Poker Stories

Barry Shulman found poker while studying at UC Berkeley and the University of Washington. He received his degree in accounting, but opted to forgo the family liquor business in order to build an empire of his own in real estate. His expertise in the field meant that he was often quoted by publications such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and Forbes, among others.  After retiring, Shulman moved to Las Vegas and continued to play poker. While he enjoyed the game as a player, he could also sense that poker was about to go mainstream. Shulman decided that he didn't like being retired after all, and purchased Card Player Magazine from Linda Johnson, transforming it into the industry leader it is today.  In 2001, Shulman won his first World Series of Poker bracelet, taking down $222,295 in the $1,500 stud eight-or-better event. His second bracelet came in 2009, when he defeated Daniel Negreanu heads-up for the World Series of Poker Europe main event title and a prize of $1,321,534. The ne

Seth Davies is a 31-year-old high-stakes pro who originally found poker when he was just in high school. The Bend, Oregon-native was a standout baseball player, and was recruited to play at the College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas. Nagging injuries and surgery kept him off the field, but it also allowed him to focus more on his development as a poker player.  Davies spent a handful of years grinding out a living online, and even moved to Mexico to continue playing after Black Friday. In 2016, however, he started to focus more on live tournament after putting together a series of big cashes. Davies won the WPT Spring Classic, and finished second in the Hard Rock Poker Open main event later that summer. He also took third at the WPT Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $877,285, second at the EPT Barcelona high roller for $800,044, and he also made the final table of the Super High Roller Bowl Bahamas for a $1,020,000 score. He now has $8.8 million in career live tournament earnings.  Highlights from this in

Bill Perkins is a hedge fund manager and entrepreneur, focusing on venture capital and energy markets. In his spare time, he's also a film producer. But to those of us in the poker world, Perkins is a high-stakes poker regular who has also been the catalyst for some of the more outlandish prop bets in recent memory.  The 51-year-old University of Iowa graduate has more than $5.4 million in live tournament earnings, including a $2 million score for a third-place finish in the $111,111 buy-in One Drop High Roller in 2013. His largest cash came last summer in the Triton Poker Super High Roller London for $2.7 million.  Although he has been financially successful during his life, Perkins is determined to exchange that wealth for time and experiences to make the most out of his remaining years. Perkins' most recent project is his new book dedicated to sharing those principles, Die With Zero: Getting All You Can From Your Money And Your Life.  Highlights from this interview include European vacation lengths, the le

Daniel Dvoress sits in fifth place on Canada's all-time earnings list, despite the fact that he only started concentrating on live tournaments in the last five years. Dvoress was born in Russia, but emigrated with his family to Toronto where he was raised. He picked up poker while in high school, and stuck with it through college before turning pro, focusing mainly on grinding online cash games.After stringing some results together in 2015, he was pushed by his peers to take a shot on the high roller circuit, which proved to be a smart decision. In fact, of his top 20 cashes, only one has come in an event with a buy-in of less than $25,000. The Run It Once coach has now cashed for more than $17.2 million, including the $4.08 million he won for taking down the November 2019 Super High Roller Bowl in the Bahamas. Most recently, the 32-year-old won his first World Series of Poker bracelet and $1.489 million by topping a field of 6,299 in the 'Millionaire Maker' online.Highlights from this interview include a rou

Mark Gregorich has been making his living in high-limit cash games since the mid-'90s, but before that he followed in his parents footsteps, working as a high school teacher. When budget cuts cost him his job, he decided to make the move to Las Vegas, where he has been grinding ever since.  Gregorich, considered by his peers to be one of the nicest guys in the game, was also once voted as the best Omaha eight-or-better player. In fact, his skills in the game were so revered, that Doyle Brunson asked him to contribute to his book Super System II. Although he has always preferred cash games to tournaments, the Washington-raised Gregorich does have a solid record at the World Series of Poker, with 11 final table appearances.  Highlights from this interview include bear spotting with the kids, the family business, self-deal poker rooms, having a bad bluffing face, teaching high school at 22 years old, the only reasons to wear a tie, The Horseshoe and The Mirage, poker in the '90s, the who's who game at Bellagio,

Jennifer Harman is one of the most prolific card players in history, having competed for higher stakes than nearly anyone else in poker. The Reno-native used to play cards around the family dinner table, before becoming hooked on poker while working her way through college. After moving to Los Angeles, she began to grind her way up the cash game ranks, determined to play the biggest game available. She eventually made her way to Las Vegas, and found her place at table one at Bellagio, and later Bobby's Room among some of the most legendary players of all time.  Harman was one of the most important players for The Corporation, which was a group of poker players who pooled their money together to take on billionaire banker Andy Beal in a series of seven-figure heads-up matches. At one point in the series of games, Harman beat Beal three consecutive sessions, winning $3 million each time, and even took him on at stakes of $100,000-$200,000 when he returned for more action. Harman has two World Series of Poker br

Kahle Burns has been playing poker professionally for more than a decade, grinding his way from play chips online to some of the biggest cash games spread in both Las Vegas and Macau. The Geelong, Australia native started focusing more on live tournaments in 2016, however, and the result has been a quick rise to the top of the high roller ranks.  The 31-year-old has $10.8 million in live tournament earnings, which is good for no. 2 on Australia's all-time money list, just behind WSOP main event winner Joe Hachem. Burns has two WSOP bracelets of his own, including the €25,000 high roller at the 2019 WSOP Europe series. Burns started 2020 off strong, winning the AUD$100,000 Aussie Millions high roller for $1.2 million, and finishing runner-up in the AUD$250,000 Super High Roller Bowl Australia for another another $828,000.Highlights from this interview include following the job, $10 high school games, racking up play chips, turning his game around after a downswing, climbing the cash game ranks, grinding for mo

You won't find the name Houston Curtis on any poker leaderboards, but for a brief period of time during the height of the boom, he was among the biggest winners in the game. Curtis made his way to Los Angeles by way of Illinois, hoping to make it in the music business. He transitioned to TV production after doing audience warm up for Showtime At The Apollo, later working on shows such as Jerry Springer and The Dating Game, and as an executive at MTV. His Best Of Backyard Wrestling videos in the early 2000s made him a millionaire, and he went on to produce poker strategy videos for Phil Hellmuth, and the Ultimate Blackjack Tour.  By chance, Curtis was seated next to SpiderMan star Tobey Maguire one night while playing poker at the Commerce Casino. The two hit it off and became friends, moving their action from the casino to private high-stakes games filled with the Hollywood elite. The games were chronicled in the movie Molly's Game, as well as the book it was based on written by Molly Bloom. But according to

Kenny Hallaert is one of Belgium's top poker pros, having won more than $4.2 million in live tournaments, along with another $6.5 million online playing under the name 'SpaceyFCB.' The 38-year-old recently won his third SCOOP online title, and has four World Series of Poker final table appearances on his resume, along with four deep runs in the main event. In 2016, he finished sixth for nearly $1.5 million.Hallaert is currently no. 3 on Belgium's all-time money list, but despite his success, he never gave up his day job. He started his poker journey while working as an electrician, and then later took a marketing job at a local casino. He was tasked with bringing players to the property, and as a result helped to popularize live tournaments in Belgium. Eventually Hallaert took over duties as Tournament Director, and he has since worked EPT events for PokerStars, as well as Unibet.  Highlights from this interview working as an electrician, playing card games at the bar with mom, Dutch poker, how a football acc

Jesse Martin is a highly-respected poker pro and sports gambler from Massachusetts. Although he started out as a cash game player and has always competed in high-stakes mixed games, Martin has also done quite well on the tournament circuit, racking up more than $3.2 million. He has also won millions online playing under the name 'MazeOrBowie', and had a fourth-place finish in the SCOOP main event for $401,600.Martin has several final-table finishes at the World Series of Poker, including a third-place showing in the $50,000 Poker Players Championship for $594,570, along with two bracelet wins. His first came in the 2013 $10,000 No-Limit Deuce-To-Seven event, where he won $253,524. His second title came in 2017, when he pocketed $130,948 for taking down the $2,500 Mixed Triple Draw event.In the last few years following the birth of his son, Martin has started playing less poker and devoting more of his working time to daily fantasy sports. In December, he beat a field of 180 in the DraftKings Fantasy Football

Danny Tang was first introduced to poker by his older brother back in Wales, and dreamed of one day sitting head-to-head with the likes of Phil Ivey or Tom Dwan. Less than a decade later, Tang is now hopping from high roller-to-high roller stop on private jets with the very same Ivey and Dwan. The 28-year-old poker pro didn't start competing on the circuit regularly until 2016, but he quickly rose up the ranks and has now racked up more than $8.4 million in live tournament earnings.  Tang had a breakout victory at the PokerStars Championship Prague main event in December of 2017. The next summer, he went deep in the World Series of Poker main event, earning $230,475 for 31st place. Later that year, he very nearly repeated his win in Prague, ultimately settling for fourth place in back-to-back runs. In 2019, Tang picked up the three biggest scores of his career. The Hong Kong resident earned $1.83 million for his runner-up showing to Bryn Kenney at the Triton Montenegro Super High Roller, and then banked anoth

In this special episode of Poker Stories, we revisit two of our most popular early guests to catch up on what's happened in their lives over the last three years.  Barry Greenstein appeared on the podcast back in November of 2017. The Poker Hall of Fame inductee and two-time World Poker Tour champion has stayed pretty busy despite his age of 65, and has had a high cash rate at the World Series of Poker for the last two years, even finishing with 13 in one summer while looking to add to his three career bracelets.  Daniel Negreanu was featured in an episode in March of 2017, and has experienced quite a bit of personal change in the time since. Although he was passed at the top of the all-time money list by Justin Bonomo and then Bryn Kenney, he did add several million to his earnings and now sits at $41 million for his career. At the 2019 WSOP, he played well enough to earn his third Player of the Year title, only to be slowrolled by a clerical error. He also managed to marry longtime poker host Amanda Leather

In this special episode of Poker Stories, we revisit three of our most popular early guests to catch up on what's happened in their lives over the last three years.  Jason Koon was first featured on the podcast in December of 2016. At the time, the West Virginia native was coming off of his best year ever on the live tournament circuit, and had amassed $6.5 million in career earnings. Now, Koon has solidified himself as one of the top players on the high roller circuit, and has climbed to no. 9 on the all-time money list with $31 million.  Nick Schulman's episode of the podcast came out in April of 2017. The high-stakes cash game grinder has since added a handful of high roller titles in limited tournament appearances, and even added his third World Series of Poker bracelet in the 2019 summer series. The New York pool hustler turned card shark is also regarded as one of poker's most popular commentators.Bryn Kenney was just a modest 15th on the all-time tournament earnings rankings with $17 million in cashes

Garry Gates has worn many hats in the poker industry. After moving to Las Vegas from his native Titusville, Pennsylvania, Gates attempted to play professionally, with limited success. A chance encounter at the World Series of Poker, however, gave Gates an opening into the media side of the poker world. He then spent ten years working for PokerStars as a senior manager, dealing with player relations and community engagement.  Then last summer, Gates got to put his player hat back on for his annual shot at the WSOP main event. He had previously finished in-the-money three times, including semi-deep runs in 2011 and 2015. Gates surpassed all expectations, however, when he made the final table, ultimately finishing fourth for a $3 million payday. He has since taken a position with daily fantasy sports operator DraftKings as a New Business Executive.  Highlights from this interview include growing up with the Heisman and oil parties, getting the lead in Oliver!, learning about online poker from his dad, Elk's Club

Tyler Patterson found poker before the boom, and worked in the industry as a dealer for a few years before making the switch to professional player. The Washington-native has split his time between cash games and tournaments, but has still managed to rack up more than $2.6 million in earnings on the circuit.  Patterson has a World Poker Tour title, having taken down the 2015 bestbet Bounty Scramble for $375,270. He final tabled the event the very next year, taking fourth for another six figures, and he very nearly did it three years in a row, finishing just short in 14th place. Patterson won a World Series of Poker bracelet in 2014, coming out on top of the $1,500 pot-limit Omaha eight-or-better event for $270,992. He's also final tabled the WPT Borgata Poker Open, and has wins at the LA Poker Classic, and Fall and Spring Poker Round Ups. Most recently, he finished fourth after an ICM deal at the Bay 101 Shooting Star for $113,840.Highlights from this interview include having golf in his blood, playing trumpe

Faraz Jaka is a former World Poker Tour Player of the Year, and has more than $6.8 million in career live tournament earnings, to go along with another $4.3 million won online. The 34-year-old from San Jose, California has several notable final-table finishes on his poker resume, including runner-up showings at the Bellagio Cup for $774,780 and Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown for $454,496. He finished third at the Five Diamond World Poker Classic for $571,374 and third at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure for another $755,000. He also has six final-table appearances at the World Series of Poker.  Jaka is well known for his nomadic lifestyle, having reduced his belongings to just two small suitcases so that he could more easily travel the globe between tournament stops. CNN even went so far as to dub him 'The Homeless Millionaire' as the University of Illinois graduate split his time between five-star hotels and the couches of strangers. After nearly a decade of non-stop moving, Jaka briefly put down roots

David Tuchman has one of poker's most well-known voices, having been in the commentator's booth for some of the biggest tournaments and cash games ever filmed. The New York-native got his start with Live At The Bike!, and then later Full Tilt's Million Dollar Cash Game. While living in London and covering the NFL and NASCAR for Sky Sports, Tuchman worked with PokerStars for online and live events. In 2011, he began working with the World Series of Poker, and has continued to call the action every summer since.  Before finding poker and his career in sports broadcasting, Tuchman was in Los Angeles to pursue his passion for acting. He ultimately ended up with a few close calls, including a network TV series that wasn't picked up, and a movie he was cut out of. His IMDB page has half a dozen credits, including appearances on shows such as Beverly Hills 90210, Party Of Five, and Buffy The Vampire Slayer.  Highlights from this interview include childhood nicknames, scoring five goals for grandma, pros and cons of

Steve Albini is regarded as one of the top recording engineers in the world, and has been creating music with his bands Big Black, Rapeman, and Shellac, since 1981. As the owner of Electrical Audio in Chicago, Albini has produced thousands of albums and has worked with numerous notable acts such as Nirvana, Bush, The Pixies, The Breeders, Chevelle, PJ Harvey, Joanna Newsom, Jawbreaker, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, and Cheap Trick.Despite having his name on some of the most memorable indie rock albums ever made, Albini chooses not to collect royalties and instead earns a flat rate for his time, leaving more cash on the table for the artists themselves. As a result, he has been relying on poker to supplement his income for several years. Albini has been competing in a regular low-stakes home game for years that includes several World Series of Poker bracelet winners, including Brandon Shack-Harris, Eric Rodawig, Jason Gola, Matt Ashton, and Matt Grapenthien. Albini has WSOP cashes dating back to 2010, and in 20

Eric Rodawig is considered to be a semi-professional poker player, having regularly maintained a day job, but he has managed to put together the poker resume of a solid pro despite a limited schedule on the tournament circuit. The 34-year-old Nebraska resident, who recently appeared on PokerGo's Dolly's Game broadcast, has five final-table appearances at the World Series of Poker, including a gold bracelet win.Rodawig's victory at the summer series came in 2011, when he topped a field of 168 in the $10,000 stud eight-or-better championship, beating Phil Hellmuth heads-up for $442,183. The mixed-game specialist also has final tables in Omaha eight-or-better, pot-limit Omaha eight-or-better, razz, and O.E. A couple summers ago, he narrowly missed out on his second bracelet, finishing runner-up in the $10,000 H.O.R.S.E. championship for another $236,841.Highlights from this interview include 'slumming it' at $50-$100, Thought Crimes at The Hoya, a close call with UIGEA villain Bob Goodlatte, earning a partypoker

Antonio Esfandiari stole the attention of the poker world with his breakthrough victory in the 2004 World Poker Tour L.A. Poker Classic main event, and he kept it by showing off his skills as a high-stakes prop gambler while keeping everyone else at the table entertained with his gregarious personality. Originally known at the tables as "The Magician," Esfandiari excelled as a staple of televised poker shows and live streams during the decade that followed the poker boom, and maintained his status as one of the game's best with consistent wins on the tournament circuit.  Esfandiari won his first World Series of Poker bracelet in 2004, and added his second WPT title in 2010 when he took down the Five Diamond World Poker Classic at Bellagio, a tournament in which he has also finished fourth and sixth. He picked up another bracelet at the 2012 WSOP Europe, but his biggest score came at the summer series when he finished on top of the $1 million buy-in Big One For One Drop event, earning a then-record payout of $