In 2003, the sport of poker modified without end after Chris Moneymaker topped a area of 839 gamers to win the World Sequence of Poker (WSOP) Major Occasion for $2.5 million. By doing so, the Moneymaker impact ignited the “Poker Growth,” which noticed the event area triple the next 12 months.
The 2004 Major Occasion was the final to be held on the birthplace of the WSOP – Binion’s Horseshoe in downtown Las Vegas. The venue was packed to the rafters with 2,576 gamers coming into that 12 months’s event, and with the ESPN cameras capturing all of the motion a number of poker gamers made a reputation for themselves that 12 months together with younger weapons David Williams and Josh Arieh, whereas 1995 WSOP Major Occasion champ Dan Harrington made historical past by following up his third-place end within the 2003 WSOP Major Occasion by inserting fourth in 2004 for $1.5 million.
Nevertheless, when the mud settled it was a patent legal professional from Connecticut by the title of Greg Raymer successful the entire thing for a clean $5 million and a gold bracelet. Whereas making an attempt to defend his title in 2005, which doubled from the 12 months prior by attracting 5,619 gamers, Raymer proved his win was no fluke by making one other deep run, finally falling in twenty fifth place for $304,680.
It’s been 20 years since Raymer’s victory, however he hasn’t slowed down as he’s continued to play poker all throughout the globe. In recognition of Raymer’s anniversary, PokerNews caught up with the champ, who will likely be on the 2024 WSOP!
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Q&A with Greg Raymer
PokerNews: It’s the twentieth Anniversary of your WSOP win. Does it look like so way back or nonetheless a contemporary reminiscence?
Greg Raymer: It’s a correct query, however I don’t know. It feels prefer it simply occurred, and but it additionally seems like I’ve all the time been the World Champion. It’s a very unusual ambiguity that I’ve simply discovered to dwell with.
What reminiscence or reminiscences stick out essentially the most for you about successful the 2004 WSOP?
Reminiscence is an odd factor. All of us have unhealthy reminiscences, a lot worse than we expect we’ve got. Scientific analysis has confirmed this to be indisputably true. Most of what I bear in mind nicely are the components that have been broadcast on TV, as I’ve seen these palms play out so many occasions. Past that, there are additionally palms I bear in mind nicely, however I additionally know that this far faraway from once they occurred, these reminiscences may not be correct.
What I bear in mind finest is the ultimate hand. After check-raising the flop, and betting the flip, I went all in on the river. Once you watch this on TV, they edit it so it appears to be like like I say “All in” and so they reduce to a close-up of David who thinks for just a few seconds then says, “Name”. In actuality, I used to be going through Matt Savage once I mentioned “All in.” Earlier than I might even flip my head to have a look at David he had already referred to as and tabled his hand. My fast thought was I have to be shedding right here – I had the 8♦8♠ on the board of 5♠4♦2♦2♥2♣ – for him to name so shortly. It took me a second to comprehend my hand was good, I tabled my playing cards and threw up my arms in a primal shout of victory. Completely the very best second of my life.
What have been the years like after your win and throughout the poker growth? Truthful to say you reached a form of movie star standing? Do you continue to get acknowledged immediately?
“I’d usually get acknowledged a number of occasions per go to to the grocery retailer, or another public setting. Nevertheless, issues have cooled down rather a lot since then.”
For a number of months after successful, my “movie star” was restricted to poker rooms. After it began airing on ESPN, I began getting acknowledged in all places I went. We might take our daughter – she was 7 and a half once I received – to Disneyworld yearly, each earlier than and after 2004. However now I’d have nicely over 100 fan interactions per day in a setting like that. I’d usually get acknowledged a number of occasions per go to to the grocery retailer, or another public setting. Nevertheless, issues have cooled down rather a lot since then. I’m nonetheless going to get acknowledged by virtually everybody in a poker site, however fan interactions in public areas exterior the poker site and on line casino have turn out to be a lot much less widespread.
Here is a shaggy dog story about that in-between interval in 2004. I had began representing PokerStars and so they requested me, Chris Moneymaker, and a few different professionals to go to Dublin in the summertime of 2004 for the Pot-Restrict Maintain’em World Championship. My spouse and daughter got here alongside and we have been heading dwelling. We have been boarding our aircraft and only some folks have been already seated. As we walked previous a few guys, considered one of whom was clearly drunk, the drunk man factors at my PokerStars shirt and says “Poker! Are you aware Chris Moneymaker?”
I replied, “Sure, I truly had breakfast with him this morning.” Which was true. The drunk man elbows his buddy and says “Yeah, proper. And my spouse is having dinner with him tonight!” I simply grinned and walked previous him to our seats, however I used to be pondering I hope this man isn’t so drunk that he has forgotten this when he sees me on TV in just a few extra weeks. That will have been enjoyable to observe, his mouth dropping open, and him realizing that man on the aircraft wasn’t simply joking with him.
What have been the most important impacts in your life with regard to your WSOP win?
I had been a full-time patent legal professional for a dozen years. The final half of that I labored for Pfizer in southeast Connecticut, and it was very a lot a 9-5 job. So, I had loads of household time, was dwelling each evening to spend time with my spouse and daughter. I performed on the close by Foxwoods poker site a pair occasions per week, and took one poker journey per 12 months, normally to the WSOP.
After my win, I accepted a job representing PokerStars, and that required me to spend about half of the 12 months on the highway going to dwell tournaments world wide. Whereas I really like poker and liked taking part in in these occasions, it did imply I noticed a lot, a lot much less of my household. They traveled with me sometimes, principally to enjoyable locations like Paris or London in the summertime, and to the PCA in January, and they might come spend a while with me in Las Vegas throughout the WSOP. However selecting this life did value me plenty of household time, which was by far the worst end result of my win. Nevertheless, it was my alternative and my remorse. It wasn’t pressured on me.
What was the very best factor to come back out of you successful the WSOP Major Occasion?
I’ve been capable of go to plenty of fantastic locations, meet many nice folks, and expertise quite a few superb issues. I’ve been to Seoul, Melbourne, Sydney, New Zealand, a number of locations in South and Central America, and throughout Europe to play poker, and that allowed me to go to locations just like the British Museum, the Louvre, and way more.
I’ve been capable of play much more poker, which I like to do. It has additionally enabled me to turn out to be a real poker instructor, which is an actual ardour of mine. Again in highschool, I’d have chosen to turn out to be an educator, besides I knew that profession doesn’t pay very nicely and I didn’t wish to battle financially my entire life. However I get pleasure from instructing folks greater than virtually the rest I might do. Not simply poker, however any matter on which I do know sufficient to be helpful. Despite the fact that it retains getting more durable to guide a poker site to host my FossilMan Poker Coaching Seminars, I nonetheless attempt to guide them as a lot as doable, and I’ve a good time doing it, each single time.
On the flip facet, what was the worst factor to come back out of you successful the WSOP Major Occasion?
See above about household time. Additionally, these guys making an attempt to rob me on the Bellagio sucked. Nevertheless, as unhealthy as which may have been, it turned out to be a plus in hindsight. I didn’t get damage, they didn’t take something from me, and I discovered rather a lot about myself and the way I reacted in these life-and-death circumstances. Plus, it gave me a little bit of a badass popularity. Extra so than I might ever benefit. Let me add, whoever it was that put the remark a couple of “karate chop” within the Wikipedia entry is completely filled with shit.
The place do you suppose you would be immediately in case you by no means received the WSOP Major Occasion?
I’d virtually actually nonetheless be training patent legislation. It was not a job that I liked with an amazing ardour, however I did get pleasure from it. I all the time mentioned that it’s an amazing job if you must work for a residing, and I nonetheless do some patent work even immediately. I’m now not a lawyer, however I’m nonetheless a licensed patent agent and might characterize an inventor earlier than the U.S. Patent and Trademark Workplace.
If I had received important cash in that Major Occasion, however hadn’t completed excessive sufficient to be supplied a sponsorship cope with a web based web site, I may need give up my job. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t have turned to poker full-time. As an alternative, I’d have began a solo apply as a patent lawyer and had extra flexibility in my schedule, which might have meant a bit extra journey for the WSOP and some different poker collection.
“Even immediately, I inform folks to NOT drop out of college or give up their job to play poker full-time. The one motive I did … was PokerStars providing me extra money.”
Even immediately, I inform folks to NOT drop out of college or give up their job to play poker full-time. The one motive I did so in 2004, even after successful that a lot cash, was PokerStars providing me extra money to characterize them than Pfizer was paying me to do patent work. I feel being a full-time professional is simply too dangerous and won’t work out nicely for the big majority of people that wish to take that path.
What’s your future appear to be? Do you suppose poker will all the time be part of your life or do you may have any plans of retiring?
My future will all the time embody poker. So long as I can play, and be +EV doing so, I’ll proceed. If meaning stepping right down to smaller video games sooner or later, so be it. I’ll cope with that risk once I come to it. I really love this recreation, and might’t think about not taking part in poker for any prolonged time frame. Even once I run unhealthy in a number of tournaments in a row, and need a break, inside a few days I’m able to get at it once more.
For extra on Raymer, comply with him on X at @FossilMan.
PR & Media Supervisor
PR & Media Supervisor for PokerNews, Podcast host & 2013 WSOP Bracelet Winner.
