , but close with poker was out of the question. Already the following year showed that his health had no effect on his game and that was still one of the best poker players in the world.

In 2006, is back in action when he arrived at the final table of the first event ever WSOP $ 50,000 HORSE Cloutier has ended 5th place and added another $ 500,000 to his poker winnings, which amounted at more than $ 9.3 million. In that year, Cloutier has been included in the Poker Hall of Fame, where he was placed next to the Great as Doyle Brunson, David Chip Reese and Stu Ungar. T.J. could slow down, but it is far from close, so do not be surprised if he reappears in a few final tables in the coming years. Maybe infrangerà the barrier of $ 10 million and will rise in the All Time Money List, which is currently the 8th place.

Like many other professional poker, Cloutier has also decided to put on paper its views about the game. Together with Tom McEvoy has written four books of poker, all of which four are intended to transform the reader into a sample of poker, as one might assume the titles of books: Championship Tournament Practice Hands, Holdem Championship, Championship Omaha , and Championship No Limit and Pot-Limit Holdem. Two years later he wrote alone a fifth book called How To Win The Championship: Holdem Strategies For The Final Table, which speaks specifically to play a final table. For those who want to learn by playing, the games World Class Poker With TJ Cloutier. This game could be helpful even if you end up at a poker table at the same sitting near TJ. Do not forget that he observes everything that happens at the table and, thanks to his photographic memory, can remember almost everything. Then six alerted if you happen to play against the legend.