Five of the Best Argentinian Poker Players

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Jul 09, 2018 3 min read Last updated Jul 30, 2018

Today is Argentina’s Independence Day so PokerNews has decided to look at five of the best poker players to hail from Argentina.

Maria Lampropulos

Maria Lampropulos already had a glowing reputation as a solid poker player before she hit the big time with a brace of seven-figure scores in an eighth-month period.

Lampropulos first came onto the radar in February 2016 when she finished second in the €1,200 WPT National Brussels Main Event for €68,200 and she followed that up less than a month later with a runner-up finish in the €1,100 EUREKA Rozvadov Main Event for €95,404, finishing second to her boyfriend Ivan Luca.

It was in April 2017 that Lampropulos hit the big time, taking down the partypoker MILLIONS in Nottingham, Dusk Till Dawn for a massive £1 million score. In January 2018, Lampropulos won the 2018 PCA Main Event for an additional $1,081,100.

One thing is for certain, Lampropulos has a big future in the world of poker.

Maria Lampropulos Poker Live Stats ^{(July, 2018, Hendonmob)}

Ivan Luca

Ivan Luca, the boyfriend of Lampropulos, currently tops the Argentina all-time money list thanks to having amassed more than $5.75 million in live poker tournament winnings. While this is an impressive sum in its own right, it stands out even more when you consider Luca’s biggest cash weighs in at $494,080.

Luca has 18 cashes worth at least $100,000 with his $494,080 biggest cash being his reward for finishing third in the 2016 PCA $5,000 High Roller 8-Handed. The most Luca has won for taking down an event is $353,391 that he was awarded for winning a $1,000 No-Limit Hold’em event at the 2015 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.

Ivan Luca Poker Live Stats ^{(July, 2018, Hendonmob)}

Jose Barbero

Jose “Nacho” Barbero currently occupies second place in the Argentinian all-time money listings thanks to winning $3,769,745 from live poker tournaments including a £556,000 ($870,082) prize for winning a £20,500 High Roller at EPT London in Oct. 2010.

The year 2010 was Barbero’s golden year as he won $1,543,463 from live poker tournaments and while his profitability has dropped off in recent years, former Team PokerStars Pro Barbero is still a force to be reckoned with at the poker table.

Jose Barbero Poker Live Stats ^{(July, 2018, Hendonmob)}

Ramiro Petrone

Ramiro Petrone, known as “ramastar88” at PokerStars and “letsgodancing” at partypoker, is one of the best online poker tournament grinders in the world. Currently ranked seventh in the world, Petrone has been ranked as high as third in the world this year.

Petrone’s two largest online cashes happened in 2018. He won a partypoker POWERFEST event for $195,720 and followed that up with a runner-up finish in a Twin Turbos Main Event at PokerStars for $282,436.

Petrone has also managed to accumulate more than $500,000 in live poker tournament winnings, with his largest cash being worth $92,315, the first place prize of the 2016 Circuito Argentino de Poker event.

Ramiro Petrone Poker Live Stats ^{(July, 2018, Hendonmob)}

Ramiro Petrone Online Poker Stats ^{(July, 2018, PocketFives)}

Leandro Bustillo

Leandro Bustillo is known as “leitalopez” at PokerStars where he has won $2,796,281 of his $3,181,552 in online poker winnings. Ranked as highly as 43rd in the world for online play, Bustillo secured a massive $298,928 prize for winning the WCOOP edition of the Sunday Million in 2016, still his largest cash.

Bustillo has ventured into the live poker world on occasion with limited success. He has 11 cashes in the past five years, with his total cashes weighing in at $59,379 and his largest cash being for $23,017.

Leandro Bustillo Poker Live Stats ^{(July, 2018, Hendonmob)}

Leandro Bustillo Online Poker Stats ^{(July, 2018, PocketFives)}

Matthew Pitt hails from Leeds, West Yorkshire, in the United Kingdom, and has worked in the poker industry since 2008, and worked for PokerNews since 2010. In September 2010, he became the editor of PokerNews. Matthew stepped away from live reporting duties in 2015, and now concentrates on his role of Senior Editor for the PokerNews.

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