We continue our series of the five biggest live poker tournament winners by looking at the Netherlands. The online poker and live poker worlds are awash with Dutch grinders. They usually travel in large numbers, have plenty of fun wherever they go, and rack up enormous prizes.
Lex Veldhuis and Joris Ruijs are two Dutch online stars. Veldhuis has more than $2.5 million in winnings, while Ruijs’ earnings top the scale at more than $7.8 million. The former has amassed $684,244 in the live arena, with the latter banking $2,040,267.
However, the following five Dutch players continue shining in the live poker world.
Jorryt van Hoof is Number One in the Dutch All-Time Money List
Jorryt van Hoof is the man at the top of the Dutch all-time money listing with $5,674,053 in earnings. van Hoof had several five-figure scores on his resume before his life changed in 2014.
That was the year van Hoof navigated his way to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event final table. The Dutch star outlasted most of the 6,683-strong field and found himself in the final three. However, that is as far as he went.
With blinds of 800,000/1,600,000/200,000a, van Hoof raised to 3,600,000 with Ad-5d from the button. Martin Jacobson three-bet to 9,200,000 from the small blind with As-Tc. van Hoof shoved for 46,200,000, and Jacobson called. The board ran Th-5s-2h-Qc-Qs to bust the Dutchman in third for $3,806,402. Jacobson, of course, went on to win the $10,000,000 top prize.
Marcel Luske the Dutch Legend
Marcel Luske is a Dutch poker legend, one with $5,049,057 in live tournament winnings. Luske was a prominent figure during the early 2000s, and appeared in many poker TV shows.
The flamboyant Dutchman is known for always wearing a suit and is often seen wearing his sunglasses upside down! Eccentricities aside, Luske is a talented player whose best result, in terms of prize money, was a tenth place finish in the 2004 WSOP Main Event. Luske burst the final table bubble and secured a $373,000 payday.
Luske’s volume has waned over the years but he is still a force to be reckoned with despite his 68-years.
Pieter de Korver Has a $3M Score
Pieter de Korver is the man in third place in the Dutch all-time money listing with $4,088,035 in winnings. de Korver hit the big time in 2009 when a massive payout set him up for life.
The man from Leeuwarden, Netherlands, cashed twice in his native Holland in 2008. Those cashed weigh in at €11,640 ($15,659). His next live cash was far more substantial.
de Korver triumphed in the European Poker Tour (EPT) Grand Final, turning his €10,600 buy-in into €2,300,000 ($3,024,167). He enjoyed a trio of six-figure hauls between November 2012 and April 2013, but otherwise failed to live up to the lofty expectations created by his seven-figure score.
Rob Hollink Has an EPT and WSOP Title
Rob Hollink has live poker tournament cashes dating back to 1999. He is a legend in Dutch poker circles, like Luske. Hollink’s lifetime earnings stand at $3,710,206 currently.
Hollink’s stock rose after winning the 2005 edition of the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo. The Dutch grinder defeated American pro Brandon Schaefer heads-up and banked €600,000 ($845,190). This is still Hollink’s largest haul.
2008 saw Hollink win the $10,000 Limit Hold’em World Championship in Las Vegas for $496,931 and his only bracelet. Winning a World Poker Tour (WPT) Main Event sees Hollink secure poker’s Triple Crown.
Govert Metaal is a Businessman and Grinder
Govert Metaal is a Dutch businessman who happens to have a penchant for poker tournaments. Metaal has won $2,852,596 in live events during his career to date. The man from the Netherlands, who resides in Monaco, was a permanent fixture on the EPT during its pomp, and he enjoyed plenty of success, mostly in side events.
Metaal has not cashed in a live event since January 2020, but is a matter of when not if he will cash again.
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Brad Johnson
You name the game, and you can bet your bottom dollar that Brad has either played it or placed a wager on it! Brad calls himself a natural gambler, and someone who gains as much enjoyment from writing about the crazy game of poker as he does playing it.