In 2017, Michael Newman topped a field of 585 entrants to win the WPT RRPO for $374,240 and etch his name on the WPT Mike Sexton Champions Cup. He did so by defeating a stack final table that included Matas Cimbolas (2nd - $262,440), Darryll Fish (3rd - $168,920), Ari Engel (5th - $93,560), Tom Marchese (6th - $75,380), and Shaun Deeb (9th - $37,420).
What��s more, Newman is actually one of the most accomplished players in Seminole Hard Rock Poker (SHRP) history having claimed seven titles. In November 2022, his seventh title came when he bested a 107-entry field to win the 2022 RRPO Event #18: $400 Deep Stack Turbo NLH for $7,136. That put him in a tie with Brian Altman, Yuval Bronshtein, Gabe Ramos, and David Prociak, behind only Raminder Singh��s nine titles.
Newman, who is in his mid-50s with no kids, is originally from New York but relocated to South Florida.
��I moved down here from New York in the middle of 2015 and it became my home,�� he told PokerNews. ��It��s been good to me.��
That might be an understatement as Newman currently sits in fourth place on the Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood��s all-time number of cashes list with 113 (Ory Hen leads with 127 cashes as of November 2022).
��It��s always tough to win a title. I enjoy it so much,�� Newman said of his most recent victory. ��Even when I won the big one, no one could believe I played the $150 the next day. I just love poker so much. There��s the thrill of competition, and it was pretty thrilling there at the end when I got the recent trophy.��
A one-time diehard New York Giants fan (Lawrence Taylor is his all-time favorite player), Newman has also had some success in the World Series of Poker (WSOP).
��I almost won a bracelet on two separate occasions. One with my tag team partner, who is my former coach, Paul Snead. We finished 10th. Negreanu, we had aces, he had kings and hit a one outer. I finished fourth last year in the tag team. A guy flushed me when I had him preflop, but that��s poker.��
Indeed, Newman finished in 10th place in the 2017 WSOP Event #2: $10,000 Tag Team Championship alongside teammates Charlemagne Benjamin and Snead, and last year finished fourth with teammate Robert Ormont in the 2021 WSOP $1,000 Tag Team event.
Michael Newman's SHRP Titles
| Series | Tournament | Prize |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 SHRPO | $570 No-Limit Hold��em | $17,589 |
| 2016 RRPO | $360 Pot-Limit Omaha | $7,740 |
| 2017 LHPO | $570 Six-Max Pot Limit Omaha | $7,473 |
| 2017 RRPO | $3,500 RRPO Championship | $374,240 |
| 2019 LHPO | $360 Ultimate Re-Entry | $183,525 |
| 2021 SHRPO | $400 Turbo No-Limit Hold��em | $7,573 |
| 2022 RRPO | $400 Turbo No-Limit Hold��em | $7,136 |
