Early Life and Poker Introduction

Born on February 1, 1991, Alex Foxen got into poker at an early age but didn’t take it seriously until he turned 23 years old. “I got into poker when I was really young, like a lot of people, but I didn’t start playing seriously until I was 23 years old,” Foxen told SomuchPoker.

Before making poker his profession, Foxen earned a degree from Boston College, graduating in 2014. Besides playing poker, Foxen was a football player for Boston College. After graduating from the university at the age of 23, Foxen played online for several years under his screen name “bigfox86,” honing his skills and taking his game to a next level. He transitioned into a professional live tournament player in 2016, starting with mid and high-stakes tournaments.

Alex Foxen’s Poker Career Highlights and Earnings

Foxen kicked off his live poker career in 2012 with a win in the $355 NLH at the WSOP Circuit Orleans for $22,421, winning his first ring and making an impressive debut to live poker. 

As Foxen himself said, he initially didn’t take poker seriously and focused on his college degree. It wasn’t until the mid-2010s that he began grinding on PokerStars and competing in live tournaments consistently. In 2015, Foxen scored a 9th-place finish at the 46th WSOP Event: $3k NLH Six-Handed for $40,860.

A year later, Foxen ran deep and cashed several prestigious poker tournaments, including the WPT LA Championship, WPT Showdown Championship, WPT Seminole Hard Rock Finale, 47th WSOP Main Event, and many others, earning over $150k in total.

2017 was a turning point for Foxen. While continuing his cash finishes, he scored several final table finishes, pushing his career further. At the 2017 WSOP, he finished 3rd in the $1k NLH event, securing $98,761 for his remarkable run. That summer, he won the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open $2,650 NLH for $204,600, his first recorded six-figure score. Foxen concluded the year in style with a runner-up finish at the 2017 World Poker Tour Five Diamond World Poker Classic $10,400 Main Event, pocketing his first-ever seven-figure score of $1,134,202.

2018 was the year when Foxen truly dominated live events, scoring multiple six-figure cashes. He started the year by winning a WPT LA Poker Classic $25k High Roller for $424,625 and followed it up by winning his first Asian poker title at the APPT Macau High Roller for a hefty $964,380. During the summer, he cashed in several WSOP events, won a $5k MSPT event for $239,000, and secured his second SHRPO title in August for $208,452. He capped off 2018 with a runner-up finish in the $300k NLH Super High Roller Bowl, earning $2,160,000.

Alex Foxen kicked off 2019 with a bang, finishing runner-up at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) $25K NLH High Roller and earning a whopping $651,980. He also secured a runner-up finish in the EPT Monte Carlo €50K High Roller for $681,737. During the summer, he participated in the WSOP and achieved several cash finishes. While no major victories occurred for Foxen that year, he ended 2019 on a high note by winning the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic $10,400 NLH for a seven-figure payout worth $1,694,995.

The poker world shifted to online in 2020, with major operators hosting virtual tournaments. Foxen competed in several online events such as the PokerMasters Online, the Super High Roller Bowl, and the WSOP Online, where he achieved multiple cash finishes. He triumphed in the Poker Masters $10,300 High Roller for $309,677. Additionally, Foxen secured a live tournament win at the WPT LA Classic’s $25K NLH PokerGO High Roller for $249,950.

In 2021, Foxen began the year by winning the inaugural PokerGO Cup Event #1: $10K NLH, earning $178,200. His biggest score of the year came from a podium finish at the Poker Masters Event #12: $100K High Roller, where he took home $464,000.

The year 2022 marked a pinnacle in Foxen’s career, as he claimed his first WSOP bracelet by winning the 53rd WSOP $250K NLH Super High Roller for a career-high payout of $4,563,700. He closed out the year with a money finish at the 2023 WPT World Championship in Las Vegas.

Foxen started 2023 with a victory in PokerGO Cup Event #6: $25K NLH, collecting $317,040. He ran deep in the 54th WSOP Event #23: $50K High Roller, finishing fourth for $512,824. He concluded the year with a 6th-place finish at the inaugural WSOP Paradise Event #7: $52K NLH Super High Roller, earning $337,300.

Foxen began 2024 on a big note by winning the Lucky Hearts Open $25,500 High Roller for $426,075. At the 2024 World Series of Poker, he came close to securing his second bracelet in Event #77: $2,500 Mixed Game, finishing 6th for $30,988. He also finished as a runner-up in the 2024 WSOP Europe €25,000 NLH GGMillion$, earning $250,003.

Later in 2024, Foxen secured his long-awaited second bracelet in the Domestic WSOP Online, winning Event #17: $5K PLO Mystery Bounty for $20,064. A month later, he claimed his first Triton title by winning the $53K NLH Triton Poker Super High Roller Series for  $1,470,000. During the 2024 WSOP Paradise, Foxen achieved his third bracelet and second Triton title by winning Event #7: $106K NLH Triton Main Event for a massive $3,850,000 payday. He also made a deep run in the $500,000 NLH Triton Million, finishing 6th and earning $2,795,000.

In addition to his tournament success, Foxen has twice been honoured as the Global Poker Index Player of the Year, in 2018 and 2019. He is by far the only male player in poker history to have won the GPI (Global) POY award more than once, only trailing his wife Kristen Foxen, who has won the GPI (Female Category) POY  title four times in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2023.

Alex Foxen’s Net Worth 2024

From 412 live poker cashes, Foxen has earned over $42 million from tournaments, ranking 15th on Hendon Mob’s all-time money list. Additionally, he has cashed in nearly 3,000 online poker tournaments. Beyond his winnings, Foxen co-founded Chip Leader Coaching alongside fellow high-stakes pro Chance Kornuth, helping amateurs and aspiring professionals improve their game. Although there are no official reports on his net worth, Foxen’s career earnings and business ventures suggest it is likely to be in the multi-million-dollar range.

Alex Foxen’s Personal Life

Alex Foxen married his longtime girlfriend and female poker pro Kristen Foxen in 2018. The couple travels the world, competing in international poker tournaments together while facing each other at the poker table, and also backing each other on several occasions.

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The post Alex Foxen’s Historic Career: How He Built a Multi-Million-Dollar Net Worth in Poker first appeared on Global Poker News Daily: PokerProNews.com.

2024 WSOP Paradise Super Main Event Quick Recap

The 24-year-old Yinan Zhou from China outlasted a field of elite poker players, becoming the inaugural World Series of Poker ( WSOP) Paradise Super Main Event winner and earning a career-best $6 million top prize. The 2024 World Series of Poker Paradise $25,000 buy-in Super Main Event saw an impressive turnout of 1,978 across four flights and three online flights. However, it fell short of touching the record-breaking $50 million guarantee by $550,000. 

The $50 million prize pool was eventually shared by the top 297 players. Several notables made the money, including two Indian players—Adesh Tiwari (294th), and bracelet winner Santhosh Suvarana (240th). Santhosh, a high roller sensation from India had a good run at the series as he also finished 5th in Event #15: $5,000 The Closer and 8th in Event #13: $50,000 No-Limit Hold’em High Roller, walking away with $50,800 and $209,420, respectively. 

The final 9 were formed on Day 4 and returned to Day 5 to crown a champion. Four-time bracelet winner Michael Addamo led the final eight and was ready to lock up his fifth bracelet. 

High-stake pro Justin Bonomo was eliminated in 7th place after his pocket threes ran into the jacks of Yinan Zhou. Bonomo picked $1,300,000 for his impressive deep run. 

Michael Addamo, with a bigger stack, bluffed a lot during the start of the final table, which eventually backfired him. Addamo lost his stack to Zhou, later bowing out to Liv Boeree in 6th place to collect $1,650,000. 

Liv Boeree was marching toward becoming the first Woman in Poker to win a WSOP Main Event, but couldn’t double up and was eliminated by Brazil’s Marcelo Aziz. Boeree collected $2,800,000, the biggest-ever cash by a woman poker player in poker history.  

Mustapha Kanit’s remarkable run ended in 3rd place. As the blind rose, Kanit became the short stack holding almost 15 BBs. He went all in with ace-three suited and was called by Marcelo Aziz holding nine-eight suited. The flop favoured Kanit, but the eight on the river gave Aziz one pair to knock out Kanit in 3rd place. Kanit earned $3,600,000 for his 3rd place podium finish. 

Both Aziz and Zhou held almost even stack in the heads-up for the title, but Zhou soon took the lead. Aziz fought back and doubled up, but couldn’t overcome the massive stack of Zhou. The final hand saw Aziz go all-in holding king-six. Zhou made the call with ace-six suited. The board brought two sixes and Zhou secured the victory with his ace kicker and trips sixes. Aziz took home $4,600,000 for his runner-up finish, while Zhou was crowned as the 20024 WSOP Paradise Super Main Event Champion, collecting the massive $6,000,000 Million top prize. 

Final Table Payouts

2024 WPT World Championship Alpha 8 Quick Recap 

The 24-year-old Travis Egbert wins the 2024 World Poker Tour Championship Alpha 8 event at Wynn Las Vegas, banking a career-best payday of $684,684 and the trophy. It was the first WPT for the three-time ring winner, pushing his tournament earnings past $1.5 million.

The $25,800 WPT Alpha 8 event saw an elite 111-entry field, generating a total prize pool of $2,775,00, paid out to the top 13 players. Naz Ajez entered the final table with over 116 BBs followed by Travis Egbert. Both players ended up facing each other at the heads-up after Noel Rodriguez was eliminated in 3rd place.

Just before the heads-up kicked off, Azej and Egbert opted for a heads-up deal, splitting the remaining payouts to fight for the title and trophy. The final hand saw Egbert winning the heads-up with a set of aces, eliminating Azej out in runner-up place. Azej took home a massive $600,000 for his runner-up finish, while Egbert took home his first-ever WPT  title. 

Final Table Payouts

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One of the best female players in the world, Boeree was looking in great shape to claim her second bracelet but fell short when she shoved her pocket fours against Marcelo Aziz’s As 8s. Aziz made it into the tournament through an online Freeroll and stunned everyone, finishing runner-up to China’s Yinan Zhou for a career-best score of $4,600,000.

The latest live score at the WSOP Super Main Event marked the biggest live cash of her career, cementing her legacy once again in the world of live poker. The score not only propelled her to fourth place on the woman’s all-time money list to overtake Maria Ho but also saw her surpass the record for the biggest-ever cash by a female poker player in history. It is indeed a memorable milestone for someone who retired from the game a few years back for her new project, the Win-Win Podcast – a conversation series with top-notch thinkers for solutions to humanity’s biggest dilemmas.

Boeree’s eyes lit up when she learned that she had moved to fourth place on the women’s all-time money list, overtaking Maria Ho on the list. She now trails only Vanessa Selbst, Kristen Foxen, and Kathy Liebert. 

According to Boeree, the massive $2.8 million prize won in the Super Main Event is an insane amount of money and she plans to spend over 20% of her winnings from the historic tournament on improving conditions for animals on factory farms, a cause she deeply loves and cares about.

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The upcoming series replacing the former national tours seeks to shake up things for the 2025 live season. The live series promises more streamlined formats and more affordable buy-ins, making it more accessible for players.

The upcoming live poker festival gives players the chance to compete at festivals with €1,100/£1,100 Main Events, each featuring a €1M guarantee.

Six Stops With Three Amazing New Locations

The PokerStars Open comprises six stops, along with additional events set to run at European Poker Tour (EPT) Barcelona and EPT Monte Carlo, with each stop boasting a massive €1/£1 million GTD Main Event. Out of these six live stops, three will be held in brand-new locations, which include Campione (Italy), Manchester (UK), and Cannes (France).

The first of the six PokerStars Open stops begins in March in Campione, located on the stunning shores of Lake Lugano in Italy. In October, the tour will move to Manchester in the UK. Finally, the year ends at Cannes, where players can enjoy poker as well as the beauty of the French Riviera. According to PokerStars, every upcoming stop on the tour will feature a packed schedule of side events and cash games, making it more exciting.

Talking about the upcoming brand new festival, Cedric Billot, Associate Director of Live Events Operations at PokerStars said, “PokerStars is thrilled to introduce a new series of events to the European poker calendar. Our PokerStars Open events will offer players accessible exceptional experiences, with each venue providing a distinct atmosphere that contributes to a cohesive European series, complementing the European Poker Tour while also standing out on their own.”

“We understand that players love to travel for tournaments, so we’ve expanded to the PokerStars Open format. This allows us greater flexibility to host million-guaranteed events across Europe, beyond just our traditional national tour locations.”

Plenty of Online Qualifiers

Adding to the excitement, there are plenty of online qualifiers lined up for the PokerStars Open. Being the first newest stop on the 2025 tour, Campione started the season’s online satellites on December 19. As the other stops approach, more qualifiers will start ahead of each live stop, giving players the chance to win a seat for a fraction of the live buy-in.

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What Sparked The Controversy At 2024 WSOP Super Main Event?

When the WSOP Paradise Main Event came down to the final 16 players, WSOP informed Justin Bonomo that he would be disqualified from the tournament if he did not remove the Palestinian black-and-white keffiyeh. It came as a big shocker for the three-time WSOP bracelet winner and he quickly informed his X followers that he had been threatened with a disqualification from the WSOP Main Event for wearing a keffiyeh.

Bonomo has expressed his pro-Palestine views on social media several times and has even faced criticism from many players within the poker community, including poker legend Daniel Negreanu and Mike Matusow.

Matusow escalated his anti-Bonomo stance as he not only asked WSOP to ban him from the WSOP events but also urged US President Donald Trump to have the high-stakes legend jailed for his pro-Palestine beliefs.

Despite the criticism, Bonomo, who is currently second on the all-time money list behind Bryn Kenney with over $64 million in The Hendon Mob cashes, continues to stick to his belief. He has been wearing the keffiyeh at Paradise and had even recently announced that he will be donating some of his winnings at Paradise to charities in order to support Palestinians.

Is The WSOP Rulebook Really Against Keffiyeh?

This controversy sparked ahead of the big WSOP Super Main Event final table on Thursday when the WSOP staff threatened Bonomo with a disqualification for wearing keffiyeh. Although shocking for Bonomo, the decision came as part of the WSOP’s Policy of not allowing objectionable clothing. As per Section 54D in the WSOP rulebook, the host property has a full right to consider the keffiyeh as grounds for disqualification.

“Host Properties reserve the right at all times to impose a ban on any apparel deemed objectionable by Host Properties, in its sole and absolute discretion. Host Properties reserve the right to refuse entry or continued participation in an Event to any Participant who does not comply with the aforementioned apparel rules,” the rulebook says.

The 2024 WSOP Super Main Event is already down to the final table with Michael Addamo in lead and Liv Boeree being the only female player in the hunt for the coveted title. Bonomo is one of the shortest stacks at the table but is already guaranteed at least $1 million. Although a short stack, his eyes will be eying the whopping $6 million guaranteed up top prize.

After the WSOP staff asked Bonomo to remove the distinctive keffiyeh,  a traditional square scarf worn in the Middle East, he was left with no choice but to remove the scarf, although he was not happy in doing so. For Bonomo, it was simply a nice scarf made in Palestine. According to him, it should not have been objectionable especially for the WSOP brand that had recently supported Israeli charities. He referred to the $10,000 buy-in charity event, which was hosted at the WSOP Paradise to raise funds for IDF Widows and Orphans, a decision that really upset Bonomo.

However, this is not the first time that a controversial attire has been banned or has led to disqualification from a tournament. In the past, PokerStars had also banned displays of political statements in 2014 during European Poker Tour (EPT) events. Two players who teamed up to ship the Tag Team event at the 2021 WSOP also wore “Free Palestine” shirts during the event, but the images were removed from the winner photos.

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