Some players get their fifteen minutes of fame at the World Series of Poker Main Event final table and are never seen from or heard from again. 2007 WSOP Main Event champion Jerry Yang is a good example of that.
But for some unknowns, the Main Event is a coming out party. That would appear to be the case with 23 year old Craig Marquis. The Arlington Texas native has only been playing poker professionally for a little less than 2 years and has already cashed in 4 different WSOP events: 34th in the 2007 PL Hold’em World Championship, 30th in the 2007 $1,000 NL Hold’em with Re-Buys, 18th in the 2008 $1,500 NL Hold’em Shootout and most importantly, 9th in the 2008 Main Event. Although he was no doubt disappointed to the first of the “November Nine” eliminated, the $900,670 pay-day eased his pain.
“I would honestly be happy with just making the final table,” he confessed to PokerListings before reaching the final table. “That’s already like winning the lottery. I would be thrilled with that.” Next time Craig, be careful what you wish for.
In the same interview, Marquis outlined how he got started in poker: “”A friend of mine named Dave played, and I was like, ‘He’s no smarter than me, I can do this.’ Anyways he helped me out a bit and I got into it.”
For somebody who began paying micro-stakes just three years ago, Craig Marquis has certainly come a long way in his young career. For now, he remains modest about his success and plans to put in a swimming pool for his family with his WSOP winnings. He doesn’t play live very often, but when he does, he’s bound to be one of the toughest opponents as the table.
Craig Marquis is primarily an online player who is currently sponsored by Full Tilt Poker. He plays on other sites under the name “craigmarq.”