Born March 25, 1978 in Akron, Ohio, Erica Schoenberg is a professional blackjack and poker player. Erica actually got into blackjack first and, after receiving professional training from a member of the MIT blackjack team (to which Andy Bloch belonged once), she went on to compete in the World Series of Blackjack.
Having always possessed a natural talent for numbers, Erica was soon drawn to poker and often competed in home games with friends, including Phil Hellmuth. In 2006, she burst onto the live poker scene by placing 16th in the Five-Star World Poker Tour $25K Classic event, cashing for $118K. She also appeared in the WPT Season Four Ladies Night event along with Jennifer Tilly and four other female players. In 2007, she won the $2500 No Limit Hold’em Mandalay Bay Poker Championship to the tune of $105K. All told, her live poker earnings are in excess of $725K.
Although she dedicates her efforts primarily to poker, Erica has never forgotten her blackjack roots. She has appeared multiple times on the Ultimate Blackjack Tour, which airs on CBS. Some of her fellow poker players have also been featured on the tour, including Antonio ‘The magician’ Esfandiari, David ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott, Jennifer Tilly, Annie Duke, and Clonie Gowen.
A former model, personal trainer, and professional volleyball player, Erica Schoenberg is quite an interesting woman, to say the least. In a recent tweet, her fun personality came out when she said, “Sometimes (now) I drink Jon Dalys (vodka w/a lil Arnold Palmer) then put on my Mexican wrestling mask & heckle the golfers from my backyard.”
Despite her gold locks and pretty face, she shouldn’t be underestimated at the table. When’s she’s not traveling the live circuit, Erica spends time with her fiancé and plays online at Full Tilt Poker, where she is a sponsored pro.
Click here for Erica Schoenberg’s interview with Poker News Daily.