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Poker Stories Podcast: Two-Time WSOP Bracelet Winner And Card Player CEO Barry Shulman

Poker Stories Is An Audio Podcast Series That Features The Game's Best Players and Personalities

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Poker Stories is a long-form audio podcast series that features casual interviews with some of the game’s best players and personalities. Each episode highlights a well-known member of the poker world and dives deep into their favorite tales both on and off the felt.

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 cards. 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 next year, he finished third at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure main event, banking another $1,350,000. Just last summer, Shulman narrowly missed out on adding a third bracelet, taking second place in the Super Seniors event and third in the $1,500 Double Stack. He now has more than $5.6 million in career live tournament earnings.

Highlights from this interview include abandoning ship, the free speech movement at Berkeley, $20 five-card draw games at the Oaks Club, a knack for numbers, one-hand Luke, “retiring” in Las Vegas, calling him at the Mirage, “muscling” his way into Card Player, forecasting the poker boom, winning his first bracelet in a game he didn’t play, a seven-figure score in London, playing like a “piece of furniture,” sweating family at final tables, Costco regrets, poker in Cambodia, trying to beat David Williams, and what cow balls taste like.

You can check out the entirety of the interview in the audio player at the top of the page or download it directly to your device to play on the go from Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.

Catch up on past episodes featuring notables such as Doyle Brunson, Daniel Negreanu, Jennifer Harman, Bryn Kenney, Justin Bonomo, Antonio Esfandiari, Nick Schulman, Barry Greenstein, Michael Mizrachi, Mike Sexton, Maria Ho, and many more. If you like what you hear, be sure to subscribe to get the latest episodes automatically when they are released.