Vanessa Rousso is a member of Team PokerStars, and no doubt one of the best female poker players in the game today. Rousso – who’s been ahead of the learning curve her whole life – graduated with an economics major from Duke University after just two and a half years, and then moved on to Law School at The University of Miami. During Law School, Vanessa was a member of the editorial board of the University of Miami Law Review, and was also in the top 5% of her class. Despite the accolades, Rousso didn’t finish Law School, instead deciding to shift her focus to poker.
With eleven World Series of Poker cashes and a $700K score in PokerStars’ World Championship of Online Poker to her name, Vanessa Rousso – “LadyMaverick” in the cyber world – is a solid player both live and online. Her biggest pay-day came in 2009 at the EPT Monte Carlo $25K No Limit Hold’em High Rollers event which she chopped 3-ways for $750K. Vanessa’s other successes include a victory in the 2006 Borgata Poker Open $5K No Limit Hold’em event for $285K, 2nd in the 2009 NBC Heads Up Championship for $250K, and 7th in the Five-Star World Poker Classic $25K No Limit Hold’em event for $263K.
In addition to her endeavors at the tables, Vanessa Rousso is also extremely active away from the felt, as a pro-gambling activist and part-time sex symbol. In 2007, Rousso flew to Washington, DC to participate in the Poker Players Alliance’s efforts to convince Congress to reverse the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Act, which prevents US based players from making legal online gaming transactions. She provided support for Barney Frank and Robert Wexler, two of the most vocal American politicians actively supporting legislation which will allow players to process bets from inside the US. In 2009, “LadyMaverick” put her sex appeal to good use, appearing in a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition.
Excellent as a player, spokeswoman, and icon of the game, Vanessa Rousso is poised to represent poker all over the world for the foreseeable future.
