Greg Raymer Seeks Poker Backers For 2016 Season
January 6, 2016 1:16 pmAfter being dropped as a PokerStars Pro in 2011, Greg Raymer subsequently sought to offload the risk associated with playing poker tournaments for a living by selling shares in himself in return for a percentage of potential profits. He did so in 2014, and then again in 2015, and this year is no exception with the 2004 WSOP Main Event champion once again seeking at least $100,000 to fund his year long poker endeavors.
That figure represents the amount of money Raymer needs to fund the numerous live tournaments he enters throughout the year, and presumably any amount won above that level will count as profits. For his part, Raymer has already put in 20% or $20,000 of his own money, and is aiming to collect $30,000 stake money from “outside investors”, and a further $50,000 from YouStake site. So far, the 51 year-old former patent attorney has managed to raise $53,970 towards his overall $105,000 target, according to details on the backing site.
Elaborating on his career to date, Raymer said he even sold shares in his 2004 season, leading up to his $5 million win in Las Vegas, although he says that over the past few years he has been doing so to quiet the monetary concerns of his wife. As he wrote on YouStake:
“Since I no longer receive a guaranteed source of income, my wife has become more nervous about poker. Although I have a 23 year track record of winning results in both tournaments and cash games, she is not a poker player, and is worried that I will start losing. And without a paycheck to immediately recoup any losses, she gets anxious. So, to make her happy, I have chosen to sell off a big piece of my bankroll, so that my downside risk is a lot more limited (and my upside potential, but try explaining that to her, lol). Even though this move is costing me EV, it is worth it because it provides marriage EV. Happy wife, happy life!”
According to Raymer, he competes in between 75 and 100 different events each year, in addition to dozens of satellites, as well as cash game sessions. As far as his results over the past few years go, Raymer has yet to hit a six-figure score since 2012 ($374,101), and in 2013 earned $31,864, followed in 2014 by $81,480, and 2015 by $44,126.