- Large range of software providers
- Over 1000 games to play
- Mobile friendly
- 24/7 live chat support
- Lack of exciting promotions
The land of Niagara Falls, maple syrup, Ice Hockey, and poutine, also claims well-known female poker players. Gambling, such as playing cards, has been around in the country since the mid-1400s. The Canadian Criminal Code was made in 1892. This law allowed gambling under certain conditions, but by the 1900s, because the laws weren’t strict, gambling became popular throughout the country.
Here are some of the top female Canadian poker players of all time.
According to PokerNews, Bicknell, an Ontario-Native, was first introduced to the game in her first year of University. She says that ever since that night, she has been “obsessed” with the game. With the support of family and friends, very little takes away from her motivation to succeed in the poker world. Staying healthy contributes to success at the table for Kristen Bicknell as well.
At the age of 34, Bicknell has accomplished a great deal. She won her first World Series of Poker bracelet with a total earning of $173,922 and in 2016 at the $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em bounty event, she won $290,768. As recently as 2020, she has earned her third World Series of Poker bracelet and has collected total earnings of $5,434,472.
Number two on our list is Xuan Liu. She is also a native of Ontario who has proven to be a big player in the poker world. Just like Ms. Bicknell, she was introduced to poker while attending the University of Waterloo.
Liu started with online games and then in 2007, she appeared in a live tournament. It was only by 2010 though that she started playing seriously.
Her achievements include the 2011 European Poker Tour Main event where she placed third and raked in €360,000. Following that she placed sixth in the 2012 $1,500 Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo tournament earning $29,985. Today she is a Poker Coach/ Instructor at Poker Power.
Next, we have Isabelle Mercier. This Quebecois native started playing poker professionally before the two players mentioned above. After graduating from the University of Montreal with a law degree, Mercier moved to France to continue her education. It was there that she became a poker room manager at the famous Aviation Club de France.
Her aggressive style of playing won her the World Poker Tour Ladies Invitational in 2004. She is currently a member of Team PokerStars. Her total earnings amount to $834,683.
As an 888Poker ambassador, Scott’s popular in the poker world, both as a spokesperson and a player. The Calgary native is well-traveled. In 1999, she moved to the United Kingdom but it wasn't until 2002 that she started in the poker world through media work. She now lives in Ljubljana, Slovenia
Her achievements include finishing second in the Irish Open and is the only woman to cash out in both the 2008 and 2009 World Series of Poker Main Events. Her total live earnings are $664,795.
There isn’t much to tell about Ms. Sabini’s personal life but this professional poker player is from Montreal, Canada. Her accomplishments make her number five on our list. She has accumulated $559,415 in live tournament earnings and is currently placed 163rd on the Canada All Time Money List.
Just like Carla Sabini, not much is known about Louise Francouer’s personal life except that she is a great poker player from Montreal, Canada. She’s currently placed 161st on the Canada All Time Money list. Her total live tournament earnings stand at $644,219. Her biggest cash prize totals $49,108, which she won at the $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event Championship placing in the 142nd spot.
At number seven, we have Evelyn Ng from Toronto, Canada. Ng started gambling at a young age. At the tender age of 14, she played pool for money and by 17 she found herself playing cards. She later graduated to dealing blackjack and poker.
Her claim to fame was her second-place win in the World Poker Tour Ladies Night Event in 2003. She also won $73,230 at the $25,000 + 500 WPT Championship, No-Limit Hold'em event in Las Vegas in 2006. Her total winnings as of 2010 stand at $377,191.
This Vancouver native has had many impressive finishes in her career. Although she’s not won a World Series of Poker bracelet, she’s been noted in the poker world in Canada. Darlene’s most recent win was in 2016 at the 47th Annual in the $1,500 Summer Solstice No-Limit Hold’em event. There she placed 39th.
Her largest earning to date was at the 2014 World Series of Poker games where she raked in a sum of $52,141. Impressive!
Nguyen, from Toronto, comes in at number nine on our list. Just like Darlene, she has not won a WSOP bracelet but she’s been formidable in her winnings.
She has bagged $301,501 from live tournaments.
Born in Vancouver, Gillian Epp makes it last on our list. Once she realized that playing poker can support her lifestyle of traveling, she learned how to hone her craft in games. To study the game, she worked as a poker dealer.
As the poker world's rising star, she soon left her job to play high stakes games in Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Although she's not the highest earner on this list, she's on her way up.
Currently, she writes articles for different poker magazines.
The women we have chosen to feature on this list are Canada’s top female poker players. Although some may have retired or are not as active in the sport, many continue to push themselves in the industry. Some of these women started playing young while others fell in love with poker in their college years. Rest assured that poker continues to get popular in Canada and there will be more women added to the list.