Duane "Dewey" Tomko is an American former kindergarten teacher turned professional poker player, based in Winter Haven, Florida.

Tomko is chiefly noted as the runner-up in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) $10,000 no limit Texas hold'em main event in both 1982(to Jack Straus) and 2001 (to Carlos Mortensen.) Besides his success in the main event, Tomko has won three WSOP bracelets, all in different variations of poker, in addition to various other tournament wins throughout his career.

Tomko won his first WSOP bracelet in 1979 in the $1,000 No Limit Hold'em event. He defeated Duanne Hammrich heads-up to win the title and $48,000 cash prize.

At the 1984 WSOP, Dewey won two bracelets. First he won the $10,000 Deuce to Seven Draw event. The next day he went back-to-back, winning the $5,000 Pot Limit Omaha with re-buys event.

In addition to his WSOP success, Tomko has made two World Poker Tour (WPT) final tables. He finished runner-up in the 2003 Five Diamond World Poker Classic ($552,853) and in fourth place in the Costa Rica Classic ($14,650.)

Tomko has played every WSOP Main Event since 1974 which is currently the longest active streak.

Tomko took third place in the 2005 WSOP Deuce-to-seven lowball event worth $138,160. He also made the final table of the first WSOP $50,000 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. tournament in 2006 which featured some of the best tournament and cash game poker players in the world. He finished in 7th place earning a $343,200 payday.

As of 2010, his total live tournament winnings exceed $4,960,000. Just over half of his tournament winnings, $2,641,573, have come at the WSOP. He is a 2008 inductee into thePoker Hall of Fame.

Written by Ina Rkh
Last update: 22/04/2015