Adam J. Bilzerian ( hy, Ադամ Պիլզերեան, born 1983) is an American

poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game w ...

player and writer.

Early life

Bilzerian, the son of Armenian-American corporate

takeover In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company (the ''target'') by another (the ''acquirer'' or ''bidder''). In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to t ...

specialist

Paul Bilzerian Paul Alec Bilzerian ( hy, Փօլ Պիլզերեան, born 1950) is an American businessman and corporate takeover specialist. Education and family Bilzerian was born in Miami, Florida but grew up in Worcester, Massachusetts in an Armenian America ...

and his wife, Terri L. Steffen, grew up in Florida. He has one brother,

Dan Bilzerian Daniel Brandon Bilzerian (born December 7, 1980) is an Armenian-American poker player, businessman, and social media influencer. Early life Bilzerian was born on December 7, 1980, in Tampa, Florida, the son of corporate takeover specialist Pa ...

. He attended

Gaither High School Gaither High School is a public high school located in the Northdale area of Hillsborough County, Florida. It opened in 1984 and is located on 16200 North Dale Mabry Highway. Bloomingdale High School, located in Valrico, Florida, was built around ...

, where he represented his school in tennis. On June 11, 2001, FBI agents raided the Bilzerian residence in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

, in relation to charges of market manipulation against Paul Bilzerian. A neighbour described the raid as "pure intimidation". Paul Bilzerian would be held in prison and was not permitted to attend his son's high school graduation. In the aftermath, Bilzerian would question his dream of becoming an Army Green Beret; in press interviews, he asked, "How can you go in and fight for your country when this is what they're doing to

our father The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...

" He went on to study at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

, earning a B.A. in history. Here, he witnessed the

2004 United States presidential election The 2004 United States presidential election was the 55th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. The Republican ticket of incumbent President George W. Bush and his running mate incumbent Vice President Dick Chene ...

which he reportedly saw as a bad sign and began to look into emigrating from the U.S. and establishing himself abroad. In 2007, he purchased a residence in Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the following year went on to become a citizen of the country, relinquishing U.S. citizenship in the process. In 2018, he obtained Armenian citizenship.

Poker career

Bilzerian came in 47th in the

2009 World Series of Poker The 2009 World Series of Poker was the 40th annual World Series of Poker (WSOP). It was held at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and ran from May 27 to July 15. There were 57 bracelet events, culminating in the $10,000 No- ...

, winning $138,568. His brother Dan also participated in the tournament; their performance led

Norman Chad Norman A. Chad (born 1958) is an American sportswriter, poker player and syndicated columnist who is seen on the sports channel ESPN. He also was an occasional guest host on the ESPN show ''Pardon the Interruption'' and has appeared as both ho ...

to nickname them the "Flying Bilzerian Brothers". He participated in the

2010 World Series of Poker The 2010 World Series of Poker was the 41st annual World Series of Poker (WSOP), held at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Paradise, Nevada, and ran from May 28 to July 17. There were 57 bracelet events, culminating in the $10,000 No Limit Hol ...

as well. He played poker privately with baseball player Alex Rodriguez at the

Bellagio Bellagio may refer to: * Bellagio, Lombardy, an Italian town * Bellagio (resort), a luxury resort and casino in Las Vegas * Bellagio (Hong Kong), a private housing building * Bellagio declaration, an intellectual copyright resolution * 79271 Bellag ...

in Las Vegas, and was reportedly surprised by Rodriguez' skill; he was quoted as stating, "Alex busted everyone except me. I was like whoa, this guy can play. He had an amazing run. He won about $20,000 and left with everyone's money."

Works

* .

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilzerian, Adam 1983 births Living people Gaither High School alumni Writers from Tampa, Florida People who renounced United States citizenship American emigrants to Saint Kitts and Nevis American people of Armenian descent American poker players Vanderbilt University alumni Naturalized citizens of Armenia