John Cernuto

John Cernuto
John "Miami" Cernuto playing in the WPT Main Event at the Mirage
Nickname(s)Miami John
ResidenceLas Vegas, Nevada
Born (1944-01-10) January 10, 1944 (age 81)
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s)3
Money finish(es)65
Highest ITM
Main Event finish		345th, 2011
World Poker Tour
Title(s)None
Final table(s)3
Money finish(es)9
European Poker Tour
Title(s)None
Final table(s)1
Money finish(es)3
Information last updated on 26 March 2017.

John Anthony Cernuto (born January 10, 1944, in Jersey City, New Jersey)[1] also known as Miami, is an American professional poker player based in Las Vegas, Nevada, specialising in Omaha hi-lo events. Cernuto has won over $6,200,000 in live tournament winnings, his largest score was for $259,150 from his $2,000 No Limit Hold'em bracelet victory in the 1997 World Series of Poker.[2]

Early years

Before embarking on his poker career, Cernuto worked as an air traffic controller. When President Ronald Reagan fired the air traffic controllers during a 1981 strike, he turned to poker for his profession.[3]

Poker career

World Series of Poker

Cernuto first cashed in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) after making the final table in the 1989 World Series of Poker in the $5,000 Seven-card stud event. He finished fourth in the final table, which featured David Sklansky, Humberto Brenes, Gabe Kaplan, and the tournament winner Don Holt.[4]

Five WSOP cashes followed before Cernuto won his first bracelet in the 1996 WSOP $1,500 seven card stud split tournament.[2][5] He won the $2,000 no limit hold'em event in the 1997 World Series of Poker and the $1,500 limit Omaha event in the 2002 World Series of Poker.[6][7]

Cernuto made an impressive three final tables in the 2006 World Series of Poker, two in Seven Card Stud and one in Razz.[8][9][10]

During the $2,500 Razz tournament of the 2009 WSOP, Cernuto collapsed and was taken to a hospital, where he spent the night after being diagnosed with internal bleeding.[11]

At the 2011 World Series of Poker Main Event, Cernuto finished in 345th place for his best career placement in the World Championship.[12]

As of the 2023 World Series of Poker, Cernuto has finished in the money in at least one World Series of Poker tournament per year starting in 1992.[13][14]

World Series of Poker bracelets

Year Tournament Prize (US$)
1996 $1,500 Seven Card Stud Split $147,000
1997 $2,000 No Limit Hold'em $259,150
2002 $1,500 Limit Omaha $73,320

Other poker achievements

In 1988, Cernuto won the $1,000 Seven Card Stud event at Amarillo Slim's Super Bowl of Poker tournament series, earning a cash prize of $58,000 in addition to the title.[15] The victory at the SBOP was Cernuto's first career victory in a major poker tournament.[2]

In 2003, he won the third World Heads-Up Poker Championship in Vienna, outlasting a field including fellow professionals Ivo Donev, Ram Vaswani, Dave Colclough, Scotty Nguyen, and Padraig Parkinson on the way to the €60,000 grand prize.[16]

Cernuto has also made one World Poker Tour (WPT) final table at the 2005 PokerStars Caribbean Poker Adventure event won by John Gale.[17]

Poker Winnings / Accolades

As of 2023, his total live tournament winnings exceed $6,200,000.[2]

In 2019, actor James Woods, a close friend of John's coined him the “Ironman of Poker”, as John is the all-time leader in poker tournament cashes.[18]

At the 2020 Global Poker Awards, Cernuto was given the distinguished “Hendon Mob” award for his lifetime tournament cashes record.[19]

Blackjack

Cernuto has made appearances on the Ultimate Blackjack Tour,[20] making a final table in the Elimination Blackjack event where he played in a tournament format of the game of blackjack.

References

  1. ^ Zielbauer, Paul (November 20, 2000). "Where Poor Table Manners Can Quickly Cost a Fortune". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 11, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d "John Anthony Cernuto's profile on The Hendon Mob". The Hendon Mob Poker Database. Archived from the original on October 1, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  3. ^ "It's Miami John! Three-time gold bracelet winner Cernuto adds a gold ring to his collection". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on July 15, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  4. ^ "20th World Series of Poker - WSOP 1989, Seven-Card Stud". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on May 29, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  5. ^ "27th World Series of Poker - WSOP 1996, Seven-Card Stud Split". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on October 25, 2017. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  6. ^ "28th World Series of Poker - WSOP 1997, No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  7. ^ "33rd World Series of Poker - WSOP 2002, Limit Omaha". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on February 20, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  8. ^ "37th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2006, 7 Card Stud". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on April 7, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  9. ^ "37th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2006, 7 Card Stud". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  10. ^ "37th World Series of Poker - WSOP 2006, 7 Card Razz". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on June 25, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  11. ^ Burton, Earl (June 24, 2009). ""Miami" John Cernuto Collapses During WSOP Razz Tournament". Poker News Daily. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  12. ^ Feldman, Andrew (July 17, 2011). "WSOP Main Event Day 5 Recap". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on July 15, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  13. ^ "John Cernuto". WSOP.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  14. ^ "All Time WSOP Cashes". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on September 22, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  15. ^ "Amarillo Slim's Superbowl Of Poker, Limit Seven Card Stud". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  16. ^ "Austrian Masters 2003, World Heads Up Poker Championships 2003". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on February 20, 2023. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  17. ^ "PokerStars Caribbean Adventure - PCA 2005, WPT Main Event - No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on November 20, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  18. ^ Turner, Robert (April 3, 2019). "'Miami' John viable candidate for Poker HOF". Gaming Today. Archived from the original on October 2, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  19. ^ "John Cernuto Becomes the Second Recipient of the Hendon Mob Award". Global Poker Awards. March 4, 2020. Archived from the original on November 30, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  20. ^ "Episode 1 Recap of Ultimate Blackjack Tour - UBT September 16, 2006". www.blackjackhero.com. Archived from the original on July 31, 2021. Retrieved July 31, 2021.