John Scaife

John Scaife is an American poker player based in Stamford, Connecticut. By day, he is a middle school math and science teacher, but he also brings a background in finance, having worked as a cotton options market maker. Scaife has made several deep runs in major tournaments, most notably in the World Series of Poker (WSOP).

Scaife has four recorded WSOP cashes, all from the 2013 and 2015 series. His best result came in 2013 when he finished 253rd out of 6,352 entrants in the $10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Main Event, earning $37,019. Earlier that same year, he placed 21st out of 1,736 players in Event #56: $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em for $21,326.

In 2015, he cashed twice online: a 16th-place finish in Event #64: $1,000 WSOP.com Online No-Limit Hold'em for $6,018, and 366th in Event #61: $1,111 The Little One for One Drop for $2,049.

Scaife also participated in the 2014 Borgata Winter Poker Open, playing Day 1b of the $3,500 Main Event (buy-in $3,300). He was featured in a PokerNews report where he eliminated an opponent with top pair, demonstrating solid post-flop play.

Before turning to teaching, Scaife spent the bulk of his career as a cotton options market maker, first independently and later as part of a team. He holds a degree in a quantitative field (implied by his data science interest) and has expressed interest in further study of quantum theory. He currently lives in Stamford, Connecticut with his wife.

From the limited hand history available, Scaife appears to play a fundamentally sound game. In both the WSOP and Borgata events, he has shown the ability to extract value from strong hands and apply pressure in key pots. His deep run in the 2013 Main Event, where he was eliminated in a pot with A-Q suited against an overpair, suggests an aggressive but calculated approach.