T.J. Cloutier: 'You don’t need a hand to win in those games — but it sure does help'

  T.J. Cloutier is one of the best tournament players and though he had never won at the WSOP he made more than $1,000,000 at it. When saying that he had never won at the Main Event I want to add: yet. He doesn’t rely on luck. That’s why he won about 55 events with $500 (or higher) buy-ins.  T.J. Cloutier began to play poker when he was in the army. Then he played for the Montreal Alloutes of the Canadian Football League, then for Toronto Argonauts. But everything led him to poker table. Like Doyle Brunson he got a knee injure and began to play poker...again. Though he played only on his days off he managed to make more money than working a regular job: “I went to work for six months as a derrick man on the oil rigs. On my off days, I was playing poker. Pretty soon, I was making more money at poker than I was on the rigs -- and I'd been freezing up there, anyway -- so that's how I moved into playing poker full time”. This was just the beginning of his success. Cloutier's favorite games - no-limit. The main word in this phrase is "no limit": "This doesn’t mean just no-limit hold’em; it also includes no-limit deuce-to-seven and no-limit draw. You don’t need a hand to win in those games — but it sure does help."  Cloutier's Big List Of Wins1) 1985 – NL Holdem – 2nd2) 1987 – Limit Omaha – 1st 3) 1988 – NL Holdem – 5th4) 1989 – PL Omaha – 2nd5) 1989 – PL Omaha – 6th6) 1992 – PL Holdem – 8th7) 1992 – Limit Holdem – 7th8) 1993 – PL Holdem – 9th9) 1993 – Deuce to Seven Draw – 3rd10) 1994 – Omaha 8 or Better – 1st11) 1994 – PL Holdem – 1st12) 1995 – Seven-Card Stud – 2nd13) 1996 – PL Omaha – 5th14) 1996 – Limit Holdem – 7th15) 1996 – Seven-Card Stud – 4th16) 1996 – Limit Holdem – 8th17) 1997 – NL Holdem – 24th18) 1997 – NL Holdem – 11th19) 1997 – Seven-Card Stud – 8th20) 1998 – Omaha 8 or Better – 5th21) 1998 – PL Omaha – 1st22) 1998 – NL Holdem – 3rd23) 1998 – Limit Holdem – 9th24) 1999 – PL Omaha – 4th25) 2000 – Limit Omaha Hi-Lo Split – 10th26) 2000 – PL Holdem – 7th27) 2000 – NL Holdem – 2nd28) 2001 – NL Holdem – 2nd29) 2001 - Omaha Hi-Lo Split – 8th30) 2002 – Limit Holdem – 6th31) 2002 – NL Holdem – 3rd32) 2002 – Limit Holdem – 17th34) 2003 – Seven-Card Stud – 3rd35) 2003 – NL Hodem – 5th36) 2004 – PL Holdem – 29th37) 2004 – PL Holdem – 15th38) 2004 – Seven-Card Razz – 1st39) 2004 – Limit Holdem – 9th