LA Lakers Owner Jerry Buss To Become High Stakes Poker Pro

LA Lakers basketball team owner Jerry Buss has announced he intends to turn poker pro at the ripe age of 77 years old.
Buss made most of his money in the property market but many of his investments in the past have strong links to sports and have included becoming an owner in World Team Tennis, Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Kings hockey team of the NHL, and the Los Angeles Lazers of the Major Indoor Soccer League.
Since handing much of the decision making of his business empire over to his children, Buss has decided to devote more of his available time to the game he has loved for so long.
Buss is already well known amongst the poker community, having appeared on such shows as GSN’s High Stakes Poker and the NBC late-night series Poker After Dark. He has also become a bit of a regular at the WSOP and finished 3rd in the 1991 WSOP seven-card stud event.
With just $155,338 in winnings from live tournaments Buss may struggle to earn a living from the game, but with a fortune worth several hundreds million dollars behind him the money is of secondary importance to the enjoyment he derives from playing the game. When asked why he decided to turn poker pro now, Jerry Buss explained:
“The competition. I can’t think of too many things I can do as easily as that and be competitive at my age…Whether I can earn a living at it is questionable. But I do play in the World Series of Poker all the time.”
We wish him luck and look forward to reporting about his future pursuits on the poker circuit.