WSOP 2015 Final Table: Meet This Year’s November Nine (Pt2)

Following on from part 1, here are four more members of the 2015 November Nine:
Neil Blumenfield (USA): 22,000,000 (55bb)
Neil Blumenfield, 61, apparently resigned as President, CEO and Director of software company Elastic Intelligence, Inc, before the Main Event, and would have been the oldest finalist in November Nine history if not for Pierre Neuville, aged 72. The San Francisco resident has a total of 20 tournament cashes dating back to 2008 worth $130,468, including finishing the 2012 WSOP Main Event in 285th place for $38,453.
Pierre Neuville (Belgium): 21,075,000 (53bb)
Pierre Neuville, 72, (photo) is the oldest player to reach a November Nine position since the concept was invented in 2008, and if he wins the Main Event will become the competition’s oldest victor, beating Johnny Moss who won the title in 1974 aged 67. The Belgium has been playing poker since 1957, but after selling his toy company to Hasbro in 1969 and then taking up an executive position at the company, he was requested to stop playing poker, which he duly did until retiring in 2008. Since then he has amassed $2,166,842 in winnings, including finishing runner-up at the 2014 WSOP $5k No Limit Hold’em Six Handed event for $385,041. Currently placed at number 2 on Belgium’s ‘All Time Money List’, Neuville will also have to finish at least runner-up at the final table to overtake Davidi Kitai on $6,215,644.
Max Steinberg (USA): 20,200,000 (50.5bb)
Max Steinberg, 27, is a professional poker player currently residing in California with $1,936,457 in live tournament earnings to his name. He is also the only player at the table already with a WSOP bracelet, having triumphed at the 2012 WSOP $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event for $440,238. As well as poker, Steinberg is heavily involved in the gambling industry, and runs fantasy sports site, dailyfantasywinners.com, along with his twin brother, Danny. Interestingly, Steinberg won his $10,000 buy-in Main Event seat via DFS site, DraftKings.com.
Thomas Cannuli (USA): 12,250,000 (31bb)
Thomas Cannuli, 23, is the youngest player at the final table and coming into the main event had just $52,235 in live cashes, including finishing last year’s ME in 691st for $18,406. Despite his low profile amongst casual poker fans, Cannuli is well known in the poker pro community and sweating him on the rail during his Main Event campaign were such players as Antonio Esfandiari, Brian Rast, Sorel Mizzi, and Jeff Gross. However, the New Jersey resident says he mainly plays cash games live and online, and commenting on his dark horse status, said:
“I haven’t had a lot of exposure and that’s why a lot of people don’t know about me. That’s the only reason why you guys haven’t heard of me – I haven’t exposed myself.”
See the third and final part of this article here: “WSOP 2015 Final Table: Meet This Year’s November Nine (Pt3)”