Poker Stories: Martin Jacobson

Explicit content warning

06/17/21 • 78 min

Martin Jacobson found poker as a teenager, but his initial aspirations were focused on becoming a chef. After serving a year in the Royal Swedish Navy feeding the crew of a battleship, the Stockholm-native continued his culinary career while playing poker on the side. After turning a satellite win into a third-place finish at the 2008 EPT Budapest main event for $247,668, Jacobson was off and running.

Jacobson continued to tear up the European circuit, finishing second at WPT Venice for $319,518, second at EPT Vilamoura for $378,706, fourth at EPT Berlin for $327,337, and second at EPT Deauville for another $762,185. He even started finding consistent success in high roller events, final tabling the $111,111 buy-in One Drop High Roller twice.

Although he was frustrated with the close calls, it all came together in 2014 when he took down the WSOP main event for the championship bracelet and the $10 million first-place prize. His $17 million in career tournament earnings is enough to make the top 40 on the all-time money list, and he has three times his nearest competitor on Sweden's rankings.

Highlights from this interview include attending a culinary high school, choosing a 'practical' career, a long year in the Royal Swedish Navy, inspiring Kitchen Nightmares, getting kicked out of internet cafes, on deck battleship sessions, lasting just three hands in the main event, frustrating close calls, three-months of prep work pays off, why he hasn't watched his WSOP win, the motivation to play following a $10 million score, Stockholm to London, why he hasn't opened a restaurant, losing $70,000 in a Slovakia hotel lobby, James Bond vibes, ear plugs and eye masks, and losing heads-up to a Ratatouille villain.

Previous Episode

Poker Stories: Bernard Lee

Bernard Lee first learned the game from his father, and then later started playing more seriously while at Harvard University, but the Julliard-trained pianist spent years working as a marketing manager before he decided to make poker his focus and profession.

In 2005, Lee made his first trip to the World Series of Poker, and was featured in ESPN's coverage of the main event for his 13th-place finish, worth $400,000. In the years since, Lee has added another $2 million in cashes, including two WSOP Circuit rings, and three WSOP final tables in no-limit 2-7 lowball.

The 51-year-old is also a poker author, having written for Card Player, the Boston Herald, Metrowest Daily News, and ESPN, where he was a host of the show The Inside Deal. His radio show and podcast, the Bernard Lee Poker Show, recently celebrated its 14th anniversary, and his latest book, Poker Satellite Success: Turn Affordable Buy-Ins Into Shots At Winning Millions, is now available on Amazon as well as D&B Publishing.

Highlights from this episode include tickling the ivories, his time at Harvard, unexpected surgery skills, early trips to Foxwoods, the 22-year home game, the influence of Russell Rosenblum, an obsession with getting to the WSOP, partying for a $400,000 score, wearing many hats in poker media, working at ESPN alongside Usain Bolt, interviewing Doyle Brunson and Jack Binion, losing a four-hour heads-up match for a bracelet, writing a poker book, Eminem's Lose Yourself, clean money, and dealing with empty nest syndrome.

Next Episode

Poker Stories: Andrew and Kristy Moreno

Kristy Arnett Moreno and Andrew Moreno met in college and simultaneously fell in love with each other and the game of poker. Together they made the move from Fort Wayne, Indiana to Las Vegas with the dream of making it in the poker world.

Kristy landed a job in poker media, and almost immediately made an impact, interviewing some of the best players in the world both on camera and in print for Card Player and PokerNews.

After starting his career focusing on cash games, Andrew has since transitioned to tournaments. He's had numerous close calls in the past, including a final table in the Monster Stack at the World Series of Poker, and a 28th-place finish in the $10,000 buy-in WSOP main event. However, he recently broke through with a victory in the inaugural Wynn Millions main event for a massive $1.46 million score.

Highlights from this interview include poker first dates, winning a wife in a tournament, the Vegas ultimatum, two days on a greyhound bus, shady business partners and a broken nose, going broke, working in poker media, learning from close calls, Ricky Bobby, running deep in the WSOP main event, earning a seven-figure score, losing $5k to Mike Matusow, a quick disaster on Poker Night In America, Taco Bell and corn de-tasseling nightmares, baby run good, check-raising veterans at the Navy Club, Maverick, and flinging Tom Dwan off a jet ski.