Ben Roberts (poker player)
{{Short description|British poker player (born 1956)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}}
{{Infobox poker player
| name = Ben Roberts
| image =
| image_size =
| caption =
| nickname = The Gentleman
| residence = London, England
| birth_name = Mehdi Javdani
| birth_date = {{birth-date and age|3 November 1956}}
| birth_place = Iran
| wsop bracelet count = None
| wsop money finishes = 7
| wsop main event best finish rank = 6th
| wsop main event best finish year = 1998
| wpt titles = None
| wpt final tables = 1
| wpt money finishes = 3
| ept titles =
| ept final tables =
| ept money finishes =
}}
Benjamin (Ben) Roberts (born Mehdi Javdani ({{langx|fa|مهدی جاودانی}}) on 3 November 1956 in Iran) is a British professional poker player based in London.
Poker career
In 1998 he almost made the final table of the World Series of Poker Main Event. He finished sixth and received $150,000, but as he and Jan Lundberg were both eliminated in the same hand, the final table that year consisted of just 5 players.{{Cite web |title=29th World Series of Poker - WSOP 1998, No Limit Hold'em World Championship |url=https://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/event.php?a=r&n=7798 |access-date=4 December 2023 |website=The Hendon Mob |language=en}} In his final hand, his pocket Aces lost to Scotty Nguyen's Ace-Queen of Diamonds when Nguyen hit a flush.{{Cite web |last=Lucchesi |first=Ryan |date=8 July 2008 |title=WSOP: History -1998 Recap - Scotty Nguyen Wins the World Championship |url=https://www.cardplayer.com/poker-news/4622-wsop-history-1998-recap |access-date=24 November 2023 |website=CardPlayer}}
In 2002 he made an appearance on Late Night Poker. He finished 3rd in his heat, ahead of such players as Ross Boatman, Daniel Negreanu and Malcolm Harwood.
In 2004 he made his first final table of the World Poker Tour (WPT), where he finished 5th in the third season Grand Prix de Paris event won by Surinder Sunar. Roberts won €101,980 at the event.{{Cite web |title=Rendez Vous a Paris, Grand Prix de Paris / WPT - No Limit Hold'em |url=https://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/event.php?a=r&n=7431 |access-date=4 December 2023 |website=The Hendon Mob |language=en}}
In 2005 he made the final table of the VC Cup for £ 50,000.{{Cite web |title=VC Poker Cup, Final - No Limit Hold'em |url=https://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/event.php?a=r&n=13893 |access-date=4 December 2023 |website=The Hendon Mob |language=en}} He competed in the World Speed Poker Open. In the same year he also became the 5th entrant in the European Poker Players Hall of Fame.
As of 2023, his total live tournament winnings exceed $1.4 million.{{Cite web |title=Ben Roberts' profile on The Hendon Mob |url=https://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/player.php?a=r&n=201 |access-date=16 November 2023 |website=The Hendon Mob Poker Database |language=en}}
Other activities
Roberts was a County Table Tennis Champion in 1978 and the English Snooker Champion in 1979.{{cn|date=January 2025}}
Roberts legally changed his name when he got married in the late 1970s. He went on to have 3 children. Jamie Roberts, Rebecca Roberts and Sebastian Roberts. He is also fond of jazz music.{{cn|date=January 2025}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/player.php?a=r&n=201 Hendon Mob profile]
- [http://www.worldpokertour.com/players/?x=profile&id=4704 WPT profile]
- [https://www.wsop.com/players/profile/?playerid=132 WSOP profile]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Ben}}
Category:British people of Iranian descent
Category:Poker players from London