Just a few weeks after being diagnosed with bowel cancer, UK poker legend and WSOP bracelet winner Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott passed away at age 61, surrounded by his loved ones.
Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott is considered one of the legends of the UK poker scene, he has accumulated $6.2 million in live tournament winning (good for second on the UK all-time money list after Sam Trickett) and has won a World Poker Tour title as well as a WSOP bracelet.
He played his first tournament back in 1993 and became one of the iconic characters of the game, many players consider him the godfather of UK poker.
In his early years Devilfish often had run-ins with the law (armed robbery, fights), but after meeting his second wife and starting to play poker seriously he turned his life around.
After becoming a feared regular in the UK he went to Las Vegas in 1997 and won a WSOP bracelet and $180,310 in the $2,000 Pot Limit Hold’em event.
In 1999 Devilfish was amongst the 40 players who were invited to participate in the now legendary UK television series, Late Night Poker. This show was the first series to use the hole cam technology and Ulliott’s win at the final table of the series was watched by 1.5 million people which was considered a huge amount of viewers for that timeslot and channel.
Ulliott’s character resulted in the show being renewed for 5 more seasons and him becoming a household name and a UK poker legend, many successful UK players have stated that Ulliott was the reason they started to play poker.
The first news about Ulliott’s health problems popped up just weeks ago, and he confirmed that he has been diagnosed with a terminal bowel cancer and that he will retire from the spotlight.
Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott passed away on April 6 at age 61 surrounded by his loved ones. The whole poker community is mourning the loss of a true poker legend. May he rest in peace!
