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October Nine: Michael Esposito

August 15, 2012

At only 44 years of age, Michael Esposito is the second oldest player in the 2012 WSOP October Nine. Hailing from Seaford, New York, Esposito is an amateur poker player, only playing poker as a hobby a few times per year. By day he is a commodity broker in NYC who may have been quite the legendary player had he chosen a different career path. He’s actually played in the WSOP before and cashed in 2006 when he was knocked out in 540th place earning him more than $22K in cash, so while he may be an amateur, his opponents should still take heed because he seems to have a little bit of that thing we like to call “luck,” as well.

Esposito is also a triathlete, is single, and has two children, a 21-year-old son and a 13-year-old daughter. He’s the typical American bachelor, who is now living the dream and come October 29th will be seated in Seat #9 with 16,260,000 chips—the sixth largest stack at the table. His typical day starts at 4:50 a.m. when he runs or rides his bike. After a 10-hour work day, he comes home to swim, except on Wednesdays when he has dinner with his daughter. He also rides up to 60 miles on his bike every Saturday, but he hasn’t always been so disciplined. In his early 30s, Esposito says he was a smoker and 223 pounds. He felt like he was 55. Now at 43, he feels like he’s 25.

And while he admits that he’s more interested in winning the $8.5 million than the bracelet or all the hype that comes with it, he’s a down to earth guy who says, “I have a pretty content, happy life. I don’t need cars, I have a nice house, I have a nice quiet life. I like my life.”

When asked what his objective was for coming to the WSOP, he said, “My expectations were really the final table. That was the only reason I came. I came in with a mindset just to go. I played in it a few years past where I tried to win it early on. This year I kind of went in with a different philosophy that I would just go day to day and play day to day. Now I’ve got a shot.”

Apparently his philosophy worked, but is he good enough to beat the young guns and the lifelong pros he’s up against?

Written by Bea · Filed Under Poker News 

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