Player Profile: Greg Raymer

Summary: Gregory (Greg) Raymer, also known as "The Fossilman", is an interesting, multi-faceted character. He was born in Minot, North Dakota in 1964. Greg completed high school in St. Louis, Missouri and majored in Chemistry at the University of Missouri. In 1992, he began practicing as a Patent Attorney after graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School, and Patent Attorney he was for a decade. His work for a pharmaceutical company in Stonington, Connecticut brought ...

Gregory (Greg) Raymer, also known as "The Fossilman", is an interesting, multi-faceted character. He was born in Minot, North Dakota in 1964. Greg completed high school in St. Louis, Missouri and majored in Chemistry at the University of Missouri. In 1992, he began practicing as a Patent Attorney after graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School, and Patent Attorney he was for a decade. His work for a pharmaceutical company in Stonington, Connecticut brought him in close proximity to Foxwoods Resort Casino. This was very convenient for Raymer who had early on enjoyed casual evenings in the Mid-West playing in local games. As his interest in Poker grew, he began to read Poker tutorials and investigate online Poker. He practiced and studied and his law-trained analytical mind allowed Greg to gradually improve his skills and become the world-class competitor he is today. Greg Raymer began playing at Foxwoods and enjoyed a continued success at the resorts tournament competitions. He took the first step into big-time Poker competition when he entered the World Poker Finals in 2000 and made the final table, taking home third place prize money of $49,000. Playing Poker online, Greg whiled away the next few years in short-handed and heads-up play. He won a $160 buy-in satellite shootout at Pokerstars.com in the spring of 2004, earning an entry fee into the World Series of Poker. Later in the year, Greg found himself in the biggest Poker tournament ever, one of no less than 2,575 players at Binion's Horseshoe in Las Vegas. Greg Raymer won the tournament and took home a whopping five million dollars - in one of the biggest upsets in tournament history. Known as "Fossilman" due to his hobby of collecting fossils, Raymer finished in 25th place in the 2005 World Series of Poker but still earned a very respectable $304,680. Greg ended 2005 with live Tournament winnings exceeding $5,590,000 and in 2006, he took second place in the PokerStars one million dollar guaranteed Tournament. His win over more than 1,500 other players brought Raymer prize money of nearly $200,000. Success has not spoiled Greg Raymer. He is said to be a kind man, accessible to his many fans. He will dispense advice on Poker play when asked and cheerfully sign autographs. Greg is also a generous man and charitable with his money. Greg, his wife and daughter still live in Connecticut but his Poker playing travels frequently take him around the country. All in all, Greg Raymer is quite a success story. From nickel and dime Poker to the WSOP Grand Prize of five million dollars, Greg is proof positive that talent and perseverance do pay off!