By Jason Koebler Photograph by Chris Leaman

Card Games

Daniel Cates has been known to play more than ten hours of poker a day, sometimes betting thousands on a single hand.

Hes not old enough to play in a casino, but alone in his parents basement hes won millions playing Texas Hold Em.

Lone Shark

aniel Cates looks at the cards on the screen of his old Sony laptopa ten and a jack. The dealer flops a nine, a seven, and a king. That gives Cates nothing. If the next cards an eight or a queen, hell have a straight and will likely win the hand, but is it worth it to call his opponents bet of $1,400 to see another card? Hes got seconds to decide in the world of online Texas Hold Em, thousands can be won or lost very quickly. At 20, Cates isnt old enough to set foot inside a casino, but like an increasing number of college students, he gambles online. And in two years hes become one of the best, racking up winnings of more than $2 million. An economics major at the University of

Maryland and a graduate of the science-andtechnology program at Greenbelts Eleanor Roosevelt High School, Cates always has been good with numbers. After depositing $300 into his online account in August 2007, he has slowly moved up the online-poker ranks. Cates now plays for thousands of dollars at a time. He says its important to forget what the numbers on the screen representthat hes just bet the equivalent of a semesters tuition or a midsize car on a hand. Cates is simultaneously playing hands at three other tables, and his screen flashes as he receives an instant message from an online acquaintance. His cell phone rings. Its his sister. Oh, yeahI was supposed to

pick her up from school, he says. She can wait a few more minutes. The legality of online poker is a gray area, says Keith Whyte of the National Council on Problem Gambling. In 2006, Congress passed a law making it illegal to transfer money from US banks to gambling Web sites. Theres many ways around it, Whyte says. Gambling sites such as Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars are headquartered in places where online gambling is legal, and both accept American players and bank accounts. Its unclear whose laws apply, Whyte says. Is it the country where the player is located or the country where the site is located? Many young people are more than willing
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to take the risk. A 2010 study by the Journal of American College Health reports that 75 percent of US college students have gambled in the past year. Whyte estimates that his organizations gambling-addiction hotline receives 13,500 calls a year from people younger than 21, about 5 percent of all calls; Cates is one of the few who are successful at poker. Cates plays an average of 650 hands a day. Hes thinking about moving out of the country to avoid paying taxes on his winnings, and he sometimes has trouble connecting with his family on topics other than poker. He usually plays anywhere from a few hours to more than ten hours a day. At the moment, at 4:30 pm, he still hasnt eaten a meal. Online poker has leveled the playing field between amateurs and professionals who attend nationally televised events and have become minor celebrities. Take Catess opponent today. For years, Prahlad Friedman has been one of pokers biggest personalities. He wears a white hoodie sweatshirt and designer sunglasses, lives in Los Angeles, and is famous for his playful raps about poker. Cates is reservedhe plays poker in his parents basement on a laptop. He wears a wrinkled striped polo, and his curly hair is unkempt. But none of that mattershe thinks he has Friedman figured out. He checks the notes and statistics on Friedman in his computer, decides the risk is worthwhile, and clicks call to make the bet, hoping for an eight or a queen. He now has invested $2,200 in the hand, more than two months week. He could live anywhere but says he was too lazy to fill out a housing request form at the university, so he lives at home. He commutes to school when he feels like it, but its obvious his textbooks dont get much use theyre underneath a stack of poker books in the basement. Cates would like to graduate, but only because he doesnt want to be a college dropout. His main goal is never to work another day in his life. I had a traditional job, he says. I dont want to do that again. Well into the school year, he hadnt bought a parking pass, hoping his expired permit would do the trick. When it didnt, he paid the $75 ticket and shrugged it off. It seems theyve figured me out, he says. Ive gotten a ticket every time Ive parked there for the last week. The poker gods, at least, are smiling on him today. The last card comesa queen. He has the straight. Friedman, trying to bluff, goes all in with a $14,000 bet. Cates calls. He wins $36,000. Cates shows little emotion hes got another hand to play. And he has to W pick up his sister.
Editorial intern Jason Koebler (jasontpkoebler@ gmail.com) quit playing poker after he lost $50.

Daniel Cates once worked at McDonalds. Now his main goal is never to work another day in his life.
pay at a previous job at McDonalds. The next card comes. Its another nine, and it doesnt help. Friedman checks, and Cates, sensing weakness, bluffs. He bets $3,100, hoping Friedman will fold. He doesnt, and Cates now has invested more than $5,000 on the 17-percent chance that the last card will give him a straight or a queen. For someone who has earned millions over the past two years, Cates allows himself few luxuries. He eats at Popeyes once or twice a

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