Chris Ferguson

He played poker as a kid with his dad, a professor of game theory, so it's not a surprise that he was the first poker player to win a tournament prize of more than $1 million. Now 46, Chris Ferguson, who has a PhD in computer science from UCLA, has claimed some $7.3 million in winnings. But his biggest bet was starting Full Tilt Poker with 12 pros who join in online games instead of the usual one or two. Full Tilt is one of the fastest-growing poker sites in the world. -- by Kate Rockwood