John "Miami" Cernuto: Poker Legend

Author

Vargoso

Published

2/11/2025

Updated

2/11/2025

Legendary American poker player John "Miami" Cernuto died on February 10, 2025. Cernuto's most incredible achievement was being the player with the most live tournament cashes. In 37 years, John cashed 597 times.

Poker "Iron Man"

This is what actor James Wood called his friend and mentor John Cernuto due to his many years of grinding. Poker was not just a hobby but a way to make a living.

John Cernuto cashed 597 times in live tournaments from 1987 to 2024, the best record in the industry's history, and cashed $6,471,384.

Interestingly, John learned the rules and basic strategy at the age of 37. Around that time, John, like many other air traffic controllers in the United States, was laid off in a strike in 1981.

A year after this, Cernuto arrived in Las Vegas, where he started playing cash games. His first tournament win came in January 1987, when he doubled his buy-in by taking 21st place in a $500 tournament.

Despite his busy tournament schedule, John played cash games and not only Hold 'em. He considered H.O.R.S.E his favorite game. He had challenging periods in his career, even losing almost his entire bankroll. To recover, John worked as a dealer and even a telephone dispatcher at the Daytona Beach Police Department.

John Cernuto the Hendon Mob Award 2020

John Cernuto's main achievements:

Three WSOP bracelets in 1996, 1997, and 2002 in Seven-Card Stud Split, NLH, and PLO tournaments
Three final tables at the World Series in 2006
Four final tables at the Ultimate Blackjack Tour
In 2020, he received a Global Poker Award

TOP 6 cashes:

Date	Series	Tournament	Place	Prize
25.04.1997	WSOP	$2,000 No Limit Hold'em	1	$ 259,150
05.01.2005	WPT/PCA	$8,000 Main Event	5	$ 155,800
14.12.2002	USP Championship	$4,100 Seven-Card Stud Split	1	$ 153,600
26.04.1996	WSOP	$ 1,500 Seven-Card Stud Split	1	$ 147,000
20.02.2010	NAPT Deep Stack Extravaganza	$ 5,000 No Limit Hold'em	7	$ 104,461
11.05.2004	WSOP	$ 5,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Split World Championship	2	$ 103,500

Illness and Poker Hall of Fame

John Cernuto and James Woods

In 2009, during a Razz tournament, John fainted and was hospitalized due to internal bleeding. Doctors diagnosed him with cancer. Despite this illness, John played for another 15 years.

His last cash was on July 14, 2024, third place in the $1,000 Big O Bounty (Event #60) at the Venetian DeepStack Championship, and he has been undergoing treatment ever since.

In early February 2025, it was learned that John was in hospice care in Las Vegas. Sadly, he passed away on the 10th of the same month.

Interestingly, messages from various players circulated on social media a day earlier suggesting that John Cernuto should be immediately inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame.

According to the rules, this honor is awarded to only one player per year. So, it is likely that this year, Cernuto's photo will be included in the Horseshoe Casino gallery.

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