Melanie Banfield is one of the few South African poker players. Originally from Johannesburg, she started playing in 2007 and won some nice cashes in Africa and Swaziland. In 2009 she moved to Vegas and participated in the WSOP where she did ITM cash. She participated in many events ever since and played in one of the biggest casinos in the city of sin, making it $400,000 in total. She is the 14th in the South African rankings, making her the second woman.