Brian Balsbaugh first visited Las Vegas in 1993 when he helped organize an event for the American Junior Golf Association. He later graduated from law school and represented professional golfers on the PGA and LPGA circuit for the next five years.

He left the golf world in 2003 and hasn’t looked back.

That was the year Chris Moneymaker won the World Series of Poker after parlaying a $40 buy-in online to win a seat at the tournament. Regular folks flocked to Internet poker rooms and poker rooms — online and land-based — haven’t been the same since.

Balsbaugh now owns a marketing and talent agency for poker players in Las Vegas called Poker Royalty.

Think of any of the poker "celebrities" who are ubiquitous on televised tournaments and poker shows as well as on online poker sites, blogs and other cyberspace venues and it’s a good bet that Balsbaugh represents them.

His clients include 15 of the estimated 30 or so players who have shot to poker fame in recent years through regular television and Internet exposure.

Even in the light-speed world of casino marketing, three years doesn’t seem like a long time ago. Yet for the several dozen players now making at least six figures per year outside of their poker winnings, the world is entirely different.