Kenna James (born December 18, 1963 in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

) is an American professional poker player,

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

commentator,

Personal Coach Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person, called a ''coach'', supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance. The learner is sometimes called a ''coa ...

and

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

who currently resides in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

Poker career

James' total live tournament winnings exceed $3,500,000. He ranks 185th on the all-time money list in the united states and 314th in the world. James' biggest win came in the 2006 LA Poker Classic, winning $242,251. In March 2006, James finished second in the $10,000 buy-in Limit Hold-em event to Mike Schneider in the fifth annual PartyPoker Million Cruise. James received $700,000 for this finish for the biggest cash of his career. James' tournament career includes over 100 final tables and more than 20 overall titles.

World Series of Poker

He has finished in the money 36 times at the

World Series of Poker The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is a series of poker tournaments held annually in Paradise, Nevada and, since 2004, sponsored by Caesars Entertainment. It dates its origins to 1970, when Benny Binion invited seven of the best-known poker p ...

earning over $500,000 of his total tournament winnings at the WSOP. He has two final table appearance at the WSOP including a 4th place in the 2003 $2,500 no limit Texas hold'em event, and a 6th-place finish in the 2008 $1500 Razz event.

World Poker Tour

Kenna James has 3

World Poker Tour The World Poker Tour (WPT) is an internationally televised gaming and entertainment brand. Since 2002, the World Poker Tour has operated a series of international poker tournaments and associated television series broadcasting playdown and the f ...

(WPT) Final Tables (9th, 7th, 2nd) with one televised final table in August 2005. James finished second to Alex Kahaner at the WPT Legends of Poker $5,000 No Limit Hold'em tournament at the

Bicycle Casino The Bicycle Hotel & Casino (commonly, "The Bike") is a poker cardroom in California. Founded by George Hardie Sr. in 1984, located in Bell Gardens, California, The Bicycle Casino offers a selection of poker games and Asian games, with a wide ...

, earning $588,210.

Acting and Commentating Career

Kenna James moved from Michigan to California in 1985 to pursue a career in acting. From 1985-1995 he performed both on stage and screen. With notable roles as Biff in "Death of a Salesman," and Hotspur in "Henry IV" at the Odyssey Playhouse in Los Angeles. He also had bit parts in t.v. soap opera's "The Bold and the Beautiful," "The Young and the Restless," and supporting roles in the independent feature films, "Deadly Diamonds," (1996) and "Whiskey, Riddles and Dandelion Wine" (1998). Leaving acting to pursue a career in poker in 1998, James still makes occasional forays into onscreen acting, most notably in

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

thriller '' The Trust'' (2016); he has an extended cameo as Captain Harris opposite

Nicolas Cage Nicolas Kim Coppola (born January 7, 1964), known professionally as Nicolas Cage, is an American actor and film producer. Born into the Coppola family, he is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Gui ...

as police officer Jim Stone. Kenna James commentating career began in 2005 on GSN POKER ROYAL Celebrities versus Pros. He next appeared on the

Ultimate Poker Challenge The Ultimate Poker Challenge (UPC) was a series of weekly poker tournaments acting as super-satellites into the series semi-finals. The first and second seasons are available on NTSC DVD. In the United States, it was a syndicated program. Form ...

, and served as a regular Guest-Host of the show alongside Chad Brown. Other appearances on WPT Canada along with Jim Van Horn and The Premiere Poker League with Jesse May in London, England, for Matchroom Sports. Currently Kenna James is the co-host of The Heartland Poker Tour, a nationally syndicated poker television show, alongside Jaymz Larson.

Charity efforts

James has worked extensively with many charities, raising money for Make A Wish Foundation, Ante Up for Autism, Hold-em for Hero's for Fallin' Officers, Arizona Baseball Charities, Screaming Eagle Poker League and The Wounded Warrior Project. He has hosted many charity poker events. In 2006 he organized and hosted a tournament for the Wounded Warriors that raised $170,000 for that organization.

References

External links

Official siteHendon Mob tournament resultsPokerListings.com Player Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Kenna 1963 births American poker players Living people Poker commentators