Female Poker Players: What You Need to Know
- Trailblazers: Female poker players like Maria Ho, Jennifer Harman, and Barbara Enright who have won prestigious poker events are paving the way in the male-dominated poker industry.
- WSOP Winners: Women such as Gaëlle Baumann and Kristen Foxen have made their mark with multiple World Series of Poker (WSOP) placings, highlighting female prowess in high-stakes poker.
- Increasing Participation: While women have traditionally been underrepresented in poker tournaments, the tide is changing with more female players participating and winning significant poker tournaments.
- Female Poker Leagues: Initiatives like the Women’s Poker Association and Ladies International Poker Series augment women’s presence in poker further by facilitating female-only games and fostering support networks.
- Importance of Representation: A greater female presence in poker challenges traditional stereotypes, fosters diversity of thought and strategy, and encourages more women to participate, expanding the game’s popularity.
As a female poker player, I bring a unique perspective on the top women in the game and have had the opportunity to meet some of the greats — Kristen Foxen is just as amazing in-person as she is on TV.
I’ve also taught women’s poker classes and authored a book, A Girl’s Guide to Poker. I won a contest entry to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event for my video saying that being feminine and good at poker aren’t mutually exclusive.
So I hope I can shed new light on some of the top female poker players in the game.
Title Image Credit: Roman Samborskyi/Shutterstock
Women’s Voices in Poker
Before exploring the most famous female poker players, I want to touch on the importance of women’s voices in the poker world. When I wrote my book A Girl’s Guide to Poker, I didn’t plan for it to be gendered. I just wanted to write authentically.
It might seem ironic, considering the back cover reads: “So you want to play poker. Maybe it’s the cash. Maybe it’s the challenge. Maybe you’re turned on by guys in hoodies and sunglasses.”
But as I explain in the foreword of the book:
When I was in high school art class, we had to showcase our final portfolios. Mine didn’t have any particular theme other than getting turned in on time. But I’ll never forget what my art teacher had to say, “You can tell that every one of these pieces was made by a woman.”
Her comment completely caught me by surprise. Adding a feminine tone or touch had never crossed my mind; I was just trying to paint a picture. I was so struck by the realization it was as though she had uncovered a hidden destiny. I now knew what I wanted to create in the world: art that could say anything about everything in life — proudly said from a female point-of-view
The funny thing is that I never intended for it to be a ‘women’s poker book’ — I simply wanted to write a poker book in my own voice.
So let’s keep that in mind when evaluating the best female poker players of all time. Because my hunch is that most of them weren’t trying to ‘play like a woman,’ but just play in the best and only way they know how, as themselves.
Best Female Poker Players — Three Trailblazers
There are three women that come to mind for me as true pioneers of the game:
- Barbara Enwright
- Jennifer Harman
- Vanessa Selbst
Meet Barbara
Barbara Enwright played poker before it was cool. Long before poker was televised in sports bars across America and college guys knew what a ‘flop’ was, Barbara was crushing the high stakes poker scene. She was a woman playing poker at a time when most men didn’t even play poker.
- She is a 3-time WSOP bracelet winner
- She won her first WSOP bracelet in 1986
- She is the only woman to have ever made the final table for the WSOP Main Event
She finished 5th for $114,180 in the WSOP Main Event in 1995. To this day nearly twenty years later, no woman has repeated her feat.
Barbara was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame along with Phil Hellmuth in 2007.
Meet Jennifer
When I was a kid, my dad would always love to watch High Stakes Poker on TV. And there was always one woman on the show I’d recognize — Jennifer Harman.
She will go down as one of the greatest female poker players to ever play the game.
- She has amassed $2.7 Million in live tournament earnings
- She is a 2-time WSOP bracelet winner
- She authored a chapter in Doyle Brunson’s iconic book sequel, Super System 2
Jennifer was a regular fixture in the notorious ‘big game’ in Bobby’s Room, comfortably navigating the highest stakes in Vegas. Growing-up, her visibility on high stakes poker shows and willingness to battle for pots in public will always make her a personal hero towards me.
Daniel Negreanu said, “She was the most influential person in my development as a poker player.” Jennifer was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame in 2015.
Title Image Credit: nazarovsergey/Shutterstock
Meet Vanessa
Another one of the most famous female poker players has to be Vanessa Selbst. She was a mainstay on another iconic television show, PokerStars Big Game. To any viewer, one thing became immediately clear — Vanessa was fearless.
And her resume speaks for itself.
- She is the highest-earning female poker player of all time with $11.9 Million in live tournament winnings
- She is a 3-time WSOP bracelet winner
- She is the only woman to ever reach the #1 ranking in the world on the Global Poker Index
While Vanessa is known for her aggressive play style, she’s not as blindly bullish as she may come across. It’s fascinating to hear her thought processes. In a famous WSOP Main Event hand against another top female poker player, Gaëlle Baumann, Vanessa talks through her contemplation of folding a full house, keenly aware her opponent could have her beat.
The most fascinating insight I heard from Vanessa was a clip where she explained her table talk strategy. I will never forget what she said. Basically, she incorporated the word “bluff” as much as possible into her vocabulary — so people always assume she’s bluffing. This means even the hand doesn’t pertain to her.
For instance, when someone wins a pot, she’ll casually say, “Nice bluff!” or “Show the bluff!”— even if she knows they didn’t bluff at all. Why? The more players hear her talk about bluffing, the more likely they are to assume she’s bluffing herself, even when she holds a very strong hand.
While others are playing checkers, Vanessa is playing chess.
Best Female Poker Players — Calm, Cool, and Calculated
One of the most famous female poker players has to be Maria Ho. She has stood the test of time, and remained top of the food chain for more than a decade — including into the modern era.
Her accomplishments include:
- Nearly $5.5 Million in live tournament earnings and #4 on the all-time money list for female poker players
- In 2011, she finished in second place in a $5,000 No Limit Hold’em event for $540,020
- In 2023, she won GG Poker’s “Game of Gold” by defeating Daniel “Jungleman” Cates in a head-up match — he is currently one of the best poker players in the world
For me, the moment that changed how I saw Maria was this watergate hand where she folded a set of tens on the flop. No one could believe she folded — and she was largely ridiculed for it. But what impressed me was her defense of her decision-making. She said even if she had the best hand, which she did, she knew the math. The likelihood of her having the best hand by the river was a little bit better than a coin flip.
It was a new, fascinating, ‘play the long game’ perspective. Maria had the foresight and discipline to proverbially lose the battle in order to win the war.
While onlookers underestimated her as timid and cowardly, assuming she folded because she thought she was beat, Maria was two steps ahead and outplayed them all. Her results prove this.
Maria Ho’s steely demeanor and strategic discernment secure her place as one of the top female poker players of all time.
Title Image Credit: Roman LightField Studios/Shutterstock
Best Female Poker Players — Next Generation Talent
No list in the 2020s would be complete without the mention of Kristen Foxen. She previously went by her maiden name Kristen Bicknell before marrying Alex Foxen — one of the modern legends of poker with $32,959,074 in recorded live tournament earnings. They are poker’s true power couple.
Kristen has $8,321,809 in recorded live poker tournament earnings herself… and counting. This year she was the ‘last woman standing’ in the 2024 WSOP Main Event until her elimination in 13th place out of more than 10,000 entrants. (Maria Ho currently holds the record for being the last woman standing three different times in 2007, 2014, and the 2020 online version).
As someone who has personally met Kristen, it’s all the more exciting to see her succeed. She is skyrocketing to the top in an environment where poker is harder than ever — and does it with a mix of ferocity and grace. She’s a tough competitor but also warm and the type of person who gives everyone the time of day. In my view, she’s a role model through and through.
Playing Like a Girl
Another book excerpt:
When I first spoke to a female poker pro about writing A Girl’s Guide to Poker, she liked the idea, but wanted to make sure it wasn’t… well… stupid. (I believe her word was “diminutive”).
“Like pink razors?” I replied.
“Exactly.”
Not that anything is wrong with pink razors in theory, but anyone who has ever used a standard drug store pink blade knows they are dull, cheap, and low quality. A Girl’s Guide needed to be different.
Feminine, but also sharp.
A Girl’s Guide to Poker is clearly told in a woman’s voice. It’s fun. It’s flirty. It’s upbeat. It’s unapologetically female in style — not in substance. The content is just as hefty as any traditional man’s poker book. Because female doesn’t mean “lite”.
Fewer women play poker, and for many reasons. Casinos are a boys’ club, practicing poker online is anti-social, girls aren’t encouraged to be as competitive and so on. I’d say the main reason, however, is that the game isn’t inclusive to beginners.
You can’t learn poker overnight.
Learning poker is like learning a language – it takes everyday practice. And whereas guys have frat parties and camping trips and military missions and beer games to practice gradually, casually, and safely, I’ve never had a girlfriend invite me to a poker game. Ever.
Most men and women who play poker learned from someone else. And if you weren’t in groups who played poker, you were basically S.O.L.
That’s why women role models are so important.
Learning about the greats and the ‘best’ female poker players isn’t a vanity exercise — it’s critical for getting more women into the game. Currently less than 4% of the WSOP Main Event is women — and on the decline.
See this graph from poker reporter Jennifer Newell, another wonderful woman in this industry. The numbers are bleak.
We need more women in this industry to pave the way for future female greats. One of my favorite parts of poker is that you meet people from all walks of life — different cities, jobs, and politics.
In a time where our world is more divided than ever — including across gender lines — sitting around at the poker table is a meaningful act of coming together.
Title Image Credit: Roman Samborskyi/Shutterstock