- Greg Raymer
infobox poker player
firstname=Greg
lastname=Raymer
nickname=Fossilman
caption=Greg Raymer at the2005 World Series of Poker
hometown=Raleigh, North Carolina
wsop bracelet count=1
wsop money finishes=12
wsop main event best finish rank=Winner
wsop main event best finish year=2004
multi-year wsop winner
wpt titles="None"
wpt final tables="None"
wpt money finishes=2Gregory Raymer (born
June 25 ,1964 in Minot,North Dakota ) [ [http://www.pokerroyalty.com/greg-raymer.php Bio of Poker Player Greg Raymer] ] is a professionalpoker player. He is best known for winning the 2004World Series of Poker main event, and for the opaque holographic sunglasses that he sometimes wears during hands. [http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/greg-raymer/ Team PokerStars profile: Greg Raymer] ]Life before poker
Raymer's family moved numerous times during his childhood, from his birthplace of Minot to
Clearwater, Florida and ultimately toSt. Louis, Missouri . After Raymer graduated fromParkway South High School in St. Louis, he enrolled at the University of Missouri–Rolla, where he majored inchemistry and became a member of theKappa Sigma fraternity. He graduated from theUniversity of Minnesota Law School in1992 and practiced as apatent attorney for more than a decade. However, he no longer works as a lawyer.Poker career
After moving to Stonington,
Connecticut in1999 , Raymer began playing poker atFoxwoods Resort Casino while he was working as a patent lawyer for pharmaceutical manufacturerPfizer . [ [http://www.poker-babes.com/bio/greg-raymer/ Poker Babes profile: Greg Raymer] ]Raymer first finished in the money of a
World Series of Poker (WSOP) event during2001 in the $1,500 Omaha hi-lo split 8 or better event won by Chris "Jesus" Ferguson. The next year he could be seen in the background asRobert Varkonyi celebrated after winning the main event at the2002 World Series of Poker .At the 2004 World Series, Raymer defeated David Williams to win the $5,000,000 first prize in the $10,000 no limit
Texas hold 'em WSOP main event. (In the final hand, Raymer's cards|8♠|8♦ defeated Williams' cards|A♥|4♠.) Raymer received the entry fee to the tournament by winning a $160 satellite event onPokerStars , just like the2003 winner,Chris Moneymaker . Raymer is now a representative of PokerStars, alongside Moneymaker and the2005 World Series of Poker championJoe Hachem .As defending champion, Raymer went on to finish in 25th place (out of 5,619 entrants) in the 2005 WSOP Main Event, earning him $304,680. No player since Johnny Chan has came so close to repeating as World Series champion, and his deep finish has been described by his peers as one of the most incredible achievements in poker, considering the rapidly increasing field of players in the Main Event every year. On the second-to-last day of play, Raymer held cards|K♦|K♥ when he trapped
Aaron Kanter into calling his all-in bet with cards|Q♥|J♥. Even though Raymer was a 9:2 favorite before the flop, Kanter came from behind to hit running hearts to make a flush and win, thus crippling Raymer and effectively ending his tournament.In 2005 Raymer also entered the inaugural British Poker Open which was filmed in London and was the UK's biggest live poker event in history. As a firm favourite Raymer made the final table to come third in a live final and collect around £20,000.
Raymer appeared in Poker Superstars III but was eliminated in the preliminaries.
In March 2006, Raymer (as "Fossilman") took second place in the first quarterly $1,000,000 guaranteed tournament on PokerStars, winning over $180,000 in a field of over 1500 tournament players.
On September 17th, 2007, Raymer won the $320
WCOOP Pot Limit Omaha with Rebuys Event on PokerStars, winning $168,362. [ cite web|url=http://www.pokernews.com/news/2007/09/wcoop-event-6-fossilman-wins.htm |title=WCOOP – Event #6, $320 PLO: Greg 'FossilMan' Raymer Wins First WCOOP Title |accessdate=2007-09-18 |last=Wehner |first=Matt |date=September 18, 2007 |publisher=PokerNews.com ]As of 2008, his total live tournament winnings exceed $6,000,000. [ [http://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/player.php?a=r&n=7955 Hendon Mob tournament results: Greg Raymer] ]
Character and personality
Raymer is nicknamed "Fossilman" because of his hobby of collecting
fossil s. He uses a small fossil as a card protector while he plays poker. Early in his poker career he would supplement his bankroll by selling fossils to other players at his table. [http://www.pokerstars.com/team-pokerstars/greg-raymer/ Team PokerStars profile: Greg Raymer] ]Aside from the World Series, Raymer plays few tournaments, choosing to spend time with his wife Cheryl and daughter Sophie instead of immersing himself in the poker circuit and the constant travel it requires. In
November 2005 , Raymer and his family relocated toRaleigh, North Carolina .Raymer stated that he was allergic to
alcohol during his appearance on theEuropean Poker Tour .In [http://www.pokernews.com/news/2006/12/poker-champ-vice-presidential-raymer.htm a December 2006 interview] Raymer said that he was considering running for Vice-President of the
United States in2008 as acandidate of the Libertarian Party.On December 20, 2004, two men attempted to rob Raymer at gunpoint as he returned to his Bellagio hotel room after playing in a cash game. Raymer held them off until police arrived and was unharmed. [ [http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Dec-31-Fri-2004/news/25577874.html Las Vegas Review Journal: Suspects identified in robbery attempt] ]
Notes
External links
* [http://www.fossilmanpoker.com/ Official site]
* [http://www.blondepoker.com/index.php?q=node/5470 Blonde Poker interview]
* [http://www.holdemback.com/Interview-with-Greg-Raymer.php Holdemback interview]
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