Robert Mizrachi is calm. In fact, he is one of the calmest Jews I have spoken to all year.
Perhaps Mizrachi is calm because he lives in Florida and is more insulated from the onslaught of antisemitic hate that has escalated in more left-leaning states after Oct. 7.
Perhaps he is calm because in his field of work, politics is practically a non-issue; once the action begins, focus and technique always trump race and identity.
Or perhaps Mizrachi, who is 45, is calm because he has a definitive understanding of who he is as an Israeli-American whose paternal lineage escaped Iraq, and whose maternal relatives escaped Poland, Austria and Russia (or were wiped out in European concentration camps).
Did I mention that Mizrachi is a five-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) champion who, after winning his most recent WSOP bracelet in July, asked for “Hatikva,” the Israeli national anthem, to be played on loudspeakers?
Mizrachi has a habit of requesting “Hatikva” each time he wins a major bracelet. “This year, with everything going on, and all of the heartbreak, as well as the antisemitism, I wanted to represent, to show the world that I stand for Israel,” he told me from his home in Florida during a recent phone interview. “This war isn’t going to end for a while, and it was a touching feeling this year when ‘Hatikva’ was played. A lot of my poker friends are Jewish and Israeli. I wasn’t born in Israel, but I feel like it’s my country, and it’s important to me. I have a lot of Israeli in me.”
The Proud Jew
Mizrachi is an unabashedly proud Jew who asked to schedule our interview before Shabbat began. “I was always proud to be Jewish. I’m proud of my heritage. And with Shabbat, I do the best I can,” he said. “I have a strong family. And I love going to Israel as much as I can.” Mizrachi has many friends and family, including cousins, aunts, and uncles who live in Israel. His paternal grandmother, Marcel Mizrachi, passed away in Israel this year.
Mizrachi was born in Florida in the late 1970s. His father, Ezra, was born in Israel and met his mother, Susan, in the late 1960s in New York. The couple had four sons — Robert, Michael and Eric (twins), and Daniel, before divorcing in 2009. Mizrachi grew up in North Miami Beach “feeling like an Israeli-American Jew.” He attended Hebrew school, lived in a kosher home, and often attended synagogue with his family on Shabbat.
Recalling his childhood Jewish experiences, Mizrachi reflected fondly on holidays such as Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Passover. “We had to be together, at the seders, and the Shabbat dinners,” he said. “I still love them all.”
Mizrachi learned poker “by watching people” and was 18 years old when he began to serve as a dealer on a Fort Lauderdale cruise ship. He played his first legal tournament in Las Vegas when he was 21. “I was never nervous,” he said. “I was curious about how others would play and how well I would play.”
He also taught his three younger brothers how to play poker. Like Robert, Michael is also a poker champion and has played in tournaments worldwide. “I showed Mike how to play a little and he went on his way,” said Mizrachi. “I won first, and then he started winning a lot.”
“A Game of Skill”
Robert and Michael began traveling to different casinos to play poker. Eric and Daniel soon followed, though Eric, who lives in Las Vegas, is also a professional magician and DJ. “One year, in 2010, we all cashed in the World Series of Poker in the $10,000 main event, with thousands of players,” Mizrachi recalled.
Photo courtesy of Robert Mizrachi
That same year, Robert and Michael were both playing the $50,000 Poker Players Championship, which their family watched on TV. “I had the best hand,” Robert explained, “and Mike had nothing. I was all in. My mom was screaming and pulling for my brother to win.” In the end, Robert placed fifth and Michael won.
“Rob and I started taking poker seriously when I was 15 and he was 17,” Michael told me. “We learned a lot from each other. I played a lot in underground games and casino cruises. We both started playing online poker and learned so much.”
During their first poker trip together, Robert taught Michael, who was 18, about money management by dividing $1,000 into seven envelopes and challenging his younger brother to set a budget for himself each day. At the end of the first day, Robert returned to the hotel room to find seven torn envelopes and zero cash. Michael returned home from the trip to Arizona having learned a vital lesson on budgeting, discipline and the ease and speed with which one can lose an entire fortune.
Initially, Mizrachi’s family was not thrilled over his decision to skip college and become a professional poker player (and to guide his brothers along a similar path). “In the beginning, they weren’t happy or supportive,” he said. “They were concerned that I wasn’t going to college or that I wouldn’t have a normal life. Most people think this is just gambling. They don’t realize that poker is a game of skill.”
The Jack-of-All-Trades
Soon enough, Mizrachi’s parents recognized that their sons were gaining success. “After Mike and I won big tournaments, they understood you could do well playing poker,” Robert said.
I asked Mizrachi whether being a WSOP champion demands specific mental acumen. “It’s a combination of reading your opponent, feeling him out, knowing the math and the ranges of what people can have at any given time, a lot of calculations, and experience,” he said. When asked if there were parallels between poker and life itself, Mizrachi responded, “Poker is like a game of life. Every decision requires intensity, and you can lose by making a bad decision. Just like in life, you really have to think it through.”
“Poker is like a game of life. Every decision requires intensity, and you can lose by making a bad decision. Just like in life, you really have to think it through.”
Robert has played in poker tournaments worldwide, including in the United States, Spain, Monaco, France, Italy, Australia and the Bahamas. He has also played cash games in Israel. “I always feel welcome when I’m there,” he said regarding Israel. To date, Robert was named a World Series of Poker champion in 2007, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2024. He won his latest poker bracelet in Las Vegas this summer during a World Series of Poker championship that featured thousands of players and 90 tournaments.
But Robert is also a proverbial jack-of-all-trades who also dabbles in cryptocurrency and real estate investments. In 2022, he wrote a book, “Horse,” which teaches readers how to play five different kinds of poker. Robert also plays pickleball six days a week. Not surprisingly, he admits that he is “very competitive” during pickleball.
Robert also has a love affair with food. The champion card shark seems even happier cooking at home than seated at a poker table, and while I assumed I would have little in common with a cutthroat poker player (albeit an incredibly nice one), his family-driven priorities rendered him endearingly relatable and down-to-earth.
“Give me a few minutes. I’m cooking,” Mizrachi told me when I needed to fact-check more information. The man who has won millions in high-stakes, professional poker tournaments was busy at home, cooking wild salmon burritos, and even sent me a delectable picture, to boot. A single father (he and his wife divorced in 2016), Mizrachi delights in cooking for his two children, age 16 and 11. “I’ve been cooking all my life,” he said.
After our interview, I realized that I still had more questions for Robert (see accompanying interview). I asked him via text message if he is spiritual, if he believes in G-d, and if he has ever felt that G-d has helped him in his many wins and successes. His response, in his typical, no-nonsense style, was succinct and confident. “Believe in G-d,” he wrote back.
Proud Jews exist in all forms, including Israeli Americans who win WSOP titles and insist that the national anthem of the Jewish State is played for all to hear. It’s been an agonizing year of unknowns, but Robert’s innately confident gamble in a strong and watchful G-d is one bet I am still willing to take.
Q&A with Robert Mizrachi
The following has been edited for clarity and length.
Jewish Journal: You are unapologetically pro-Israel, and you truly own your Jewish identity. Do you care what fans or anyone think about your steadfast Zionism?
Robert Mizrahi: No, I don’t care. I’m very pro-Israel. I know that standing with terrorists is against all of my beliefs. I saw what happened on 9/11 and the role of fanatic Islam, and how Palestinians celebrated both 9/11 and Oct. 7. I really don’t care what anyone thinks. Israel is like my right hand and America is my left. I need them both and I love them both.
“I really don’t care what anyone thinks. Israel is like my right hand and America is my left. I need them both and I love them both.”
JJ: How did you first learn about Oct. 7?
RM: I was sleeping at my friend’s house whose family and kids were in Israel. I woke up and saw his face. He was crying, along with his wife. I have so much family in Israel. I couldn’t believe it [Oct. 7]happened. It was so sad and heartbreaking to see how evil it was. I was in shock and in tears.
JJ: Have you personally experienced antisemitism this year?
RM: In Florida, it’s different. Our governor is pro-Israel, I was in [Las] Vegas this year and I joined a pro-Israel rally in solidarity with hostages in late October 2023, in front of Caesars [Palace]. A lot of police were there.
JJ: Are there any parallels between the game of poker and the reality of how countries such as America, Israel and other Middle Eastern countries, including Iran, are behaving today?
RM: The conflict in the Middle East is sad, especially because Hamas destroyed so many lives after Oct. 7. Like in poker, our enemies are always trying to ambush us. And like in poker, we have to make better plays to stop them. We also have to thank G-d for Iron Dome, for the IDF and the Mossad, and for America’s support.
“Like in poker, our enemies are always trying to ambush us. And like in poker, we have to make better plays to stop them.“
JJ: How did you stay busy during the first two years of COVID-19?
RM: During COVID, everyone was playing online games at home. I spent a lot of time doing meditation, cooking, going to the beach, and trying to spend time with my kids.
JJ: Have your children expressed any interest in playing poker?
RM: There’s no interest. My 16-year-old son is a mathematician. I would teach him how to play if he asked me, but I don’t want to force it. I’d rather my kids do something else, and play poker as a hobby. Maybe my daughter is a little more interested than my son.
JJ: What do you wish more people knew about playing poker?
RM: Poker is about reading people. It’s a psychological game. There’s a lot of technology and software right now that lets you study the game. With poker, I love the interactions with other people. I love that you can put your mind to it and have fun doing it. And that you make money. It feels good winning and making a big score.
JJ: How do world poker tournaments work in general?
RM: You compete each day in a different tournament. Fifteen percent of players will cash in and 85% leave with nothing. For each tournament you win at the World Series of Poker, we say you’ve won a bracelet. Michael won a bracelet as well in 2024. I’ve helped build tournament structures and what levels to play, or how to organize a tournament in a mathematical way. I’ve also invented two poker games, Super Stud High Low [played in casinos], and another High Low Chinese game.
JJ: What is it like to compete against Michael, your younger brother?
RM: We don’t really compete against each other, unless we’re at the same table and forced to. It happens sometimes. In 2010, we were both at the final table. That was a memorable table. Michael took me out of the tournament. Sometimes, Michael and I can read each other’s faces. And sometimes, I feel like the wise older brother.
JJ: You’re a home cook and a foodie. Favorite Israeli foods?
RM: I got to have my shawarma and hummus. There’s a hummus restaurant in [Las] Vegas called Pitas that makes the best hummus I ever had. My late grandmother, Marcel Mizrachi, used to live in the U.S., and then she made aliyah. She used to make the best pacha, malawach and kubba. We grew up eating the red kubba, the one that’s made with beets.
JJ: Any final messages you would like to share with readers?
RM: Keep praying for the hostages to come home.
For more information about Robert Mizrachi, follow him on X and Instagram @pokerrob24
Tabby Refael is an award-winning writer, speaker and weekly columnist for The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. Follow her on X and Instagram @TabbyRefael