Seat 4: Jeff Madsen, 39, United States (5,585,000)
Jeff Madsen has been one of the most recognizable faces in poker. Originally from Santa Monica, California, Madsen could play at the Chumash Casino after he turned 18 while he studied film at UCSB.
He would drop out in his final year following tremendous success in the game. He had a rocket start to his WSOP career, celebrating two triumphs at age 21 and earning the Player of the Year honors.
While the first two major wins – both in no-limit hold'em – remain his best scores to date, Madsen has been widely regarded for his mixed-games expertise, especially PLO and PLO8, games which he's dominated at the World Series.
Here at NAPT Las Vegas 2024, the 39-year-old four-time bracelet winner has showcased his perseverance and longevity, qualities highly rated in poker with the games' getting ever tougher. After 18 years, he would finally improve his top result ($660,948) with a victory in the NAPT Main Event.
Career Record:
Career earnings: $6,498,939
Best cash: $660,948, 1st, 2006 WSOP $2,000 No-Limit Hold'em
Tournament Progression:
Day 1: 95,000 (60/163, 1b)
Day 2: 297,000 (39/77)
Day 3: 1,895,000 (5/18)
Day 4: 5,585,000 (2/6)
Event Highlights:
A big moment in Madsen's run occurred back on Day 1, when he made a big call on the river for most of his stack with two pair to bust Adam Hendrix.
Fast forward to the end of Day 4, and Madsen knocked out Brock Wilson with eights against ace-seven as he climbed up to second place on the leaderboard going into the final table.