In conversations regarding who’s had the most successful career at the World Series of Poker, it makes sense that Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan are usually first to be mentioned – after all, they lead the pack with 11, 11 and 10 bracelets, respectively. However, a few names down the list you’ll find Layne Flack, who’s also had an incredible amount of success at the WSOP, with six bracelets of his own.
Born in Rapid City, South Dakota and raised in Montana, Layne Flack grew up playing cards with his grandparents, and quickly became familiar with the gambling culture by working summer jobs in a local casino. After discovering poker and becoming enamored with the game, Flack decided to quit his job to focus on playing cards. In the initial stages of his career, Layne befriended Huck Seed, who actually suggested that he bring his game to Las Vegas. Once in Vegas, Flack ran into Johnny Chan on a particularly rough night at the tables, but Chan saw through the struggles and took him under his wing.
In 1999, Layne Flack exploded on the world stage by winning his first WSOP bracelet, the $3000 Pot Limit Hold’em event for $224K. By 2002, Layne had earned his nickname – Back to Back Flack – after winning two consecutive WSOP events, the $2000 No Limit Hold’em for $304K and the $1500 Limit Hold’em for $268K. In 2003, Flack once again proved he was for real by winning two more WSOP bracelets, this time the $2500 Omaha Hi-Low Split for $119K and the $1500 Limit Hold’em Shootout for $120K. 2008 saw Layne win his most recent bracelet, the $1500 Pot Limit Omaha Rebuy event for $578K. Layne has also made some noise on the WPT with four final table appearances for a total of over $900K in cashes.
Although he’s achieved a great deal on the felt, Layne Flack has had his share of problems away from the tables, most notably drug and alcohol addictions that finally spilled over in 2004. It got so bad that his family and friends staged an intervention, with poker buddy Daniel Negreanu taking care of the $60K bill for Layne to enter rehab. As of 2009, Flack has apparently recovered from his drug addictions, but can still be seen having a few drinks.
Layne Flack currently splits his time between homes in Montana and Las Vegas.
