Carlos Mortensen [] b. in Ambato, Ecuador as Juan Carlos Mortensen 2001 WSOP Main Event winner ($1,500,000). 2013 WSOP Main Event final table bubble boy ($573,204). Won 2003 $5,000 Limit Hold 'Em ($251,680). First Spanish player to win a bracelet. Poker Hall of Fame 2016. Wikipedia | WSOP.com | Hendon
May 14
WSOP Cancels $5,000 Seven-Card Stud According to Jonathan Grotenstein and Storms Reback (All In, page 33), because Eric Drache was disappointed that he couldn't determine how many players had registered, he became the WSOP's first tournament director the next year. It turned out that not enough players had signed up, and the tournament was canceled when Johnny Moss was too tired to play.
Bill Boyd Wins Second Five-Card Stud "Bracelet" As he had in the previous year, Boyd was voted the best Five-Card Stud player at the festival-ending banquet.
$10,000 Main Event - No-Limit Hold 'Em (Event #2, 2 days [5/17 start; ended past midnight])
Amarillo Slim Preston Appears on "The Tonight Show" The Main Event champ was one of Johnny Carson's first guests in the show's new Burbank home. [Preston would continue to popularize poker with ten more appearances plus three "60 Minutes" episodes and stints on "Good Morning America", "The Mike Douglas Show", "To Tell the Truth", "What's My Line?", and "I've Got a Secret".]
July 5
David Benyamine [] b. in Paris, France Cash game player who won the 2008 $10,000 Omaha Hi/Lo ($535,687). Wikipedia | WSOP.com | Hendon
July 14
David 'ODB' Baker [] b. in Connecticut Won 2006 $1,500 No-Limit Hold 'Em ($757,839) & 2009 $1,500 Pot-Limit Omaha Hi/Lo ($228,867). Wikipedia | WSOP.com | Hendon
August 18
Victoria Coren Mitchell [] b. in Hammersmith, London, England as Victoria Elizabeth Coren Only 2-time European Poker Tout winner. Women in Poker Hall of Fame 2016. Wikipedia | WSOP.com | Hendon
September 8
Phil Laak [] b. in Dublin, Ireland as Philip Courtney Laak Won 2010 WSOP Europe £2,650 No-Limit Hold 'Em 6-Max ($263,494). Wikipedia | WSOP.com | Hendon