Ulysses Alcaraz

Ulysses Alcaraz is a poker player from Brownsville, Texas. He started playing poker at age 18 and was 34 as of a July 2022 interview. Alcaraz divides his time between cash games and tournaments, with a primary focus on no-limit Omaha (PLO) cash games at Texas Card House and home games in South Texas. He has also accumulated over a dozen cashes in mid-stakes daily tournaments at ARIA Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

In July 2022, Alcaraz qualified for the $5,000 buy-in World Poker Tour (WPT) Venetian Main Event through the WPTSteps program. He entered a Step Two tournament at a Texas Card House location for approximately $400 and won the event, earning a $5,000 tournament ticket and a travel package to Las Vegas. The WPTSteps program allows players to qualify for higher-buy-in events through a series of low-cost tournaments at participating card rooms.

Just days before the WPT Venetian Main Event, Alcaraz finished fourth in a $400 bounty tournament at ARIA, earning $3,495. He also pulled two $10,000 bounties during the event, pocketing an additional $20,000. In his own words, he called the bounty success "pretty exciting." He noted that he had pulled one bounty early in the tournament and another on the final table. His total tournament earnings as of mid-2022 stood at $37,107, which does not include the bounties or potential future results.

In Day 1b of the WPT Venetian Main Event, Alcaraz was seated at a tough table featuring WPT champion Dylan Linde, high-stakes pro Barry Hutter, and Andrew Lichtenberger ("LuckyChewy"). Despite the challenging lineup, Alcaraz managed to double through Lichtenberger multiple times, including a hand where his pocket kings held against ace-ten and another where his set of tens was good. His final result in the event is not recorded in available search results.

Alcaraz is primarily a no-limit Omaha cash game player, often participating in large, uncapped home games in Texas. In tournaments, he gravitates toward soft fields, noting that daily tournaments at ARIA offer "really good value" with buy-ins of $400-$600 and potential payouts of $30,000-$40,000. He contrasts this with tougher fields at the World Series of Poker or the Venetian. His style can be described as aggressive when opportunities arise, as evidenced by his willingness to take calculated risks in bounty events and his ability to pressure strong opponents.