An American Poker Player in Europe

Thanks to the PokerStars European Poker Tour, which allows players who are at least 18 years old to participate, poker champions are getting younger and younger. With the PokerStars-sponsored tour having kicked off its sixth season in mid-August, players from around the world are gearing up for the action, ready to follow in the footsteps of breakout players such as Michael McDonald, Sebastian Ruthenberg, Bertrand Grospellier, and Jason Mercier.

Mercier, who has won two PokerStars EPT championships and, this summer, added a World Series of Poker bracelet, is the poster boy for online star turned live-tournament pro via the EPT’s globe-trotting circuit.

All of that success certainly gets you plenty of attention, but the 22-year-old Mercier hasn’t let it go to his head — not even close.

He is thought by many on the tournament circuit to be a bit of an enigma, a reclusive player who never lets his mouth run and prefers to let his results, to the tune of more than $3.3 million in tournament winnings, do the talking.

He insists that this isn’t the case, that he actually has an outgoing and engaging personality. “I don’t know why people would think that,” he said, shortly after busting out of the WSOP main event. “Yeah, I don’t open up much at the tables, but that’s the office. That’s work. Outside of the poker room, you might not be able to shut me up.”

Indeed, those who have gotten to know him testify to the fact that the easy-going Mercier has actually been quite successful at carving out a place for himself in the poker world. In fact, thanks to a competitive yet positive upbringing, he may very well be the young poker ambassador of the game’s future.

In the Beginning …
Although you wouldn’t know it based on his list of accomplishments, Mercier was born nowhere near Europe. In reality, he was born and raised near Sarasota, Florida, with his family settling near Fort Lauderdale.

The youngest of four children, he spent his childhood in intense competition with his two older brothers, and quickly learned that he could more than hold his own. “I was definitely competitive with my brothers. We all played sports while growing up, but I played three sports — baseball, basketball, and soccer — pretty much year-round.”

Even his overwhelming modesty couldn’t stop Mercier from elaborating on his skills on the basketball court. “Yeah, I was pretty good. I mean, I wasn’t a superstar or anything, but I could have played collegiate basketball somewhere in the Bible Belt, or something.”

Instead, he followed his girlfriend at the time up the interstate to Boca Raton to attend Florida Atlantic University.

A Bite From the Tree of Knowledge
Although he was there on an academic scholarship, it didn’t take long for him to realize that college, especially away from home, wasn’t for him. After discovering online poker, his relationships and school work suffered. “I lived in the dorms and was introduced to poker by a few acquaintances, and I quickly became obsessed with it. I spent my first year doing nothing but playing, and I lost my scholarship. At that point, I had to move back in with my parents and begin taking community college courses.”

Life had clearly taken a back seat to poker, but Mercier quickly got things back on track. “When I first started, I was probably putting in 60 hours a week. I was winning a small amount, but I was clearly addicted. I just felt that I had to play, and it kind of took over. So, after everything kind of fell apart, I decided to take two months off to re-evaluate and set some limits,” he stated.

“When I was back at home, I started coaching soccer and basketball for middle-school kids, and I spent some time as a substitute teacher. I really started to enjoy it, and even pictured myself making a career out of it. I was actually thinking about teaching math at the high-school level.” Mercier always had been gifted in mathematics, cruising through his studies without much effort. “It was something I had always been good at. Everything up to calculus was a breeze for me, and I seriously considered it as backup during my two-month hiatus from poker.”

But, the call of the cards continued, and Mercier soon discovered that the fresh outlook and extra time that he had on his hands was all that he needed to turn the corner in his game.

He Works Hard for the Money
With a clear head and a newfound focus, Mercier was determined to accomplish what so few had done before, become a PokerStars Supernova Elite. “I got Supernova Elite in 2007, playing around 2 million hands of $1-$2 full-ring no-limit hold’em. I was playing about 50 hours per week, 12 tables at a time.” To put those numbers into perspective, according to his estimates, Mercier was averaging more than 700 hands per hour during that span.

“That year, there were only 39 of us, and I was the 16th person to get it, earning it on December 20th. So, everyone after me got it in the last 10 days. It was very difficult to get it at the time, due to the table-limit restrictions that were in place.”

Mercier elaborated, saying that the 12-table limit made the feat more complicated, and that it got “much easier” when PokerStars allowed players to play 24 tables.

Putting Away the Mouse
The perks associated with being a Supernova Elite are many, and include electronics, cars, and, yes, tournament buy-ins. Eager to play in his first major live event, Mercier cashed in some points for a trip to the Bahamas and the PokerStars EPT Caribbean Adventure. Although his time spent there on the felt was brief, he took away a sense of confidence that carried over to his next tournament — the tournament that would change his life forever.

Incredibly, the trip almost never happened. “I already had my seat to Monte Carlo and realized that San Remo was scheduled for a week before that. I decided to make one big trip to Europe out of it, and won my seat. I was supposed to go there with my roommate, but he backed out at the last minute after a downswing. I wasn’t sure of what to do, and was contemplating selling my seat, but I contacted some players who were heading there and decided to make the trip at the last second.” The rest is history. Mercier dominated the field en route to his breakthrough victory and $1,364,330.

Saved on the (Nile) River
When asked about his chance encounter with fate, Mercier was more than willing to admit that he was in the right place at the right time. “My life would be totally different. I believe that it might have to do with a higher power. I know that I made the decisions and came out on top, but I fully believe that God had something to do with my being in Italy at the time and winning that tournament.”

Mercier considers himself a nondenominational Christian, but fully realizes how he is seen in the eyes of his congregation. “I try to go [to church] when I’m home, but I’m not exactly the poster boy for a typical Christian. A lot of people there know what I do and some are impressed, but there are definitely those who think that professional poker, or gambling of any kind, has no place in the church. It’s something that I’ve thought a lot about, but I’m happy with the choices I’ve made in my life, and believe that as long as I’m in control, I can still maintain my own code of ethics and sense of morality.”

When asked if he felt any guilt about taking money from some of Las Vegas’ more down-on-their-luck players, he was clear that religion plays no role in what happens at the tables, and he fully agrees that a fool and his money are soon parted. “I figure, if I don’t take their money, someone else will. It’s not my job to determine who can afford to lose and who can’t. At least if I have the money, I’m more likely to do something productive with it.”

He’s not kidding. He hasn’t gone on any wild spending sprees since making it big. After his first big score, he simply helped out his parents and then made a sizable donation to his church.

And the Hits Just Keep Coming
After a disappointing World Series in 2008, Mercier returned to Europe, this time heading to Barcelona. Once again, he made the poker world stand up and take notice by making the final table, finishing in sixth place for $321,198.
Annoyed by anything less than perfection, he made his way to London, for the EPT high-roller event. All eyes were on John Juanda, who had just taken down the_WSOP Europe_ main event and was looking for back-to-back victories. Instead, he would have to settle for second, as Mercier battled hard to earn his second EPT title and bank an additional $905,141.

Back in the States, Mercier went on a five-month tear, winning four tournaments before capping things off with a WSOP bracelet of his own, in pot-limit Omaha.

It’s About Time!
With so much success on the EPT, it was only a matter of time before PokerStars scooped up Mercier for its team of pros. After winning his first bracelet, he no longer could be ignored, and was offered a lucrative sponsorship deal.

“Becoming a member of Team PokerStars means a lot to me. I’m so excited to be playing for the site where I first started playing. I feel like this solidifies my standing as one of the top poker players around.”

After spending the better part of two years traveling the world, Mercier looks forward to relaxing at home and getting back to his online roots. “As part of my duties for the site, I’m required to put in a set number of hours. This is a great opportunity for me to put in a high volume of hands and get back to the grind.”

With a good head on his shoulders and a major site behind him, perhaps now is the time when Mercier’s voice will truly be heard, as an emissary for the game and as unyielding evidence that there are good guys in poker after all.

Mercier by the Numbers
In just 18 months on the tournament circuit, Jason Mercier has put up numbers that would make just about anyone envious. Here is a look at his big scores:
Year Event Finish Prize Money Game
2008 EPT San Remo First $1,364,330 No-limit hold’em
2008 EPT Barcelona Sixth $321,198 No-limit hold’em
2008 EPT London High Roller First $905,141 No-limit hold’em
2009 L.A. Poker Classic First $35,577 Pot-limit Omaha
2009 Wynn Classic First $81,480 No-limit hold’em
2009 FTOPS XXII, event No. 5 First $86,602 Pot-limit Omaha
2009 World Series of Poker, event No. 5 First $237,415 Pot-limit Omaha

Capturing World Series of Poker Gold — Mercier Wins Bracelet in His Best Game
For all of his success in Europe, it should come as no surprise to find out that Jason Mercier’s best game is Europe’s beloved pot-limit Omaha. After a few deep runs in previous Omaha tournaments at the World Series of Poker and some preliminary wins, Mercier picked up his first career bracelet in the game that he loves so much, and did so in dominating fashion.

The event attracted 809 action junkies, all looking to gamble early to build a stack from their original 4,500 in chps. Mercier crushed the competition on his way to finishing the first day with 227,000 in chips, over 88,000 more than his closest competitor.

He cruised through day two before finally running into some worthy competition near the final table. After a tough battle, he defeated online superstar and fellow Floridian Steven “PiKappRaider” Burkholder for the title.

Here, Mercier goes into detail about his background in the game, and talks about play on the bubble, which propelled him to a huge chip lead.

Julio Rodriguez: When did you first get started with pot-limit Omaha?

Jason Mercier: I started playing a little pot-limit Omaha in 2006, but I pretty much put it on hold when I started trying for Supernova Elite. In 2008, I decided that instead of trying for it again, I’d just focus on moving up in stakes and switching things up a bit. When you have a million dollars, it’s tough to focus on $5-$10 no-limit hold’em. But when you are learning a new game and just trying to get better, it makes it much easier to take it seriously.

JR: What is it that drew you in initially?

JM: To be honest, I think the game is a lot more fun. I get to play a lot more hands and it comes a bit easier for me. I’ve never read a poker book. Actually, reading an Omaha book is like the worst thing you can do (laughing). There are virtually no good Omaha books out there, at least that I came across, so I pretty much learned through trial and error. I kind of went with it, and things just started to click.

JR: You didn’t get any help at all? Not even on the numbers behind the game?

JM: Once again, I learned the math on my own, but quickly realized that it was much more complex than no-limit hold’em. I know that it’s a shameless plug, but the only real help I got was from the CardPlayer.com Omaha odds calculator. I would play a session, and if there were any spots where I wasn’t sure about the equity, I would run the numbers and make sure that I was making the correct decisions. Because of the nature of the game, it’s essential that you know the math backward and forward before you start to play seriously. The rest comes with experience.

JR: With all of your hold’em success, it may be shocking for some to find out that it’s not your best game. How would you rank your Omaha skills?

JM: Omaha is my best game, and I’d go so far as to say that when it comes to tournaments, I’m right up there with anybody in the world. I’m not going to say that I’m a huge cash-game winner at $200-$400, but I’m really confident in my skills when in tournaments. They are definitely a different dynamic, just because of the shallow stacks. Playing 20 big blinds is a lot different than working with 100.

JR: You had the perfect storm of circumstances in this tournament. You had twice as much in chips as the next-closest competitor, you had position on him, and everyone was terrified that you would bust them, particularly on the bubble. What was your opinion of your competition?

JM: It was a fairly soft field. I had a couple of tough tables, but I was fortunate to get great table draws early, especially on the bubble. There were a lot of guys who weren’t playing many hands, and, more importantly, weren’t willing to play back at me, so I was able to take a pretty huge lead on the field without much risk. They pretty much let me run over them.

JR: About an hour before the money, Amnon Filippi came to your table and sat to your left, threatening to ruin a golden opportunity for you to pick up some chips.

JM: Right. When Amnon came to the table, he pretty much let me know that he was there to gamble and stuff it back down my throat if I tried to pick on him. So, from then on, I made sure to open tighter until I could bust him. It was pretty much free chips after that.

But I want to clarify. It’s important to know that I wasn’t playing recklessly. I wasn’t three-betting preflop with just anything, and setting people all in at random. If I had a hand that I thought was going to play well, I would call and put them in if I hit or felt like I had decent equity.

JR: Yes, but you were opening almost every time it was folded to you.

JM: I probably opened pretty wide to take advantage of the table’s passive play. There’s not a ton of stealing the blinds in Omaha, but I must have taken it down preflop between 12 and 15 times, just on the bubble. I mean, there were probably instances when they were folding hands like J-10-9-8, which is … pretty bad. I don’t remember the last time I folded that hand, like ever. So, it’s safe to say that most of the table was playing scared, and I took advantage.

JR: I know that you don’t like to give too much away, but what is the one piece of advice that you can offer to novice players.

JM: Never fold, and come find me at the tables. No, I’m just kidding. I think there are a lot of elements to the game that people don’t understand. The game is much more complex than people think. Some less knowledgeable players treat it as just gamble, gamble, gamble, but there are plenty of ways to reduce your variance and avoid flipping in some spots altogether. I’m not going to give anything else away, but let’s just say that it is an extremely misunderstood game.