Vanessa Rousso isn't called "Lady Maverick" because she bears a resemblance to Mel Gibson or James Garner. She earned her nickname by being absolutely deadly with some playing cards in her hand. Not only has she accomplished money finishes at both the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour, but her tournament winnings are well over a million dollars and she recently won a Poker After Dark championship. It also turns out that Vanessa is also incredibly generous with her time. She recently took time during her dinner break at a tournament to talk to us and give us a little insight into her life.

It's here - Day Three of the Main Event, the first day of the 2008 World Series of Poker's biggest showdown when all the players who have a shot at making the money are going to be in the same room. This is the first group that will even be able to consider actually cashing, as only the top 666 players will make the money. Jerry Yang is no longer a contender to defend his crown as he busted out on Day Two B, but other former champions might take a stab at it, such as Joe Hachem, nursing a medium stack as of the time of this writing.