JP Kelly

Biography

British poker pro JP Kelly had been playing poker for fun against friends and family for years, but never took it seriously until he started watching the classic TV show Late Night Poker. Like so many others, JP was inspired by the show to go and start playing the game himself. Unlike so many others however, he was willing to put in the hard work needed to learn the game properly, and was soon able to make poker his living.

He has a solid record of live tournament wins stretching back to 2005, most coming at events held across the UK and Ireland. The first signs of the World Series of Poker* success that was to come came in 2007 when he cashed twice in Las Vegas, including a 16th place finish in a $3,000 No Limit Hold'em event. JP returned the following year and made the final table of a $2,500 mixed Hold'em/Omaha event, finishing in ninth place for $22,598. A year later in 2009, JP was back in Vegas once again, and ready to make his mark on what was to be a great year for UK pros at the WSOP*. He played in a $1,500 Pot Limit Hold'em event and won, walking away with the bracelet and $194,434 in cash for beating a field of 632 players. After a small cash in another event, he travelled back to London and amazingly won another bracelet at the World Series of Poker Europe*, this time in a £1,000 No Limit Hold'em event, good for a further $225,535. Not only had JP now well and truly arrived on the scene, he'd also become the first poker player from the UK to win two World Series bracelets - an incredible achievement that confirms his status as a major force in the game on both sides of the pond.

In his downtime, JP likes partying with friends and travelling the world. He also enjoys playing sports, including golf and tennis. But he’s now fully focussed on making Team Pro proud, and has set himself a target of winning another bracelet and a European Poker Tour (EPT) title in the not too distant future. JP is a member of Team PokerStars Pro and plays online using the screen name ‘jp Kelly’.

Profile courtesy of PokerStars - sourced 07/18/11