Dan Harrington

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**Dan Harrington**
Dan Harrington in the World Series of Poker
Nickname(s)	Action Dan
Hometown	Santa Monica, California
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s)	2
Money finishes	9
Highest ITM main event finish	Winner (1995)
World Poker Tour
Titles	None
Final tables	1
Money Finishes	6

"Action" Dan Harrington (born December 6, 1945 in Cambridge, Massachusetts) is a professional poker player.

Harrington is a former champion backgammon player, U.S. chess master (he won the 1971 Massachusetts State Chess Championship), and bankruptcy lawyer. During his time at Suffolk University, he was part of an MIT team that gained an advantage over casinos at roulette. Shortly after the MIT team disbanded he was part of different one which specialized in blackjack. He also played poker against Bill Gates while Gates was at Harvard. Some of his earlier poker experience came from the Mayfair Club in the mid-80's where he played with Howard Lederer and Erik Seidel.

He has won the World Series of Poker (WSOP) main event once in 1995 for $1,000,000 and has sat at three other final tables at the main event, placing 6th in 1987 for $43,750, 3rd in 2003 for $650,000, and 4th in 2004 for $1,500,000. The same year as his main event win, he also won a bracelet in the $2,500 No-Limit Hold'em event for $249,000 and the Seven-card stud event at European Poker Open in London.

Sporting his iconic green Boston Red Sox cap, Dan Harrington is known as a crafty, tight-aggressive player, employing starting hand standards that are stricter than most professionals. When he reached the final table at the 1995 main event, he set the runner-up, Howard Goldfarb, to bluff for all his chips in the final hand. When the final table first began, he proposed a nine-way settlement to the other players. He explained how they would each get enough money that they could invest and become rich. Chuck Thompson rejected the idea and told the other players that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a million dollars. One by one, as each player was eliminated, Harrington again tried to sell the idea, even offering investment counseling. There were no takers and eventually he came away with the full million.

Players familiar with Harrington know he plays fewer hands and will frequently fold if another player makes a large bet. His conservative play allows him to make it to many final tables at large events, such as the 2003 WSOP (839 players) and the 2004 WSOP (2576 players). He made his first final table at the World Poker Tour (WPT) in 2005, winning $620,730 for his 2nd place finish to Minh Ly in the Doyle Brunson North American Championship.

In addition to being a successful professional poker player, Harrington also works in real estate and the stock market.

He has written (co-authored with Bill Robertie) three popular books on tournament poker, all published by Two Plus Two Publishing:

Harrington on Hold'em: Volume I: Strategic Play ISBN 1-880685-33-7 (2004)
Harrington on Hold'em: Volume II: The Endgame ISBN 1-880685-35-3 (2005)
Harrington on Hold'em: Volume III: The Workbook ISBN 1-880685-36-1 (2006)

As of 2006, his live tournament winnings exceed $4,800,000.

Harrington chose his own nickname "Action Dan" even though he is known for being a tight conservative player. ^[1]

Harrington's cousin is the golfer Padraig Harrington. He is also related to professional football player Joey Harrington.

He currently resides in Santa Monica, California.

Dan Harrington is teaming up with John Juanda on a new poker series, targeting strategic play. On air they will also take clips from previous WSOP and WPT final tables to analyze the players. It will begin airing in early 2007 on the Travel Channel.