Jason Mercier is coming off an unbelievable World Series of Poker where he won two bracelets, cashed 11 times and grabbed $960,424 in prize money, in conjunction with an untold, but definitely massive, sum in side bets. On Tuesday, the Floridian appeared at the Dan Le Batard Show on ESPN.

The audio of the interview are available here.

“I wonder how happy these guys actually are,” Le Batard said of poker pros, “it’s just another type of being a junkie, where it’s not enough to merely be in one][ poker tournament.” Le Batard was regarding players who multi-table tournaments on the WSOP.

Mercier eventually came on and described the experience looking to opt for a hat-trick on the WSOP. “I love playing poker,” Mercier told Le Batard after he asked him if he had a good time grinding as many bracelet events as possible on the Rio Convention Center.

“Do you could have a gambling problem?” Le Batard asked him at one point.

“No, I don’t think so,” Mercier responded. “I play poker to make money, and that i gamble to generate profits. It’s more of a role for me. The object that I always take a look at is, can you stop? Can you take a few weeks off and never play poker.”

Mercier, who has $17,253,095 in lifetime tournament earnings and five career WSOP bracelets, also discussed a $1 million loss in a cash game.

After the interview, he took to Twitter and explained how he felt concerning the interview. His feelings appeared mixed. “Degenerate, junkie, addict—not exactly my favorite words to explain myself as probably the greatest in my profession,” Mercier said. “Oh well, I’ll just keep printing!”

Read More... [Source: CardPlayer Poker News]