Allen Cunningham: Five WSOP Bracelets, a Player of the Year Award and a Lasting Tournament Legacy
POKER HALL OF FAME
Inducted 2014
Allen Cunningham built one of the strongest tournament résumés of his generation through sustained World Series of Poker success, versatility across multiple poker variants and a deep run in the biggest WSOP Main Event ever held at the time. The American professional owns five WSOP bracelets, won the 2005 WSOP Player of the Year award and finished fourth in the 2006 Main Event for more than $3.6 million.
As of August 2026, Hendon Mob lists Cunningham with $11,942,371 in live tournament earnings and a residence in Las Vegas, Nevada. His recorded tournament results stretch from the 1990s into the 2020s, giving him a career that spans several distinct eras of modern poker.
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Who Is Allen Cunningham?
Allen Cunningham is an American professional poker player best known for his success at the World Series of Poker. His five bracelets came in five different tournament formats, while his results also include a WSOP Circuit championship and one of the most lucrative Main Event finishes of the poker-boom era.
Cunningham's early tournament record dates to the 1990s. The WSOP has described him as a 19-year-old UCLA dropout when he turned poker from a hobby into his profession. Before becoming established on the tournament circuit, he spent years developing his game in California cardrooms.
That period also put him alongside a group of young professionals who would become major figures in poker, including Phil Ivey, John Juanda and Daniel Negreanu. Cunningham's career developed during an era when live tournament poker was beginning its transition from a relatively small professional circuit into a globally televised game.
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Allen Cunningham's Rise Through Tournament Poker
Cunningham was already producing live tournament results before the poker boom. Hendon Mob records cashes going back to 1996, including finishes in Limit Hold'em, Seven-Card Stud, Omaha, lowball and Pot-Limit Hold'em events.
His early WSOP results demonstrated the same versatility. By 2000, Cunningham was making repeated deep runs at the World Series, and his first bracelet followed in 2001 when he won a $5,000 Seven-Card Stud event.
A year later, he captured a second bracelet in $5,000 Deuce-to-Seven Draw. Those victories established Cunningham as more than a No-Limit Hold'em specialist and became an early indication of the range that would define his WSOP résumé.
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Allen Cunningham's Five WSOP Bracelets
As of August 2026, WSOP's all-time bracelet standings credit Cunningham with five career bracelets.
His bracelet victories came in:
2001 — $5,000 Seven-Card Stud
2002 — $5,000 Deuce-to-Seven Draw
2005 — $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em
2006 — $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em with rebuys
2007 — $5,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em
The range of formats is one of the clearest measures of Cunningham's tournament versatility. Stud, draw poker, No-Limit Hold'em and Pot-Limit Hold'em all appear on his bracelet record.
His final three bracelets also came in three consecutive WSOP summers from 2005 through 2007, a stretch that coincided with the most visible period of his tournament career.
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The 2005 WSOP Player of the Year Season
Cunningham's 2005 World Series of Poker performance earned him the WSOP Player of the Year award.
He won the $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em event for $725,405 and accumulated four final-table appearances and five cashes during the series. Official WSOP historical records list Cunningham as the 2005 Player of the Year, following Daniel Negreanu, who received the award in 2004.
The honor reflected more than one tournament victory. It recognized Cunningham's consistency across an entire WSOP schedule and marked him as one of the leading tournament players during the opening years of poker's televised boom.
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Cunningham's 2006 WSOP Main Event Run
Cunningham's largest live tournament score came one year later in the 2006 WSOP Main Event.
The tournament attracted 8,773 entries, which made it the largest live poker tournament field ever assembled at that point. Cunningham advanced all the way to the final table and ultimately finished fourth.
The result paid $3,628,513, which remains his largest recorded live cash. Jamie Gold won the tournament, while Paul Wasicka finished second and Michael Binger placed third.
For Cunningham, the finish added a Main Event performance to a résumé that already included multiple bracelets and a Player of the Year award. He did not win the world championship, but reaching fourth place in a field of nearly 9,000 players became one of the defining results of his career.
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WSOP Circuit Success at Caesars Palace
Cunningham added WSOP Circuit hardware in 2008 by winning the $5,150 Caesars Palace Main Event in Las Vegas.
The championship attracted 334 entries and generated a prize pool of more than $1.6 million. Cunningham defeated Ben Fineman heads-up and collected $499,069.
According to the official WSOP account of the victory, the win earned Cunningham his first WSOP Circuit gold ring. It gave him another major title outside the summer bracelet series and reinforced his record of success in high-profile Las Vegas tournaments.
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Career Earnings and Major Poker Results
As of August 2026, Hendon Mob lists Cunningham with $11,942,371 in live tournament earnings. Tournament databases are updated as new results are recorded, so that figure can change over time.
His $3,628,513 payout for fourth place in the 2006 WSOP Main Event remains his largest live score.
Other major results include his $725,405 bracelet victory in 2005, $625,830 bracelet win in 2006, $499,069 WSOP Circuit Main Event victory in 2008 and $487,287 bracelet win in the 2007 Pot-Limit Hold'em event.
Those results show that Cunningham's career was not built around a single breakout tournament. His biggest accomplishments were spread across different years, buy-in levels and poker formats.
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Allen Cunningham's Playing Style and Versatility
Assigning a simple label to Cunningham's playing style would overlook one of the most important characteristics of his record: his ability to succeed across different forms of poker.
His five WSOP bracelets came in Seven-Card Stud, Deuce-to-Seven Draw, No-Limit Hold'em and Pot-Limit Hold'em. His broader tournament record also includes results in Omaha and other formats.
That body of work provides stronger evidence of his playing reputation than a subjective description such as "aggressive" or "tight." Cunningham developed his standing in professional poker through adaptability, tournament judgment and consistent results across games that require different strategic skills.
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Why Allen Cunningham Matters in Poker
Cunningham's career connects the pre-boom tournament circuit with the period when poker became a mainstream televised competition.
He was already cashing in major tournaments years before the 2003 poker boom, then produced some of his biggest results as fields expanded dramatically. His 2005 Player of the Year season, three consecutive bracelet-winning summers from 2005 through 2007 and fourth-place finish in the 2006 Main Event all occurred during one of the game's fastest periods of growth.
His bracelet record also separates him from players whose major success came primarily in No-Limit Hold'em. Winning WSOP events in stud, draw and pot-limit formats alongside Hold'em required success across substantially different forms of tournament poker.
Cunningham also became a familiar presence in televised poker during that era. Combined with his major tournament results, those appearances helped make him one of the recognizable professionals associated with poker's expansion in the 2000s.
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Allen Cunningham's Current Poker Status
Cunningham's public live-tournament results have become less frequent than during the peak years of his career, but there is no reliable basis to describe him as retired.
Hendon Mob's current database lists his most recent recorded live cashes at the 2024 World Series of Poker. He finished 377th in an $800 No-Limit Hold'em Deepstack event for $1,821 before cashing the $10,000 WSOP Main Event in 1,052nd place for $17,500.
No later live tournament cash appears on his Hendon Mob record as of August 2026. That reflects the currently available tournament record and should not be interpreted as evidence that Cunningham has stopped playing poker.
His historical standing remains anchored by five WSOP bracelets, a WSOP Player of the Year award, a WSOP Circuit championship, nearly $12 million in recorded live earnings and a deep Main Event run that produced the largest score of his career.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many WSOP bracelets does Allen Cunningham have?
Allen Cunningham has five WSOP bracelets. The WSOP's current all-time bracelet standings continue to list him with five as of August 2026.
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When did Allen Cunningham win his WSOP bracelets?
Cunningham won bracelets in 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2007. His victories came in Seven-Card Stud, Deuce-to-Seven Draw, No-Limit Hold'em and Pot-Limit Hold'em.
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What is Allen Cunningham's biggest poker tournament cash?
Cunningham's largest recorded live tournament cash is $3,628,513. He earned it by finishing fourth in the 2006 WSOP Main Event.
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How much has Allen Cunningham won in live poker tournaments?
As of August 2026, Hendon Mob lists Allen Cunningham with $11,942,371 in live tournament earnings. That figure can change if additional results are recorded.
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Did Allen Cunningham win WSOP Player of the Year?
Yes. Cunningham won the 2005 WSOP Player of the Year award after a series that included one bracelet, four final-table appearances and five cashes.
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Has Allen Cunningham won a WSOP Circuit ring?
Yes. Cunningham won the 2008 WSOP Circuit Caesars Palace Main Event for $499,069, and the WSOP reported that the victory earned him his first Circuit gold ring.
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How did Allen Cunningham finish in the 2006 WSOP Main Event?
Cunningham finished fourth in the 2006 WSOP Main Event. The tournament drew 8,773 entries, and his fourth-place finish paid $3,628,513.
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Is Allen Cunningham retired from poker?
No reliable source reviewed for this profile identifies Cunningham as retired. Hendon Mob lists his most recent recorded live tournament cashes in 2024, including a cash in the WSOP Main Event.