Famous Women Poker Player Profile: Cyndy Violette
Cyndy Violette was born in Queens, New York on August 19, 1959. Growing up, she played a lot of poker with many of her adult family members, although she didn’t actually test her skills in a casino until she was an adult herself. Her family moved to Las Vegas when Cyndy was twelve years old, where she eventually worked for a while as a blackjack and poker dealer.
In 1984, she entered and won a poker tournament in Lake Tahoe and used that money to bankroll her professional poker career. A short while later, she won $74,000 in a seven-card stud tournament at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. At the time, this was the largest prize every won by a female poker player. Later that year, she met and married her second husband, leaving the poker world on a two-year hiatus.
In 1990, Cyndy felt herself called back to the sport of poker when, on a trip to Caesar’s Palace, she entered and won $62,000. After the tournament, she realized that poker was her true passion, and began entering and winning professional tournaments again. Although she was still living in Washington State at this time, she spent much of her time traveling back and forth between Las Vegas and Los Angeles to play poker.
In 1993, following her divorce from her second husband, she learned that Atlantic City had legalized poker and decided to set up a home there, in part to be closer to her East Coast roots. She played the poker circuit there for several years, including several stints on the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour.
In 2004, Cyndy completed a major goal of hers when she won a bracelet at the 2004 World Series of Poker, playing in the seven card stud high-low split tournament. Cyndy was in good company – there were actually three women who won a gold bracelet that year. The other two female poker players to earn this achievement were Annie Duke and Kathy Liebert.
Today, Cyndy is a member of the Doyle’s Room poker site, and she still competes regularly in Las Vegas and Los Angeles. In fact, her total winnings up to 2008 are over $1.2 million dollars. Her success has lead to appearances on “The Superstars of Poker” on Fox Sports Net, “Poker Royale Pro/Celebrity Tournament” on the Game Show Network, and the World Series of Poker Tournament on ESPN.
On a more personal note, Cyndy is a very health conscious person. She is vegetarian who works out regularly and enjoys exploring the spiritual side of life. In fact, it’s nothing to see her sitting at a poker table with her spirit stones and dish of homemade veggie food in front of her. In the future, Cyndy’s plans include opening a health food café and marketing her own line of poker products. Cyndy is known for her pleasant personality, as well as her beautiful looks – she has a constant smile on her face and truly enjoys life and a good game of poker.