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Hair Apparent

One-time famous stylist, Marco Traniello now trims his poker opponents

Life has a funny way of dealing you cards that you never expected. There's no one who knows that better than Marco Traniello, whose path to poker mastery began when he chose a particular parking spot.

While visiting the U.S. on vacation from his native Italy, Marco decided to check out the sights in Las Vegas. As fate would have it, he just so happened to park his car next to Jennifer Harman's in the parking lot of the Mirage Hotel and Casino. When the two crossed paths, Marco asked if she'd like to go out dancing. Despite the late hour and the fact that she'd just lost $50,000 in a poker game, Jen's instincts told her that Marco was worth betting on. As usual, her instincts were right - and the rest is history.

Although Marco was a world-renowned hair stylist when they first married, it didn't take long for him to catch the poker bug from Jennifer. During their frequent home games, Marco began playing and discussing poker with some of the world's top players, including Erick Lindgren, Carlos Mortensen, and Daniel Negreanu. Despite the fact that he had never played poker before, his exposure to such high-caliber players soon turned him into a formidable opponent.

After several years of developing his cash game skills, Marco decided to give tournament poker a try. In 2005, he played at the World Series for the first time. His tournament debut was nothing short of stunning - Marco cashed in seven events, setting a new record for WSOP cashes. In the 2006 WSOP, Marco went on to notch another four cashes, proving that his first year wasn't just a flash in the pan.

Not content to rest on his laurels, Marco continually challenges himself to improve, putting in extensive game time and honing his skills on a daily basis. Given that he regularly plays with the world's top players and works on his game with Jennifer, you can be sure that the future is only going to get brighter for this rising star.