Michael "SirWatts" Watson

Michael Watson is a World Poker Tour Champion. The player, more well known as SirWatts, his online handle, took down the $15,000 NLH Bellagio Cup IV main event. His victory during the summer of 2008 was worth $1,673,770.

The Canadian play began his career online and still earns much of his living there as a high-stakes cash-game player. One of the highlights of his career took place in early 2011 when he won a 7-game Full Tilt Online Poker Series event. The payout wasn’t huge but he earned bragging rights and his own coveted jersey on the site. The successful online professional easily made the transition to live play once he came of age.

Watson cashed in his first live poker tournament in August 2006. He made the final table of a $1,000 NLH Bellagio daily tournament. Watson went out sixth and earned $7,060. He didn’t make the money in another live event until the following year.

In 2007 Watson cashed five times at the World Series of Poker.  His deepest run was in the $1,500 PLO Hi/Lo Split EOB event, he finished tenth and earned $9,049. Watson’s total take for the six week tournament series was just over $30,000.

In February 2008 Watson narrowly missed making his first televised WPT final table. He was eliminated in tenth place in the $10,000 NLH L.A. Poker Classic. Watson’s deep run in the 665 player event was good for a $61,610 payday.

Watson became a WPT champion in July 2008. He took down the 446-entrant $15,000 NLH main event at the Bellagio Cup IV and earned his first payday in excess of a million dollars. Watson pocketed $1,673,770 for defeating David Benyamine heads up. The following summer, at the Bellagio Cup V, Watson won a preliminary event. He took down the $3,000 NLH tournament and earned $140,625.

In January 2010 Watson claimed first place in a A$1,000 NLH event at the Aussie Millions Poker Championships in Melbourne. He earned A$129,920 for his victory down under. Watson went on to make the final table of the A$10,000 PLO event at the same tournament series. He was eliminated in third place and pocketed A$35,000. While in Australia Watson also made the final table of the A$10,000 H.O.R.S.E. tournament. He earned A$21,600 for his fifth place finish.

Before heading back to Australia for the tournament series in 2011 Watson made a big final in his native Canada. He was the runner up in the C$2,350 NLH event of the Fallsview Poker Classic and earned C$141,694. Then it was off to Melbourne for the Aussie Millions Poker Championship. Watson cashed four times including making a final table in the A$10,000 8-game event. His fifth place finish was worth A$20,000.