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WPT champion Mark Davis passed away at the age of 46. He earned over $2.3 million in live tournament winnings throughout his career, including the WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown title and three WSOP circuit rings.

On Saturday, the Gulf Coast poker community was saddened by the unexpected passing of Mark Davis, a highly skilled professional with an impressive tournament record.

Davis, 46, was a poker champion. According to The Hendon Mob, his live tournament winnings exceeded $2.3 million. In recent years, he achieved numerous successes in major tournaments such as the World Poker Tour (WPT) and the WSOP. The late Alabama poker star was a regular and familiar face at well-known poker rooms such as Choctaw (Oklahoma) and Harrah's Cherokee (North Carolina).

A poker champion who died young

Davis has won three WSOP Circuit rings, including a $334,678 prize in the 2022 WSOPC Cherokee Main Event, defeating a field of 1,402 entrants. His most notable achievement was winning the $3,500 WPT Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown in the same year, earning his career-best $1,000,000 prize.

That victory garnered significant attention in the poker world because he prevented Darren Elias from winning a record-breaking fifth WPT title in heads-up play. After advancing to the final table, Davis sought guidance from high-stakes top player Chance Kornuth (founder of Chip Leader Coaching) to pursue this life-changing prize.

"As far as poker coaching is concerned, my style matched his style perfectly without me knowing anything about him or myself," Davis said at the time. "So it was a perfect match. When he told me what to do and spoke in his own terms, I completely understood what he meant and I completely understood his point of view."

Kornuth's mentorship transformed Davis into a World Poker Tour champion. After his victory, Kornuth was also present to celebrate the seven-figure prize with his student.

Davis last won a tournament prize a little over a week ago when he finished 68th in the Gulf Coast Poker South Central Series $400 No-Limit Hold'em Mini Main Event in Tunica, Mississippi, earning $652.

Michael Graydon, a fellow Alabama poker player who celebrated his WPT title with Davis in Las Vegas, shared a recollection of his old friend on Facebook, saying that the two had played poker together since childhood at an old limousine repair shop. Graydon wrote that his late friend was "very fierce at the poker table, but had a kind heart and was always there to lend a hand when others needed it."

PokerNews has learned that Davis was rushed to the hospital after suffering a stroke, and experienced multiple strokes while in the hospital. He is a highly respected and beloved member of the poker community.

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