David Levi

David Levi was born on December 2, 1962, in Tel Aviv, Israel. Raised in Israel, he completed national service as a paratrooper in the Israel Defense Forces in the early 1980s. After leaving the military, Levi played professional soccer for Hapoel Ramat Gan, a club in Israel's second division, Liga Leumit. He contributed to the team's efforts in the lower tiers of Israeli football until a severe knee injury ended his playing career. That injury forced him to reconsider his future and eventually led him to the United States.

Levi moved to Los Angeles, California, where he was introduced to poker at the Bicycle Club casino. He started out in low-stakes tournaments, faced early financial challenges, and later found backers to move up in limits. He began playing high-stakes Seven Card Stud games and became a regular in those games. For a time he was the roommate of professional poker player Amir Vahedi, a close friend. After a few years in Los Angeles, he moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he currently resides.

Levi's breakthrough came when he won the inaugural tournament held at the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas. He followed that with a huge 2003 season, making 12 final tables and winning Seven Card Stud events at the California State Poker Championship and at the Legends of Poker. Those results helped establish him as a full-time professional.

Levi has been a familiar face at the World Series of Poker for decades. His earlier WSOP record showed 37 cashes worth $553,434, and more recent records credit him with 87 cashes, $895,611 in WSOP earnings, and nine WSOP final tables. One of those final-table appearances came in the 2005 WSOP Tournament of Champions. In the WSOP Main Event, his best result is 121st place, achieved in 2007. Despite his deep runs and consistent WSOP results, Levi has never won a WSOP bracelet.

Levi has finished in the money at 10 World Poker Tour championship events. In Season VI, he reached the final table of the 2007 Mandalay Bay Poker Championship and placed third, earning $229,540 — the largest cash of his career. He also made a final table on the Professional Poker Tour, the WPT's offshoot, finishing third in the 2005 Mirage Poker Showdown. Later career data expands his WPT resume to 15 cashes, three final tables, and $683,957 in WPT earnings.

Levi has more than 20 first-place finishes in live tournaments. In April 2002, he won the $3,100 No Limit Hold'em event at the Bellagio High Buy-in Tournament Series, defeating WPT champion Alan Goehring in heads-up play for $159,468. At the 2003 Bellagio Five-Diamond World Poker Classic, he won the $1,500 Limit Hold'em event for $144,917. He also captured the California State Poker Championship twice, taking $26,751 in 2000 and $99,745 in 2004. Overall, his live earnings have passed $4.3 million, with a best cash of $229,540. He has been ranked as high as 103rd on the all-time money list, 38th among Nevada players, and 261st among all U.S. players; his current Global Poker Index standing is around 594th.

Levi is generally described as a patient, fundamentally sound player with a special command of Seven Card Stud and mixed-game formats. His success in limit hold'em, no-limit hold'em, and stud events shows a versatile skill set. A pokerpages article once joked that the "former soccer pro scores winning goal in pot limit match," referencing his competitive background and his ability to close out tournaments. With 32 recorded victories and 419 total cashes as of late 2025, Levi remains an active veteran of the tournament circuit and one of the more durable competitors to emerge from the early 2000s poker boom.