Poker Player Profile – Poker Player Jennifer Harman

Two World Series of Poker gold bracelets attest to the skill of professional poker player, Jennifer Harman.

Early Life of Jennifer Harman

Jennifer Harman is an American professional poker player. She was born in Reno, Nevada in November 1964. Harman began playing poker at the age of eight, having been taught the game by her father. She spent plenty of times winning which only fueled her enthusiasm for the game. As a teenager she had a chronic kidney disease which led to a kidney transplant. At the age of 16, Harman acquired a fake ID which allowed her take part in poker tournaments.

Harman's Early Poker Playing Years

Harman began a degree in biology at the University of Nevada, but dropped out before she had completed it. She moved to Los Angeles to work as a barkeeper in a hotel, but decided to give that up after a few days in order to play poker full-time. This decision led to an estrangement between father and daughter, which has since been patched up. Harman's poker skills were good enough to be able to support her, however after two years she decided to try her hand at business. She took a year's break from poker, but found that business was not for her and she declared herself bankrupt. Harman saw many ups and downs at the beginning of her poker career, but from the mid-1990s she seems to have found herself in the game.

Harman's Poker Tournament Career

From the mid-1990's Harman began to participate in poker tournaments. In 1995, she finished 6th in the $2,500 pot limit Texas hold'em event of the World Series of Poker (WSOP). In 1999, she finished 13th in the $1,500 limit Texas hold'em event. During those years she came first in the limit Texas hold'em event at the Orleans Open and the "Commerce Casino no limit Texas hold'em Championship."

In 2000, Jennifer Harman won the no limit 2-7 draw tournament of the World Series of Poker to take home a Gold Bracelet and $146,250. In 2002, at the World Series of Poker she won the $5,000 limit Texas hold'em event to take home her second Gold Bracelet and $212,440. In 2004, she placed fourth at the World Poker Tour taking home almost $300,000 and then in 2005, Harman finished second at the World Series of Poker winning $384,000, her largest win to date.

The "Jen Harman Challenge"

In 2004, Harman required another kidney transplant. She recovered from surgery quickly and went back to her poker game. Her health issues encouraged her to promote organ donation and thus the annual "Jen Harman Challenge" charity event was born in order to raise funds to increase awareness of organ donation. She also founded Creating Organ Donation Awareness (CODA), which is a non-profit organization that aims to raise money to increase awareness of the importance of organ donation.

Current Stats for Jennifer Harman

Harman was the first women to have won two gold bracelets from the World Series of Poker. She is part of the professional team of poker players at Full Tilt Poker. As of 2009, Harman's live tournament winnings exceed $2.2 million.