Jennifer Harman Traniello

The Lady is a Pro – the Profile of Jennifer Harman Traniello

One of the great things about playing at Full Tilt Poker is playing with and reading about their team of poker pros, and one of them is not only nice to look at but is also one of the best female poker players in the world.

Team Full Tilt’s own Jennifer Harman has cashed in 12 World Poker Tour (WPT) events, as well as 22 World Series of Poker (WSOP) events. Among her achievements in these endeavors, she made it to six final tables and took two bracelets - making her the only woman in the world to have won two WSOP bracelets in open events.

Jennifer Harman claimed her first bracelet in 2000 while playing No-Limit Deuce to Seven and left the table with $145,000 in prize money, while her second came in 2002 in the $5k Limit Hold ‘em event where she walked away with more than $200K. The story is that prior to Jennifer’s win in the WSOP, she had never before played Deuce to Seven, but quickly learned the game’s strategy after only a five-minute lesson from ‘ The Professor’ Howard Lederer. Then Jennifer was back again in 2004 to make an impressive 4th place finish in the $15K WPT Main Event, netting her for almost $300,000.

Keeping up the pace of tournament achievements, Jennifer kept dogging the tournament circuit and snagged a 4th place finish at the 2005 World Poker Tour Five-Diamond World Poker Classic which paid her just under $300,000. Then it was on to the 2005 WSOP Circuit Championship Event at the Rio and a $380,000 payday for her 2nd place showing. Proving she was going to stay a familiar face in the winner’s circle, Jennifer also finished 5th in the inaugural Professional Poker Tour event and won the week eight airing of Poker After Dark in 2007, bringing her career earnings to over $2.2 million.

Jennifer was introduced to poker at the tender age of eight when her father began regularly asking her to take his seat in home games in which he was having a tough bout. The majority of the time, young Jennifer would better her father’s situation at the table and by age 21, her love affair with poker was in full bloom and she started playing poker full time. She achieved such an expert level in Limit Hold ‘em that she was asked to write the chapter on the subject in one of the most highly respected books on poker, Doyle Brunson’s Super System 2.

But her road hasn’t been without twists and turns because just as with her mother and sister, Jennifer has experienced serious medical problems. After battling through two different kidney transplants, in 2004 she founded the non-profit organization Creating Organ Donation Awareness (CODA) known for raising awareness and funds for the organ donations cause. The other charitable organization dear to her heart is the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), to which she contributes to regularly by donating both her time and financial support. One of the ways she offers her support is by hosting the annual Jennifer Harman Charity Poker Tournament held at The Venetian Poker Room, in Las Vegas, that benefits the Nevada SPCA no-kill animal shelter and sanctuary.

Before meeting and marrying her life mate, card player Marco Traniello, Jennifer dated both Howard Lederer and Todd Brunson, son of Doyle Brunson. Since settling down to married life in Las Vegas, the couple is busy raising twin sons who were brought into the world with the help of a surrogate mother.

When motherhood allows her a break, Jennifer continues to enter tournaments in addition to being a regular player at the $4,000/$8,000 tables at the Bellagio, along with some of poker’s most elite players in the high limit Bobby’s Room.

If you want to play with members of Team Full Tilt like Jennifer, you can find them playing online at their home base - the Full Tilt Poker tables!