Michael Phelps insists he is retired from Olympic competition, which gives him plenty of free time to pursue one of his other passions. Phelps likes to gamble, and there have been several stories over the past few years about him participating in high stakes poker tournaments. Earlier this week, he finally decided it’s time to try his hand at the World Series of Poker.
According to Card Player, Phelps bought into a $5,000 no-limit hold ’em tournament at the WSOP on Wednesday.
“It’s kind of weird,” Phelps told Card Player. “I wasn’t even going to play today. I just wanted to come over and see everything and somehow these guys talked me into playing. Antonio [Esfandiari] and JG (Jeff Gross) told me we should just throw in a buy-in and see what happens at your first World Series event.”
Last year, a report surfaced that claimed Phelps won $100,000 playing cards at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, though the 27-year-old later denied it. He would, however, love to capture a WSOP bracelet.
“I’ve never been out here [before] and all these guys always seem like they’re having so much fun when they play,” he added. “If I ever win a bracelet before [they] do, they’re going to be really pissed. So we’ll see what happens.”
Despite the fact that he has more money than he knows what to do with, some of Phelps’ friends have reportedly expressed concerns over his love for gambling. His decision to enter into the WSOP should do nothing to ease their anxieties.
