It was the now distant 2003 when the unknown and young Chris Moneymaker gave life to the golden age of Texas Hold'em. The history of the amateur player who invests $86 and becomes a millionaire, winning the WSOP Main Event, would forever change the perception of poker worldwide.

It's been fifteen years since the 2003 WSOP, but Chris Moneymaker - unlike many other players, perhaps even more gifted than him - is still on the crest of the wave. The PokerStars ambassador recently reflected on how poker changed from that summer in Las Vegas to today.

Source: Intentarlo.com

The evolution of poker in 15 years

From that victory at the WSOP Main Event, Chris Moneymaker has come a long way: "It was all pretty surreal," he told his colleagues at PocketFives about the past three decades. "There were ups and downs, as in all things. Poker went through a dark period, during Black Friday, but I think it's coming out. There are other things that draw the attention of younger generations, I think for example to Twitch and to all the people who are helping us to spread the word. And we have things like PokerGO that produce great content. "

The times when "when I won the Main WSOP, there were only Super System and the Book of Tells by Mike Caro and little else" are far away. Nowadays learning how to play poker is much easier, but it is equally quick to improve.

"At the time nobody knew what he was doing, today there is free access to a flood of content. If you want to learn how to play poker and become good, you can do it for free".

Chris Moneymaker's story is a bit of a poker player's dream. But if for a long time the former world champion did nothing to hide his status as an amateur player, today his mentality has changed. "My goal, every time I walk into a room, is to win everyone's money, but I want people to be happy when it happens," he said.

Lately, we have also discovered a Moneymaker event organizer: "PokerStars gave all the ambassadors the opportunity to give a Platinum Pass for the PSPC (event to be held in January at the Bahamas, ed). I managed to give one of them on every stop of my tour, which is absolutely incredible. It's crazy because doing so can give someone else the same opportunity I had 15 years ago, turning $ 86 into a life-changing prize.

My hope, "continues Moneymaker," is that some of them make a deep run or win the PokerStars Players No-Limit Hold'em Championship. In reality, I hope to win it, and that they will get seconds".