Vallejo Man Admits to Lying About Cancer for World Series of Poker Main Event
Posted on: September 21, 2023, 11:29h.
Last updated on: September 21, 2023, 11:29h.
A man from Vallejo, California has confessed to fabricating his terminal colon cancer diagnosis to raise funds for the $10K buy-in of the World Series of Poker Main Event.
Rob Mercer, a 37-year-old poker player, managed to gather $12,500 through a GoFundMe page and received an additional $18,000 in private donations. However, in an interview with The Las Vegas Review-Journal, Mercer stated that he has no intentions of returning any of the money.
The Review-Journal reached out to Mercer after publishing a heartwarming story about his experiences at the World Series of Poker. However, some donors grew suspicious and turned against Mercer after the piece was released in July.
“I did lie about having colon cancer. I don’t have colon cancer. I used that to cover my situation,” Mercer confessed to the newspaper. “What I did was wrong. I shouldn’t have told people I have colon cancer. I did that just as a spur-of-the-moment thing when someone asked me what kind of cancer I had.”
‘Dying’ Wish
Mercer, who described himself as a semi-professional player in his GoFundMe page, revealed that he had never had the financial means to participate in the Main Event. He expressed his doubts about whether he would ever fulfill his dream.
“I found myself going back and forth, contemplating whether I should initiate this fundraiser because my pride is important to me, and I dislike asking for help,” Mercer wrote on GoFundMe. “But my dream has always been to play the World Series of Poker Main Event.”
He claimed that in August 2022, he received a stage 4 cancer diagnosis with a life expectancy of six to 18 months. This made his dream of participating in the poker event even more urgent.
‘Vindictive Villain’
Mercer explained to The Review-Journal that he lied about having colon cancer because he actually believes he has breast cancer, although it has not been diagnosed. He chose to claim colon cancer as it seemed less “embarrassing” compared to breast cancer.
Mercer further stated that there is no need to refund the money since it was donated to him under the assumption of his illness, which he claims is genuine.
Cody Daniels, a genuine poker player with a terminal illness, was among the donors.
“They’re portraying me as some kind of monster, a vindictive villain who meticulously planned this months in advance,” Mercer expressed to The Review-Journal. “It’s simply absurd. But I understand it. I get it.”
Mercer was eliminated from the World Series Main Event within a few hours.