Vanessa Rousso (Lady Maverick)

Revealed in the mid-2000s, Vanessa Rousso has forged a very consistent record online and live to establish herself as one of the greatest players in the history of poker.

Born on 5 February 1983 in White Plains, New York, Vanessa Rousso moved to her father's homeland of France at the age of three. From an early age, she was interested in the world of games, particularly chess and Rubik's Cube. When she was ten, her parents returned to the United States, where she studied economics and political science at Duke University. It was at this point that Vanessa contested her first poker tournaments.

A lightning rise

Vanessa built up a small online bankroll, played small tournaments in Florida where she lived and then entered the WSOP-C in Atlantic City. She returned with a 5th place finish, $17,550 and a ticket for the "Five Star Classic", a $25,000 tournament at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. This time, Vanessa took the counters by storm and won another final table for $263,625. Her playing career was launched.

In the spotlight

Vanessa Rousso is now attracting attention and sponsors. She was a guest on Poker After Dark, made numerous media appearances and, above all, became one of the representatives on Team PokerStars. With her new sponsor, Vanessa played her first WSOP final table in a $5,000 short-handed event, then her first WPT final three months later, which she won at the Borgata Casino in Atlantic City for $285,000. In 2007, she put in an incredible performance in the red spade room at the World Online Championships (WCOOP), where she took 2nd place in the Main Event for over $700,000 in prize money. Vanessa Rousso then travelled the world circuit. She took 2nd place in the NBC national Heads-up championship for $250,000, then won the EPT Monaco High Roller for €532,000.

Phased out of the circuit

The player would string together performances until 2011, accumulating more than $3.5 million in tournaments before gradually retiring from the circuit. From 2012, she resumed her studies at the Berklee College of Music with the ambition of becoming a DJ. Today she appears very irregularly in tournaments, and a little more frequently behind the turntables. She has released several productions with her partner Melissa Ouellet, with whom she forms the group N1TEL1TE. Today she remains one of the greatest winners in the history of poker, remaining, despite her long break, in the Top 10 of the "All-Time Women Money List".