Vallejo man lied about having cancer for donations to play in Las Vegas poker event

PIX Now Afternoon Edition 9-20-23

A poker player who said he had terminal cancer and accepted thousands of dollars in donations so he could play in a World Series of Poker tournament in Las Vegas now admits it was all a lie.

Rob Mercer told the Las Vegas Review-Journal he made up a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis for his GoFundMe page in June, the newspaper reported Wednesday.

Mercer, of Vallejo, California, was trying to raise enough funds to meet the $10,000 buy-in for the No-limit Hold'em World Championship. He received contributions worth between $30,000 and $50,000, including a stay at a suite in the Bellagio. Even a fellow player from Arizona who suffers from chronic illness donated $2,500.

"I'm sorry for not being honest about what my situation was. If I would have done that from Day One, who knows what would have happened," Mercer told the newspaper.

However, the 37-year-old says he won't be refunding anyone because he believes he has undiagnosed breast cancer.

He said he has been more or less banished from the poker community.

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.