PLAYER PROFILE – David Peters, “The Silent Assassin”
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From its humble beginnings in 1970 with the first World Series of Poker (WSOP), competitive poker has become an integral part of the game. Million-dollar tournaments are hosted annually, attracting poker legends from all around the world. While many poker pros are flashy, flamboyant characters renowned for their eccentric personalities, that’s not true for all of them. One such pro who prefers to stay under the radar at the tables, is David Peters, who has become known as “The Silent Assassin.”
Player Overview
David Peters is a professional American poker player and one of the world’s most prolific tournament players. With over $42 million in tournament earnings, he sits in 7th place on the all-time poker tournament money list. An ever-present sight at various high-roller tournaments, Peters has many impressive showings at events like the European Poker Tour and Triton Super High Roller. He’s no slouch at the World Series of Poker either, with 77 cashes, four bracelets and over $4 million in earnings.
Despite his success, he has a humble personality on and off the felt. At the table, he’s known for his calm and collected attitude. He was given the nickname “The Silent Assassin” because of his ability to quietly eliminate his opponents.
Early Life
Staying true to his nickname, Peters hasn’t shared much with the media about his family and life growing up. We do know that he is one of the countless players inspired by the story of Chris Moneymaker, the ‘average Joe’ who won the 2003 WSOP main event, qualifying through a $39 satellite tournament.
David Peters began playing freeroll poker tournaments while still in high school. After winning one for $600, his interest in poker grew stronger. He played in various poker tournaments and sit-and-goes online throughout high school and college. Poker was a hobby, but Peters was soon earning millions of dollars. He maintained a delicate balance of poker and academic life, once missing an Aussie Millions Main Event to instead be present during the first week of college.
Poker Career
Eventually, Peters decided to make poker his career, dropping out of college to play more regularly. In December 2006, he played in his first live tournament, finishing 7th in the Ongame Network Poker Classic, winning $56,549.
His first six-figure score came in 2008, when he won the Heartland Poker Tour Main Event for $130,178. The same year, he won a $1,060 No Limit Hold’em event at a WSOP Circuit Event, taking home $86,908 and his first circuit ring.
One more notable win came at the 2009 Fest Al Lago, where he emerged victorious at a $5,000 No-Limit Hold’em Event for $104,760. In 2010, Peters had a streak of impressive showings. He took second in the €5,000 No-Limit Hold’em – Six-Max European Poker Tour Grand Final for $123,809. Peters again finished second in a $1,000 No Limit Hold’em event of that year’s WSOP, netting $350,803. To top it all off, he took down the $5,000 No Limit Hold’em event of the North American Poker Tour for $112,257.
2013 was another successful year for Peters, starting with another runner-up finish at the Italian Poker Tour for $201,826. He won the Bellagio Cup of the same year for $355,093. The year culminated in a 4th place finish at the WSOP Europe Event #7 for $203,425 and a win at the European Poker Tour for $179,515.
For Peters, 2015 was a fantastic year, with him making $2.5 million. He began with a $653,552 win at the European Poker Tour in Malta. He then won $1,505,000 by placing 5th at the $500,000 No-Limit Hold’em Super High Roller Bowl. Finally, he wrapped up the year with a $426,240 win at the $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em Aria High Roller in Las Vegas.
Golden Years
If you thought 2015 was the peak of Peters’ career, you’d be dead wrong.
In 2016, he made a whopping $7.5 million, earning thrice as much as the previous year. His exploits also earned him the title of Player of the Year in Card Player magazine and on the Global Poker Index. On January 3, Peters broke his record for the most significant cash win, placing second in a $200,000 buy-in Triton Super High Roller Event in the Philippines, earning a staggering $2,699,752.
He would place in the top four of numerous WSOP tournaments, but an outright win always seemed to elude him. This continued until 2016’s WSOP, with a win at Event 56 for his first bracelet and $412,000. By that point, the title and bracelet were probably worth more to Peters than the money. He rounded off the year with multiple good placements in Aria High Rollers.
His career continued well after 2016, with numerous seven-figure scores in tournaments like the Triton Poker Series Super High Roller, WSOP Europe Super High Roller, and the partypoker Caribbean Poker Party. He also claimed three more WSOP bracelets after 2020, winning them online, rather than live, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
