Jose Garcia is an American poker dealer best known for winning the $500 Casino Employees event at the 2024 World Series of Poker (WSOP) in Las Vegas for $79,134 and a gold bracelet. Garcia resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Garcia works as a poker dealer at the Sandia Resort, but he also loves playing poker. He regularly chats to his opponents to guide them into giving him verbal tells, a tactic he employed and that worked in his favor during his WSOP bracelet-winning run.
Until his bracelet victory, Garcia had only five recorded live poker tournament results, with combined winnings of $4,253. Garcia was guaranteed to more than double his lifetime earnings when he reached the $500 Casino Employees final table, and locked in his first five-figure score once only seven players remained.
Garcia found himself heads-up against Richard Rothmeier for the title and the lion's share of the prize pool. The final hand saw Rothmeier move all-in with K♥9♣ and Garcia call with the dominating K♣Q♣. Garcia took the lead on the 8♦4♣Q♦ flop, the 4♣ locked up the hand and the win for Garcia, rendering the K♠ river inconsequential.
