Jason Mercier Eliminated From NAPT Los Angeles
Big name poker pro Jason Mercier has been eliminated from the NAPT Los Angeles in 7th place and takes home $84,857. Five players remained on Wednesday evening.
Joe Tehan - 11,105,000
Van Nguyen - 955,000
Al Grimes - 1,270,000
Ray Henson - 1,565,000
Chris DeMaci - 6,600,000
Joe Tehan was a poker-made millionaire by the age of 25. Born in Utica, New York, Tehan now resides in Las Vegas and plays poker professionally. Now 30, Tehan is engaged and plays golf in his spare time. Tehan owns a WPT title (Mandalay Bay, 2006), has 17 money-finishes at the WSOP and has earned more than $2.3 million tournament winnings throughout the course of his career. Tehan has 1,907,000 in chips heading into the final table.
Anh Van Nguyen is a Vietnamese-born, Canadian citizen, currently residing in Toronto. One of the newest members of Team PokerStars Canada, Nguyen was a poker dealer before turning pro several years ago. His nickname “Van Diesel,” Nguyen polished his poker skills in local charity casinos in Toronto and underground clubs before taking his game mainstream. Nguyen has just under a million dollars in career tournament earnings to his name. When he was 13-years-old, Nguyen lied about his age to get a job at McDonalds where he worked until he was 16. Nguyen enters the final table with 1,058,000 in chips.
At 54, Al Grimes is the elder statesman of the NAPT Los Angeles final table. Hailing from New York City, Grimes plays poker professionally, though his tournament resume is limited. Grimes’ only known major live score was a sixth place finish in the 2010 Borgata Winter Open where he pocketed $115,000 and change. Grimes has his work cut out for him, entering the final table as its only non-millionaire with 982,000 in chips.
Born and raised in Houston, Ray Henson knows a thing or two about Texas Hold’em. The 32-year-old pro made a big splash in 2007, finishing 12th at the WSOP Main Event, earning $476,000 in prize money. Now guaranteed a minimum payout of $60,000, Henson is the newest member of the poker-millionaires club. “Rayzerr” is an avid sports fan and spends most of his free time with his kids. Henson enters the final table with a very healthy 3,268,000 in chips.
Chris DeMaci is the overwhelming chip leader heading into Wednesday’s final table with 6,283,000 in chips. DeMaci grabbed the chip lead near the end of Day 3 and hasn’t relinquished it since. The 27-year-old professional poker player lives in Newport Beach, California. DeMaci has earned more than a million dollars playing online MTTs and $250,000 more playing live tournaments. DeMaci started playing poker with buddies in high school and was hooked after he saw the movie Rounders. DeMaci needs to finish sixth place or higher to best his largest live cash to date – a 2009 WSOP final table appearance where he collected $98,933 in prize money.
- Ace King, Gambling911.com
