On Thursday, PokerNews delivered the sad news that American poker pro Chad "lilholdem954" Batista had passed away.
"It is with the deepest sadness that we announce the sudden passing of our beloved son, nephew, cousin, brother and friend, Chad 'lilholdem954' Batista. Chad died suddenly this beautiful Thursday afternoon with his family surrounding him. We ask that our privacy be respected at this difficult time and we thank you for your prayers," his family wrote in a statement.
Batista was was one of the most successful tournament players in the early days of online poker. The fact is that he was the Number 1 ranked tournament player on PocketFives from August 22, 2007 to July 2, 2008. However, it was in 2013 he laid hands on his largest online tournament cash after finishing third in PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker ($2,100 buy-in) for $264,408!
Aside from online poker, he won over $950,000 playing live tournament poker. He took home his biggest live tournament payday ($262,002) in 2006 when he won the 2006 WSOP Circuit Championship Event (Caesars Indiana, Elizabeth).
Rest in peace!