Justin Young is a professional poker player originally from North Carolina who has amassed $5.9 million in live earnings. Formerly a mechanical engineer, Young is best known for winning the 2016 World Poker Tour (WPT) Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown $3,500 buy-in Main Event for $669,161.
Poker Achievements
In 2004, Young took down the first live tournament he ever cashed in, a $1,000 weekly tournament a the Bellagio, which earned him a score of $45,396. Four years later, Young earned his biggest live score to date with a runner-up finish in the 2008 $15,000 Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic, which earned him $936,760.
Young's greatest results have been on the WPT trail, where he has had 18 cashes, three final table appearances and one title to collect $2.4 million in WPT earnings. His best performance was in the 2016 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Main Event, which he took down for his second biggest career score of $669,161.
Young has also had success at the World Series of Poker (WSOP), having earned $550,748 across 77 cashes. Young earned his first and only Circuit ring in 2012 in a $365 buy-in Pot-Limit Omaha event at WSOPC Caesars Palace to win $11,506.
While Young has yet to take home a coveted WSOP bracelet, he came close when he finished fifth a $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em event at the 2018 WSOP for $46,221.
At the 2022 WSOP, Young was the Day 1 chip leader in Event #2: $100,000 High Roller Bounty but ultimately failed to cash in the event.
The accomplished poker pro with $5.9 million in live earnings now spends most of his time on the high roller circuit. At the 2022 US Poker Open, Young took down a $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Event for $200,200, while he finished fourth in the $25,000 PGT Heads-Up Championship less than a month later for $100,000.
Justin Young's Top Five Cashes
DATE | BUY-IN | TOURNAMENT | PLACE | PRIZE (IN USD) | |
December 2008 | $15,000 | WPT No Limit Hold'em - Doyle Brunson Classic | 2nd | $936,760 | |
April 2016 | $3,500 | No Limit Hold'em - WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown Championship #18 | 1st | $669,161 | |
October 2011 | $5,000 | Festa Al Lago No Limit Hold'em - Championship Event | 1st | $374,590 | |
May 2011 | $25,000 | No Limit Hold'em - WPT Championship | 6th | $225,654 | |
March 2022 | $10,000 | Pot Limit Omaha - US Poker Open #2 | 1st | $200,200 |