Adam J. Bilzerian is an American-born Nevisian poker player and writer.
Early life
Bilzerian is the son of Armenian-American corporate takeover specialist Paul Bilzerian and Terri, grew up in Florida. He has a brother, Dan Bilzerian. He attended Gaither High School, where he represented his school in tennis. On June 11, 2001, FBI agents raided the Bilzerian residence in Tampa, Florida, in relation to charges of market manipulation against Paul Bilzerian. A neighbour described the raid as "pure intimidation". Paul Bilzerian would be held in prison and was not permitted to attend his son's high school graduation. In the aftermath, Adam Bilzerian would question his dream of becoming an Army Green Beret; in press interviews, he asked, "How can you go in and fight for your country when this is what they're doing to ?" Longer term, the incident proved to have a lasting effect on Bilzerian's worldview. He went on to study at Vanderbilt University, earning a B.A. in history. Here, he witnessed the 2004 United States presidential election that resulted in a second term for George W. Bush; Bilzerian saw this as a bad sign for the future of the freedoms of the Bill of Rights, and began to look into emigrating from the U.S. and establishing himself abroad. In 2007, he purchased a residence in Saint Kitts and Nevis, and the following year went on to become a citizen of the country, relinquishing U.S. citizenship in the process.
Poker career
Bilzerian came in 47th in the 2009 World Series of Poker, winning $138,568. His brother Dan also participated in the tournament; their performance led Norman Chad to nickname them the "Flying Bilzerian Brothers". He participated in the 2010 World Series of Poker as well. He played poker privately with baseball playerAlex Rodriguez at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, and was reportedly surprised by Rodriguez' skill; he was quoted as stating, "Alex busted everyone except me. I was like whoa, this guy can play. He had an amazing run. He won about $20,000 and left with everyone's money."
