Greg Raymer: Not Your Average Card Shark

Name: Greg 'Fossilman' Raymer

UMR connection: 1985 grad, chemistry

Biggest gamble that paid off: Winning the $5 million first prize at the 2004 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas

How he did it: Beat a record field of 2,576 players in Texas Hold-Em. "I was not the best player at the tournament that week, but I played the best I have ever played, and also got very lucky."

Learned his hand: Playing "nickel-dime-quarter games" at the Kappa Sigma fraternity at UMR. "We didn't play very often, and we didn't play very well, but it was fun."

Best bluff: "My most creative play was a hand raised . to steal the blinds, and got re-raised by John Murphy in the big blind. I felt that he had a hand he thought was the best (and it almost certainly was), but also a hand weak enough where he simply wanted to win it right there. He had been pushing me around a bit, and I wanted to back him off. So, I re-raised all-in. He looked unhappy, but folded relatively quickly. I showed him the hand. Don't know if it made a difference of any significance in future hands or not, but that was my intent."

Huh? It's poker jargon

Nickname: "Fossilman," because he uses a fossil to cover his cards

Fashion accessory: His snake-eye sunglasses, designed to help him keep his cool in a heated tourney. "You'll find quite a few poker players who wear sunglasses because it is easy to hold your body still, but not your eyes."

Media sightings: Raymer has appeared in Sports Illustrated, CNN, MSNBC and of course, ESPN In his past life: A patent attorney in Connecticut

Current gig: Playing Texas Hold-'Em around the world. Follow his exploits at www.fossilmanpoker.com