Attorney, game theorist, poker pro, Big Brother contestant, DJ, producer, and lover of life. Those are a few of the labels Vanessa Rousso uses to describe herself on her Instagram profile. She ranks poker as her third defining achievement, and that's no exaggeration. Rousso is one of the top 10 on the Women's All Time Money List and is well known in the poker community by her nickname, Lady Maverick.
Vanessa Rousso’s Early Years and Education
Rousso was born in 1983 in New York State in the United States, but moved to France with her parents three years later. At the age of 9, after her parents divorced, she returned to America with her mother. According to her mother, Vanessa began reading early and demonstrated a passion for intellectual games from childhood. She was fond of chess and regularly participated in local championships, long before poker would boost her net worth.
Rousso's competitive spirit manifested itself in other areas as well:
- She played lacrosse and basketball on school teams.
- I was involved in swimming
- Achieved excellent results at school level in political debate competitions
- After graduating from high school, she attended law school, where she became interested in game theory. Her interest in chess gradually faded, and Vanessa's attention switched to poker. An analytical mind and a keen desire to win are the perfect combination for a future professional poker player.
The Beginning of Vanessa Rousso’s Poker Career
Rousso was introduced to poker at the age of five. She began regularly playing $250 SnG tournaments at the Hard Rock Casino while in college. Vanessa became so fascinated with the game that she dropped out of school for a few years to pursue a professional poker career. She later returned and earned a law degree, and also graduated from Duke University with an degree in economics.
The SnG wins allowed her to save up enough money to participate in a $1,500 tournament at the Atlantic City casino. Vanessa cashed and built her bankroll to $17,500. Rousso didn’t hesitate to advance her career and used the winnings to buy a ticket to one of the WPT tournaments. The attractive girl with an obvious talent for poker was quickly noticed. Subsequently, she often found herself at the TV tables and took part in the Poker After Dark show.
Vanessa Rousso continued to participate in major tournaments, regularly making it into the money, but rarely reaching the final tables. The turning point in Vanessa Rousso's career as a professional poker player is considered to be a deep run in the 2006 WSOP Main Event. She managed to get to the final table, finish seventh, and add $263,625 to her balance.
Vanessa personality and passion for poker made her an easy pick for a PokerStars patch. She spent 9 years on the team, from 2006 to 2015.
Vanessa’s Achievements and Biggest Wins
That same year, 2006, Vanessa won a $5,000 tournament at the Borgata Casino and received $285,450. Continuing to consistently cash in high-stakes tournaments, Rousso became a real poker star by the end of 2006. In 2007, Rousso took $700,782 in winnings for second place in the WCOOP online main event, which at that time was the best result in her career.
In 2009, she managed to defeat Doyle Brunson, Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu in the heads-up tournament , but lost to Huck Seed in the final. Vanessa Rousso's biggest career win came for winning the EPT High Roller in 2009 – €720,000 (almost a million dollars at the time).
Rousso’s top 5 wins:
- $962,958 at the 2009 EPT for 1st place
- $358,964 at WPT 2010 for 3rd place
- $285,450 on WPT in 2006 for 1st place
- $263,625 on WPT in 2006 for 7th place
- $250,000 for 2nd place in NBC Heads-Up Tournament
Using her media popularity, Vanessa actively participated in the promotion of poker and fought against sexist stereotypes. In 2006, she was one of the leaders of the players' association, which tried to convince the US Congress to cancel or soften the ban on online gambling.
Today, Vanessa devotes most of her time to her family and music. During her active poker career, she amassed live winnings of around $3,500,000. Although she stopped playing poker professionally in 2017, her total prize money is still enough to remain in the top ten among women.
Vanessa Rousso’s exact net worth is unknown, but estimates place it at around $6 million.
Vanessa's rapid rise and consistent results were not a coincidence. Rousso was one of the first to actively study the application of game theory in poker. The girl is also known for her psychological stability and ability to quickly rebuild the game depending on the opponent's style.
How to Become a Poker Pro
To become a successful professional player, you don’t necessarily need to graduate from a prestigious university and have a whole set of innate talents, as in the case of Vanessa Rousso. Poker is a game with simple rules and an almost infinite depth of strategies. With a competent approach to learning, beginner poker players begin to play consistently in the plus quite quickly. But moving up to high limits can take years, although there are exceptions here too.
The good news is that even playing at mid-limits in poker brings in income significantly higher than the average salary in many countries. Beginners should start their journey with free training materials. Learn about ranges in poker, methods for better grinding, and how to correctly go for value.
Poker rooms regularly hold free tournaments for beginners. They are called freerolls , and beginners can use them to practice poker without risk. To participate, you need to register accounts using the links from our site in the Poker Rooms section.
