Raymers Journey in the WSOP

Greg Raymer can be called a true-blue poker star - signing autographs, posing for pictures and stopping briefly every few steps to greet fans.

Raymer was formerly a patent attorney who only played poker for fun, but Raymer proved that you don't have to be a pro to get the chance to win big when he won $5 million in the 2004 world series of poker main event.

"It's odd," Raymer said Sunday, referring to his life-altering win. "I'm just a poker player. It's not like I do anything unbelievable or anything that anyone else can't do. It's not a 40-foot long jump."

However, winning the almost $11 million pot this year will still take an enormous amount of luck as the scene is more like a lottery, what with the more than 8,600 entrants this year.

Raymer had a rough start Sunday, down to about half his original 10,000 chips after more than four hours. Play was expected to end around 3 a.m.

But he was still in a better position than Sam Farha. Farha was eliminated within an hour, after his full house lost to four 6s.

"Better early than later, right?" Farha said as he made premature exit. Also eliminated was Jennifer Tilly, the Hollywood actress that is considered one of the best female players in the game.

Poker pros Phil Gordon, Daniel Negreanu, T.J. Cloutier and Steve Dannenmann were all still contenders in Sunday, together with "The Mouth" Matusow.

The big names may be stars in their own right, but Raymer says that he stays focused only on the game once he sits at the table.

10/05/2006, Thursday
Sherry Barlow

Share This...

Main Topics

Menu: All Day Poker!

Our Sponsors