Marcel Lüske

Marcel Lüske
Marcel Lüske playing in the European Poker Tour in 2008
Nickname(s)	The Flying Dutchman
Residence	Amsterdam
Born	(1953-03-23) 23 March 1953 (age 71) Amsterdam, Netherlands
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s)	None
Money finish(es)	40
Highest ITM Main Event finish	10th, 2004
World Poker Tour
Title(s)	None
Final table(s)	None
Money finish(es)	5[1]
European Poker Tour
Title(s)	None
Final table(s)	3
Money finish(es)	9

Marcel Lüske (Amsterdam, Netherlands 23 March 1953) is a Dutch professional poker player. He finished 10th in the 2004 WSOP Main Event. Lüske is a mentor to and encourages the development of younger poker players.^[2]

Early life

Lüske's father was a butcher and a boxer, and he named Marcel after his favorite French pugilist, Marcel Cerdan. He grew up in the Netherlands, where he wanted to be a singer,^[3] but he ended up at the center of his country's government, The Hague, working for customs. He moved on to working in a nightclub, owning a bar in the Amsterdam marketplace, and opening a card club in Antwerp, Belgium. As a hobby, he and his brothers picked up five-card stud and played in their downtime at the market. Lüske's card skills among the local vendors led them to suggest him to enter a $1,000 buy-in tournament in Prague. As a result of his successful playing, he won over $40,000 and turned professional. He began flying from city to city to play poker, earning himself the nickname "The Flying Dutchman".^[4]

Poker career

World Series of Poker

Lüske had his first major breakthrough at the World Series of Poker in a 2002 $5,000 Omaha Hi/Lo Split tournament. He finished 3rd for $44,560.^[5] Lüske finished in 14th place in the 2003 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, for which he earned $65,000, and 10th place in the 2004 WSOP Main Event, for which he won $373,000.^[6][7] These achievements in the 2003 and 2004 WSOP Main Events are similar to Dan Harrington's back-to-back final table appearance in the same years, and it was Harrington who eliminated Lüske in 2004.^[8][9][10] Luske's 10th-place finish in the 2004 Main Event for $373,000 is his largest tournament cash to date. Lüske was runner-up to Joe Awada in the 2004 $5,000 Seven-card stud tournament, for which he earned $120,800.^[11] In the 2017 World Series of Poker Main Event, Luske made a deep run to finish in 23rd place out of 7,221 entries, for which he won $263,532.^[12] His 23rd-place finish in the 2017 Main Event is his highest since finishing in 10th place in 2004.

Lüske has cashed at the WSOP 40 times for over $1.7 million.^[13]

Other poker activities

Lüske has won the European Poker Awards Player of the Year in 2001 and 2004.^[14] In 2005, he won the €10,000 Hall of Fame Poker Classic in Paris and took home €119,000.^[15] In 2006 Lüske made the European Poker Tour Championship Grand Final, finishing 7th.^[16] Also in 2006, Lüske won a $3,000 buy-in event at the Fourth Annual Five-Star World Poker Classic in Las Vegas. He won $315,630, which is his second-largest cash.^[17]

As of 2023, Lüske's total live tournament winnings exceed $5 million.^[18]

In early 2007, Lüske produced a TV show called Veronica Poker with fellow poker professional Noah Boeken, in which Dutch celebrities were taught to play poker.^{[citation needed]} He also appeared in the show Poker Kings NL in which Boeken and Lüske filmed while attending poker tournaments.^{[citation needed]} Later, he appeared in the show Celebrity Poker on Tien television channel.^{[citation needed]}

Also in 2007, Lüske cofounded the Federation Internationale de Poker Association (FIDPA) with American poker pro Michelle Lau to promote tournament fairness and uniformity worldwide. Lüske and Lau began FIDPA's mission with the creation of a book entitled The International Poker Rules. Its most recent update was published on 5 April 2018.^[19]

Lüske is known for his sharp dress sense at the table and his ever-present sunglasses. He has gained some notoriety for being eccentric with his shades, occasionally sporting odd pairs but more often wearing his sunglasses upside-down. He is a black belt in karate.^[20]

References

1. "Marcel Lüske". World Poker Tour. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
2. Ruddock, Steve (23 April 2015). "Poker Legends: The Singing Dutchman Marcel Luske". No Deposit Poker. Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
3. Burnett, Andrew (8 June 2017). "Marcel Luske Becomes Party Poker's Latest Ambassador". PokerTube. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
4. "Marcel Luske - The Flying Dutchman - Poker Player - PokerListings.com". Pokerlistings. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2017.
5. "33rd World Series of Poker – WSOP 2002, Omaha Hi/Lo Split". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 11 June 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
6. "34th World Series of Poker – WSOP 2003, World Championship Event". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 20 February 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
7. "35th World Series of Poker – WSOP 2004, World Championship Event". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 13 October 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
8. Collson, Brett (15 October 2008). "Marcel Luske – Poker Player Profile". Poker News Daily. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
9. Baud, Chris (18 June 2020). "Marcel Luske Featured in PokerGO Episode From 2004 World Series of Poker". Deadspin. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
10. Fiorvanti, Tim (17 July 2017). "Christian Pham has amazing day; 27 remain in WSOP main event". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on 20 September 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
11. "35th World Series of Poker – WSOP 2004, Seven Card Stud World Championship". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
12. Rinkema, Remko (18 July 2017). "The Flying Dutchman Turns Back the Clock with Deep Main Event Run". Poker Central. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
13. "Marcel Lüske". WSOP.com. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
14. "All 301 Award Winners 2001 – 2022". Global Poker Awards. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
15. "Rendez Vous a Paris 2005, Hall Of Fame Poker Classic – No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
16. "European Poker Tour – EPT Monte Carlo Grand Final, No Limit Hold'em – EPT Grand Final". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 8 January 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
17. "Fourth Annual Five-Star World Poker Classic, No Limit Hold'em". The Hendon Mob. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
18. "Marcel Luske's profile on The Hendon Mob". The Hendon Mob Poker Database. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
19. "About". International Poker Rules. Archived from the original on 13 February 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
20. "Contending with The Flying Dutchman at the Sunday Warm-Up Final Table". PokerStake. 1 January 2013. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.

External links

• Official site
• Card Player profile
• Global Poker Index profile
• Hendon Mob profile
• PokerListings profile
• WSOP profile
• WPT profile