Did Dan Bilzerian Make His Money in Poker?
When you have more money than you’ll ever need, what do you do? Ask “Poker Pro” and “King of Instagram” Dan Bilzerian.
This 37-year-old playboy, multimillionaire, and Internet celebrity was born in Tampa, Florida, and is well-known for leading an opulent lifestyle. In the world of poker, Dan Bilzerian is particularly well-known for his hotly debated assertions that he made his riches by participating in exclusive, extremely high-stakes games.
Bilzerian, a self-described jerk, wants others to be envious of him as “that’s just the way of the world.” This semi-professional poker player certainly leads an exciting life; his seemingly never-ending parade of cars, women, guns, yachts, and other excesses has garnered him a large following on social media.
Dan Bilzerian net worth is thought to be in the neighborhood of $100 million by many. He says that the majority of his wealth was earned through poker, but he does confess that he benefited from his trust fund, which began to accrue when he was in his 30s (for how much, he won’t tell, of course). His claim, however, is not well supported.
Please refrain from telling Dan Bilzerian that he isn’t a self-made man or that he lacks skill in poker. He is not fond of that.
Dan Bilzerian: When he first showed up at a Lake Tahoe casino in 2007 carrying a suitcase full of cash in search of a game, Bilzerian wasn’t very well-known. Thus, he became known as “suitcase guy.” Since then, he has been living the high life and traveling the world, which includes participating in extremely high stakes private poker tournaments with billionaires and showing off his talents. Or so he says.
After competing in the 2009 WSOP Main Event, Bilzerian placed 180th and took home $36,626—his sole known victory in a live tournament. After that, it was only cash games. In addition, Adam, Bilzerian’s brother, is a poker player.
Regarding his poker prowess, Bilzerian claimed—via Twitter—that he had earned $50 million in 2014 and had won $10.8 million in a single poker session in November 2013. But Bilzerian also says he doesn’t play against pros anymore. Once more, none of these assertions are refuted, but they are also unsupported. So make your own judgments.
Doug Polk’s film
Which went viral, revealed Dan Bilzerian’s lackluster poker skills. It has had over 1.26 million views.
Like many in the poker community, Polk challenges Bilzerian’s assertions in the video that his extraordinary riches is a direct result of his poker playing. Most people appear to agree that Paul Bilzerian, a Wall Street corporate raider specialist, is the one who gave Bilzerian almost all of his riches.
For those who don’t know, Bilzerian’s father was found guilty of breaking securities laws and tax rules as a result of botched takeover attempts in the 1980s. Apart from his incarceration, Bilzerian Sr. was also required to pay a substantial fine, estimated to be around $60 million, of which he barely fulfilled a portion. Dan eventually ends up with money that he claims he acquired by playing poker, thus it makes sense that many people don’t think it came from poker—Polly included.
Polk analyzed Bilzerian’s performance in a $10/$20 heads-up cash game on the America’s Card Room (ACR) website in the video. Bilzerian played using the billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Perkins’ account and broadcast the match live on Twitch. Polk had never played with Bilzerian personally, so he watched the stream and used his hand analysis and heads-up knowledge to make his own judgments.
Polk’s assessment of Dan Bilzerian’s poker game
Polk’s analysis is notable for criticizing several of Bilzerian’s extremely aggressive plays, even though he often supports aggression. In the end, Polk came to the conclusion that most of Bilzerian’s aggression was the result of poor play and that the millionaire was just “a fish in the water.”
Polk states at one point that Bilzerian committed a series of fundamental errors, some of which were “real simple, preflop decisions.”
Polk goes on to say that Bilzerian’s tale of building up a modest bankroll in the past is “like, total bullshit,” noting that he failed to exhibit either discipline or sound foundations. This lends credence to claims that Bilzerian’s wealth was probably not earned by skillful poker play, as he has frequently stated.
It’s true that Dan Bilzerian has participated in big stakes poker games in the past and has probably defeated the weakest players in those matches. Nonetheless, Bilzerian’s assertion of remarkable success on the felt seems questionable if his performance during the online session is representative of his typical style of play. Polk adds that “the idea that his bankroll didn’t, in some part, come from his family is just nuts” and that “the size of Bilzerian’s fortune and how quickly it was apparently amassed is just insane.”
Concluding remarks
Ultimately, Doug Polk maintains his “fair assessment of the facts” regarding Dan Bilzerian’s poker play, and he lets the audience determine what is most likely accurate.
Joey Ingram featured Polk as a guest on his Poker Life Podcast earlier this year. The two spoke about Polk’s video and exchanged ideas regarding Dan Bilzerian’s poker “situation.”
You can now follow Dan Bilzerian’s extravagant adventures on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, if you so choose. Bilzerian’s flamboyant, obnoxious manner may be unsettling, but his antics can make for some entertaining viewing. Bilzerian was named the funniest poker player on Twitter by Bluff Magazine in 2010.
