Denmark’s Gus Hansen is Going to Have a Great Summer – Are You?

‘It’s going to be a great summer!’ has been Gus Hansen’s catchphrase every time the Danish poker legend has taken to the felt – and Instagram – while living it up in Vegas these past two months.

44-year old Gustav Hansen - as nobody besides probably his grandmother has ever called him – has almost singlehandedly put Denmark on the poker map, and his well-publicised prop bets and liking for table games (Gus recently seen at the Bellagio craps tables, latest blonde in tow) may give the man himself an air of degeneracy, but his home nation is actually one of the best regulated in the world if you’re a gambling fan, sites such as Danskonlinecasino.dk providing information on the nation’s online options.

Although Denmark has its share of land-based casinos, online play in the country very much reflects the more general Scandinavian liking for virtual games, and legislation over the past few years has seen Denmark provide a model for how to balance regulation across the gambling industry – something lacking when Hansen was making his through the online stakes.

The Great Dane Gus may well be the best-known of Danish exports to the wider poker world, but you may be surprised to learn that he’s only number two on the Danish all-time live tournament money list – the top spot still occupied by Peter Eastgate.

This summer, however, proved to be a great one for fellow Copenhagen poker pro Frederik Brink (formerly Jensen) – leaving Vegas with eight cashes including an excellent deep run worth $575,000, in the Main Event.

Jensen’s live earnings are over $4.4 million but his online earnings are even more impressive, close to $4.9million and counting – but recent changes to the gambling tax laws might see things change when it comes to money in Denmark, so if you’re not in Jensen’s financial position it might make sense to check out Gratisbonuscasino.dk for how to make your bankroll go that bit further.

With 21 Danish players showing up above the $1million tournament earnings mark, it’s pretty clear that the country with less than 6million inhabitants, more than 10% of whom live in Copenhagen - is punching well above its weight in the poker stakes, only northern neighbour Sweden, with almost 4 million extra people, boasting slightly better results among their Nordic rivals.

What Denmark don’t appear have in their poker community is an outstanding female player in the live arena – unlike Norway’s Annette Obrestad for example – with Pia Jeppesen holding the top female moneywinner spot, but some $3.7million behind Obrestad’s lifetime cashes.

Whether that changes any time soon remains to be seen, and Gus Hansen’s prominent position in the poker world has to be a positive factor regardless of how well his summer is going – although very well indeed seems to be the popular opinion – so don’t be surprised if a new young female talent emerges out of the Danish skies.

In the meantime, Hansen will continue to fly the Danish flag, with Frederik Jensen and others helping him to keep the red/white cross aloft, and for a small nation that is not too bad an outcome for one summer!