Following his graduation from Palisades High in 2003, Jeff Madsen began casually playing Texas hold ‘em poker. It wasn’t a family influence – neither of his parents nor his sister played. Instead, Madsen enjoyed taking on his friends during the summer after his senior year, and he quickly found he had quite the knack.
“I knew right away I was good at it,” Madsen recalled. “I had a strategic-thinking kind of mind, and I was competitive. So I started reading a lot of books and trying to get better as quick as possible.”
As a freshman at UC Santa Barbara, Madsen began playing cash games at the Chumash Casino, earning small amounts of money. By 2006, he was ready to make the leap and compete in the prestigious World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, shortly after his 21st birthday. With the WSOP, there is no qualifier, just a $10,000 buy-in.
“I didn’t have much money, so I borrowed some from my parents, who believed in me,” said Madsen. “That’s why poker is popular. You pay to play, and you can sit down and play next to the best player in the world. I was excited, not intimidated. I felt like I was comfortable with my game and that I belonged because I was a good player.”
Not only did Madsen show that he belonged, he became the youngest player in WSOP history to earn two bracelets at the age of 21 by winning two of the 45 events. He topped a field of 1,579 entries in one event (winning $660,948) and outlasted a field of 507 of contestants in the second event, winning $643,381.
Madsen was named the 2006 World Series of Poker Player of the Year, and poker soon became his full-time profession. He chose to leave UCSB a semester short of graduation, and he continued playing the WSOP every year. He returned to the winners circle this year by topping a field of 640 that included Omaha expert Scott Clements, a fellow two-time WSOP bracelet winner. Madsen won $384,420.
While the WSOP is poker’s most notable event, it is hardly Madsen’s only venture in the game. He travels frequently within the U.S. and also internationally to play in tournaments, including the World Series of Poker Europe. That event moves from England to Paris this fall. Madsen has also played in Australia and plans to play in the Bahamas next January.
For any poker player, patience and resiliency are two key virtues. Madsen, who splits his time between his native Santa Monica and Las Vegas, where he owns a house, has both qualities.
“[At the WSOP] you play preliminary events for three days, and each day you play 12 to 14 hours with only a few breaks,” Madsen said. “As a poker player, you’re used to playing long hours, and when you’re doing well, you’re motivated. People who aren’t used to it get drained from staying up late, but for me it definitely isn’t draining, it’s exciting, especially when you get closer to winning.”
In his career, Madsen has accumulated over $4 million in tournament winnings, with $2.2 million coming from the World Series of Poker. His yearly schedule is relatively flexible, with tournaments generally dictating his whereabouts. When he’s home, he likes to spend most of his time at local casinos playing cash games, especially at the Commerce Casino, Bicycle Casino and Hollywood Park Casino.
As for his personality, Madsen’s seems ideally suited for poker.
“He was always the quiet, shy type,” said Madsen’s mother, Harriet. “He was the smart type that didn’t have to study too hard, and he did really well in math and in school in general. Those were all the signs. He’s very introspective and very intuitive and pretty cerebral. He’s upset when he doesn’t win like anybody else, but he always maintains his cool and never has any hard feelings or negativity towards his opponents.”
Adding to Madsen’s straight-forward approach is the fact that unlike some of poker’s more notable figures, there are no “gimmicks,” as Harriet points out. “There are no hats or glasses or cover-ups” associated with her son.
At Palisades High, Madsen was an outfielder on the baseball team, while his older sister, Marissa, was a cross-country runner. Madsen’s father, Michael, is an architect, and Harriet works as a health insurance agent for Wells Fargo.
Though Madsen, at age 28, has become a prominent name in the poker community, he maintains his humbleness. He has assisted with teaching seminars for the World Series of Poker Academy and will lead one for the first time in New Orleans in October, and he even turned down a request to appear on “The Tonight Show” after his historic 2006 WSOP achievement.
“He never wanted to be famous,” Harriet Madsen said. “He just wants to be the best poker player in the world.”
JEFF MADSEN’S POKER STATS
WSOP Bracelets: 3
WSOP Cashes: 30
WSOP Earnings: $2,184,086
Total Earnings: $4,008,771
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
