 Madsen began playing casino poker three years before his WSOP victory at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California, where the minimum age to play is 18.On February 5, 2010 Madsen won the $3,500 buy-in Championship Event at the Borgata Winter Open 2010 in Atlantic City, NJ winning $625,006.As of 2019, Madsen's tournament winnings exceed $5,550,000.