Eli Elezra

Eli Elezra who is also known by his nicknames "Mr. Vegas" and "Wizard" was born on November 24, 1960 in Jerusalem, Israel. He holds one World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet and one World Poker Tour (WPT) title.

Besides being a professional poker player, Elezra is also a successful businessman who owns a chain of retail stores and a popular Las Vegas nightclub called "Seven". He stated that when he was doing business in Alaska, there was nothing to do so he and his co-workers were playing poker day and night. This proved to be a good practice for him before moving to play in Vegas. He said that he won almost every time while playing with his business friends, but when he started playing in Vegas, it was clear to him that he still had things to learn in order to become better in the game.

Elezra was a lieutenant in a commando unit (Golani Brigade) when he was serving in the Israeli army. He started playing poker after suffering a leg injury, but he did not forget about his service and unit, as he donated $50,000 to complete a gym for his former commando unit.

Today, Elezra is a good and respected poker player and after moving to America, he has entered the money several times in WSOP events. He plays all kind of poker games and his 15 finishes in the money in the WSOP events are in Omaha, Texas Hold'em and Draw events. Still, after all his accomplishments and millions of dollars in cash games and tournament winnings, he does not consider himself as a professional player.

Elezra is playing "The Big Game" for many years now and has also appeared in seasons two and three of the Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament, GSN's High Stakes Poker and NBC's Poker After Dark.

Elezra's first poker bracelet was won in 2004 when he won the 2004 WPT $10,000 No Limit Hold'em event. Aside from the bracelet, he also took home $1,024,574.

His first WSOP bracelet was won in 2007 after winning the 2007 WSOP Seven Card Stud Hi-Low event. He defeated Scotty Nguyen in the final table to take home $198,984. Elezra won even a higher amount than his first place prize when before the event, he made a 10:1 bet with Barry Greenstein that he would win a WSOP bracelet before the end of 2007. Winning this event turned his $25,000 bet into $250,000. Combined with the first place prize win, Elezra won a total of $448,984 from the event.

As of 2008, Elezra has won over $1,800,000 in live tournaments only.

He became a member of Team Full Tilt not too long ago after years of playing the site. He even has his own H.O.R.S.E. table at the site.

Elezra is married to Hila and they have five children: Jonathan, Guy, Sean, Ryan and Maya. He currently resides in Las Vegas, Nevada.

WSOP Winnings

2007 - World Championship Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo Split Eight-or-Better - $198,984

WPT Winnings

2004 – Mirage Poker Showdown - $1,024,574