Poker Stories: Scott Blumstein

Scott Blumstein had a magical run through the 2017 World Series of Poker main event, topping a field of 7,221 to earn his first gold bracelet and the $8.15 million first-place prize. The win, however, came just a year after the Morristown, New Jersey native considered quitting the game entirely. While the 2016 WSOP main event was playing out in Las Vegas, Blumstein was back home in New Jersey, considering his options. After a conversation with his dad, he ultimately decided to give it one last shot at the Borgata Summer Poker Open. Blumstein won the opening event for just shy of $200,000, and that score kept him in the game.

By the time the next summer rolled around, Blumstein was ready for the $10,000 main event. After building up his stack during the bubble, Blumstein rode his chip lead to the final table, which included players such as Ben Lamb, Jack Sinclair, Bryan Piccioli, Antoine Saout, Benjamin Pollak, and the headline-grabbing Englishman John Hesp. Now 27, and two years removed from his life-changing win, Blumstein remains relatively active in the poker world, and has lent his support to various charity causes and events.

Highlights from this interview include the quality over quantity strategy, being better in pass protection, TurningStone Casino: an 18-year-old's Disneyland, accounting regret, the New Jersey cheat code, getting knocked out by Darvin Moon, why the story gets good at Borgata, a tough conversation with dad, learning the lesson of taxes, finding a backer, streaming on Twitch to 18 people, punishing the money bubble, hiring a mental coach, turning down a world-class player for final table help, helpful tips from Ryan Riess, having the freedom to not know what he wants to do, not relying on poker for happiness, lessons from an actuary, a scandal at Dick's Sporting Goods, the sharp side of Utah St., a love for rotisserie chicken, and a message from Mac Miller.