1. Poker Player Hansen
2. Hanson Poker Player
3. Thor Hansen Poker Player
4. Gus Hansen Poker Player

• Johnny Moss (May 14, 1907 – December 16, 1995) was a gambler and professional poker player. He was the first winner of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, at the time a cash game event in which he was awarded the title by the vote of his peers in 1970.
• There are a few poker players in the world that can claim they are as multi-talented as Gus Hansen. Hansen not only displays incredible poker talent, but he is also known as a class backgammon player, champion tennis player, and entrepreneur. Hansen boasts WPT titles and a WSOP bracelet. He has millions of dollars’ worth of poker winnings.

Hansen stands as arguably the best poker player that Denmark has ever gifted to the world. His intuition, expert analysis of games, and a record of taking calculated risks have made him well-loved.

What happens when a poker legend receives a death sentence of incurable cancer with only a few months to live, but battles courageously, living life to the fullest, and survives for more than six years? That’s the gist of Smile, a poker documentary about the last years of Norwegian pro Thor Hansen.

Hansen, known throughout the world as the Godfather of Norwegian Poker, received his terminal prognosis in 2012, though he lived until late 2018 before passing away at age 71. His death brought a swelling of sadness and fond memories from across the poker spectrum, far beyond his considerable poker accomplishments. Those achievements and honors included a pair of World Series of Poker bracelets, nearly $3 million in recorded tourney winnings, and a multiple finalist for induction into the Poker Hall of Fame.

All that and more serves as the backdrop for Smile, a project that came together in 2015. Norwegian filmmakers Kari Wåle and Linn Amundsen were at the 2015 Norwegian Poker Championship, there to work on a small charity film benefiting blood cancer (leukemia) research. The two sought a couple of poker players to help with their project, and while there they learned about Hansen (who was also present) and his terminal diagnosis.

After they approached Hansen, he agreed to the appearance for the charity film, but Wåle and Amundsen realized that Hansen had his own story to share. He agreed to be featured in the just-created project, along with his wife, Marcella Braswell, and over the next three years, until Hansen’s passing, the bulk of Smile came together.

The film’s focus, of course, would be on how Hansen maintained his upbeat and charismatic lifestyle while battling the inevitable, knowing that he was already living on borrowed time. Smile also focuses on the poker community and its reaction to Hansen’s love of the game and his slowly fading health. The result is bittersweet, but it’s a story worth preserving.

“I’m nearing the end of a long life,” he tells the camera at one point, as his disease progresses, “but I don’t know how long I have left. I don’t have any dreams now. I’ve always taken one day at a time.”

Wåle and Amundsen’s film has been released under the Zacapa Film banner, and it checks in at a modest 75 minutes in length. The film may never garner a theatrical release, but it is available now on Vimeo for a small rental or purchase fee. The film’s trailer is also available at that link, free of charge.

There are a few poker players in the world that can claim they are as multi-talented as Gus Hansen. Hansen not only displays incredible poker talent, but he is also known as a class backgammon player, champion tennis player, and entrepreneur.

Hansen boasts WPT titles and a WSOP bracelet. He has millions of dollars’ worth of poker winnings. He is truly a great player to watch on the tables. If you want to know more about Gus Hansen, read on and learn!

Gus Hansen: Beginnings in Poker

Gus Hansen was born in Demark, in a little town near Copenhagen. Before becoming a professional poker player, Hansen was a champion tennis player and a world-class backgammon player. He moved to the U.S. and attended university in Santa Cruz. He returned to Demark in 1995 to sign up for military service for nine months.

After his military stint, he moved back to the U.S., arriving in New York to play high-limit backgammon and gin games. Later on, his interest switched to poker. He learned all the poker rules and techniques he could find. In 2002, he decided to take on tournament poker. He settled in California where he started playing at the Ocean View Card Room.

Gus Hansen: Professional Poker Success

In his first World Poker Tour event, he took home US$556,460 from the Five Diamond Classic in 2002. Only a few months later, he won another US$532,490, by winning the WPT Poker Classic

In the beginning of 2004, Hansen took a WPT title at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. He walked away with US$455,780.

The following year, Hansen made it to the last table of the WPT Shooting Stars Main Event. After a few weeks, he won US$1 million by finishing in first place at the WPT Grand Final.

In the 2006 WSOP event called Tournament of Champions, Hansen made it to the final table but lost on the very first hand with Ace-King against a pair of 9s. He was in Singapore in November 2006 to participate in the Betfair Asian Poker Tour.

2007 was a great year for Hansen. He cashed in money by playing at the $10,000 no limit Texas Hold 'Em championship, coming in 61st place out of a field of 6,358 players. He won a total of US$154,194.

That same year, he was the first winner on NBC’s Poker After Dark. He played against other poker pros, including Phil Hellmuth and Huck Seed for the US$120,000 prize.

In one of his biggest wins of that year, Hansen collected a whopping AU$1.5 million after defeating 747 players at the $10,500 main event at the 2007 Aussie Millions in Melbourne.

The following year on April 2008, Hansen came in second to David Chiu at the sixth season of WPT Championship. He took home US$1,714,800.

Hansen successfully earned a WSOP bracelet in 2010 at the WSOP Europe. He won a total of €288,409. He also took down the Full Tilt Poker Millions for one million dollars.

Hansen can sometimes be seen playing at top online poker sites like FullTilt.com.

Gus Hansen: Major Tournaments

To date, Hansen has one WSOP bracelet. He also has 9 money finishes in WSOP – the highest of which was in 2007.

Hansen also has 3 WPT titles. He made it to 7 final tables and has had 9 money finishes. He was the very first player to win 3 titles. He also won the first WPT Bad Boys of Poker invitational event.

In the European Poker Tour, Hansen has made it once to the final table. He also has 2 money finishes.

Poker Player Hansen

Gus Hansen’s Style of Play

Hansen plays in many of the larger buy-in events, but his speciality is No Limit Hold 'Em. More specifically, Hansen’s style matches short-handed No Limit games perfectly. He is known as a tough lowball player.

Hanson Poker Player

His appearances at live tables always seem to produce some great moments in poker. He is known to see many flops, with a variety of odd starting poker hands. He also loves to make crazy, bold bluffs.

Hansen can be a very loose and unpredictable when he plays. But he is not simply reckless, his plays are thoughtful and timely. He is one of the greatest players in post-flop play. He displays great confidence, although he is known to get a bit emotional at the tables, needing to take some time over a bad beat or a miscue.

Despite his success at live tournaments, he has admitted losing millions of dollars at cash games. But overall, Hansen has earned a reputation for being a player who is not afraid to play any poker hand – and play it aggressively.

Gus Hansen's Poker Fame

Hansen has racked up over US$10 million in live tournament earnings. He is widely recognised in the poker world for his success at the WPT tables. In 2004, Hansen received a great honour – an induction to the WPT Walk of Fame.

If you want to learn more about famous poker players, check out our poker player profiles article.

Gus Hansen the Businessman

Hansen has been involved in several online poker-related business ventures. The first one was back in 2003 when he became the founding partner of the site pokerchamps.com. the website was eventually sold to Betfair in 2005 for over US$15 million.

In 2007, Hansen launched a great online poker platform and forum where he published blog articles. After a year, he sold his interest. His next business project was in 2009 when he launched a free poker channel broadcast called GusHansenTV. This channel was available over the internet.

Gus Hansen Trivia

Thor Hansen Poker Player

• Hansen’s unique personality and popularity put him on the '50 Sexiest People' list of People Magazine in 2004.
• In 2005, Hansen appeared in “Texas Hold'Em Poker Advanced Strategies With Gus Hansen”, one of the “Going All In” instructional DVD series.
• Aside from playing poker, backgammon and tennis, Hansen also loves to write. In 2008, he wrote a book titled “Every Hand Revealed”. This book was an intricate account of all his worst and best poker hands that eventually led him to win at the 2007 Aussie Millions.

Gus Hansen Net Worth and Winnings

According to the latest figures from the Hendon Mob Poker Database, Gus Hansen winnings are estimated at about US$10,258,052. His best live cash win is US$1,714,800. These numbers put Gus Hansen worth in 2nd place on Denmark’s All Time Money List.

Hansen’s current rank in the All Time Money List is 44th. His best rank in the list was 11th.

Although he is not commonly seen online at poker sites, Hansen garners a lot of attention in social media. Hendon Mob places him in 12th place for Popularity Rankings.

Notable Career Highlights of Gus Hansen

Gus Hansen Poker Player

Here is a list of Hansen’s most memorable wins, starting from his biggest win at the WPT No-Limit Hold'em Championship Event in 2008.