Carlos Mortensen

Juan Carlos Mortensen (born 13 April 1972, in Ambato, Ecuador) is an Ecuadorian professional poker player of Danish descent and the first South American Main Event winner of the World Series of Poker. Mortensen is known for his loose play, bluffing tactics, and interesting chip-stacking style.[1]

Carlos Mortensen
Mortensen at the 2015 $10,000 WPT No Limit Hold'em Championship
Nickname(s)El Matador[1]
ResidenceUnited States
Born (1972-04-13) 13 April 1972
Ambato, Ecuador
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s)2
Money finish(es)21
Highest ITM
Main Event finish		Winner, 2001
World Poker Tour
Title(s)3
Final table(s)6
Money finish(es)21
European Poker Tour
Title(s)None
Final table(s)None
Money finish(es)1

Poker career

World Series of Poker

Mortensen moved from Spain to the United States in the late 1990s to play poker. He won $1,500,000 at the 2001 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event. Mortensen defeated a then-record field of 613 players, including a very tough final table that included professional players Mike Matusow (sixth), 1989 WSOP Main Event champion Phil Hellmuth (fifth), Phil Gordon (fourth), and Dewey Tomko (second).[2] In the final hand, Mortensen's K♣ Q♣ out-drew and defeated Tomko's A♠ A♥, when Mortensen's hand improved to make a straight.[3]

Mortensen won his second career bracelet at the 2003 World Series of Poker in the $5,000 Limit Hold'em event, earning $251,680. He defeated professional player Mark Gregorich heads-up to win the title.[4]

At the 2006 World Series of Poker, Carlos made three final tables. He finished in ninth place in Event #2 (No Limit Hold'em) winning $71,617.[5] He once again finished in ninth place in Event #6 (NL Hold 'em), earning him $73,344.[6] Mortensen came up just short of winning his third bracelet in Event #33 (Razz), where he finished runner-up to fellow professional James Richburg, earning him $94,908.[7]

Mortensen finished in 10th place in the 2013 WSOP Main Event, being the "Final Table Bubble Boy."[8][9]

Mortensen was considered to be the last big-name poker professional to win the Main Event at the World Series of Poker, until Koray Aldemir in 2021. As a result of the poker boom, which ignited itself two years after his win, when Chris Moneymaker won the Main Event, the fields in that tournament have increased exponentially, making it extraordinarily more difficult for individual players to maintain consistent success in it.[10][11][12]

World Series of Poker bracelets
Year Tournament Prize (US$)
2001 $10,000 No Limit Hold'em World Championship $1,500,000
2003 $5,000 Limit Hold'em $251,680

World Poker Tour

In 2004, he won the World Poker Tour (WPT) Doyle Brunson North American Poker Championship for $1,000,000.[13] Mortensen won the Season Five World Poker Tour championship event for a $3,970,415 first place prize, his largest tournament cash to date, and his second career WPT title, making him the first player in professional poker history to ever win the World Championship events at both the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour.[14]

In 2010, Mortensen won the Season Eight WPT Hollywood Poker Open.[15]

Other poker tournaments

Mortensen has made the prize money in the World Heads-Up Poker Championship, and was a semi-finalist in the second season of the Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament.[16]

Mortensen had a good run at the 2007 European Poker Tour Main Event in Monte Carlo finishing 11th.[17]

In 2006, he and his wife, fellow poker player Cecilia Reyes Mortensen, divorced.[18]

As of August 2017, his total live tournament winnings exceed $12,100,000.[19] His 21 cashes as the WSOP account for over $3,200,000 of those winnings.[20]

References
  1. Shulman, Allyn Jaffrey (31 December 2004). "Juan Carlos Mortensen: El Matador!". CardPlayer.com. Archived from the original on 5 December 2007. Retrieved 13 May 2008.
  2. "32nd World Series of Poker - WSOP 2001, Championship Event - No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 4 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  3. Rodriguez, Julio (14 November 2011). "The Ten -- Poker's Most Unlucky Players at the World Series of Poker Final Table". CardPlayer. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  4. "34th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2003, Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  5. "37th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2006, No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  6. "37th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2006, No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  7. "37th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2006, 7 Card Razz". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  8. O'Connor, Will (14 May 2018). "2013 WSOP Main Event: Where Are They Now?". PGT. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  9. "Seasoned pro tops final table at World Series of Poker". USA TODAY. Associated Press. 16 July 2013. Archived from the original on 22 July 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  10. Kaplan, Michael (29 June 2023). ""Enjoyable is not a word I'd use" – Chris Moneymaker and the truth behind the poker boom, 20 years on". Poker.org. Archived from the original on 6 July 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  11. Kensing, Kyle (23 May 2023). "Busted: The 2003 World Series of Poker and the fleeting Poker Boom". Awful Announcing. Archived from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  12. Nathan, Eric (24 May 2023). "20 Years Ago Chris Moneymaker Won The WSOP Main Event And Started The Poker Boom". Barstool Sports. Archived from the original on 25 May 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  13. "2004 Festa al Lago III Poker Tournament, The Doyle Brunson North American No Limit Hold'em Poker Championship". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  14. "Fifth Annual Five Star World Poker Classic, WPT - No Limit Hold'em Championship". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 20 February 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  15. "Hollywood Poker Open, No Limit Hold'em - WPT Championship Event: Hendon Mob Poker Database". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 6 April 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  16. "2005 National Heads-Up Poker Championship, Heads-Up No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 24 September 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  17. "European Poker Tour - EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final, No Limit Hold'em - EPT Grand Final". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
  18. "WPT Ladies Night III to Benefit Breast Cancer Research". CardPlayer. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  19. "Carlos Mortensen's profile on The Hendon Mob". The Hendon Mob Poker Database. Archived from the original on 22 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  20. "CARLOS MORTENSEN - Spain". WSOP.com. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
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