Matt Berkey

Matt Berkey isn’t your conventional poker pro, his background forcing him to think about the game much more deeply and in different ways.

Growing up “insanely poor” might not be the best background for a man who would choose poker as a career and go on to boom and bust several times, but Pennsylvanian Matt Berkey isn’t your conventional poker pro, his background forcing him to think about the game much more deeply and in different ways from his fellow high stakes players.

Primarily a cash game player, Berkey himself stating “I won’t go so far as to say that I hate tournaments, but they’re my least favorite form of poker,” the name might not ring so much of a bell for most poker fans, but millions won online and over $3million in tournament earnings show that the tall and lean American is an adaptable and versatile character.

Growing up in Leechburg, Pittsburgh, Berkey found an out with his love of baseball – playing throughout his college years in Allegheny and then Gannon, majoring in computer science with am minor in mathematics, but when the crunch came he decided on poker as his future – a game he’d discovered in school.

“I was spending four hours each day in practice or in the gym and then another four hours grinding online,” Berkey told Julio Rodriguez of Cardplayer back in 2013. “There was an Indian casino about an hour away, which gave me my first live experience, and I just got better over time.”

That better would see him walk-off with a $1.1million score at the 2015 Super High Roller Bowl - an unexpected result which got him fully back on track after a dismal time in 2012 and for a year or two afterwards. “It’s on record, I have gone broke a number of occasions”, he told Calvin Ayre’s Lee Davy last year, 2016.

“It’s the nature of the beast for people like me who have been playing for 12-years. The very last time I went broke in 2012 I had $300,000 to my name 18-months prior, and I made horrible business decisions.”

Now he has a small core of backers who help him to play the otherwise ridiculous huge buy-ins at things like the SHRB, a tournament which he sees as good value despite being cash-game focused for the most part.

“I have been playing high stakes cash for the better part of four years. I am a poker player by trade, so we find value,” he told Davy. “Anytime a $300,000 field comes up where they are adding $300,000 and ten businessmen sign up there is no reason not to play. Even though tournament poker isn’t my strongest suit, it’s my career. I can adjust. I was one of the first players to sign up.”

His new ‘Solving for Why Academy’ takes a novel approach to poker, Berkey describing it as “very abstract”, adding the idea is, “getting away from hand histories…we want to empower the attendees to be independent in their learning process.”

Add to this his recent ‘Dead Money’ documentary, following the run-up to his SHRB appearance last year, perhaps just one of a number of ‘poker content’ ideas he has for the future, it’s clear that Berkey – who has few close friends within the game of poker itself – is an ‘outlier’; a poker pro capable of adapting to whatever life has to throw at him.

Read More
6 years ago12,001BDJB,

Published 6 years ago

Matt Berkey Fires Back at Polk's Accusations!

A failed Live at The Bike $200/$400 cash game led Doug Polk to blast Matt Berkey for not turning up as planned! Matt's excuse is s...

6 years ago20,896BDJB,

Published 6 years ago

Matt Berkey Flush vs Full House $30,000 Pot!

High stakes cash game pro Matt Berkey runs his flush into Israeli Ron's rivered full house for a $30,000 pot filmed during an epis...

2 years ago5,401PokerTube,

Published 2 years ago

Matt Berkey Makes Huge $288K Bluff

Watch what happens when Matt Berkey goes all in with jack high for $288,000. Start your poker journey with a $2000 deposit bo...

2 years ago5,939PokerTube,

Published 2 years ago

Matt Berkey Makes Incredible Hero Call

Matt Berkey is put to the test by Gal when facing a $75K River bet with just one pair. Grab your $2000 deposit bonus Here. 

2 years ago6,019PokerTube,

Published 2 years ago

Poker Bunny Cash Game Highlights

Poker Bunny is back in the high stakes Huslter casino cash game where she destroys the opposition and wins big. Join our week...

7 years ago8,886BestPokerVids,

Published 7 years ago

Poker Hands - Jason Mercier gets Aces!

Jason Mercier picks up Doug Polk's favorite hand in a high stakes cash game on Poker Night In America. In this particular game, th...

5 years ago20,043Bellagio1,

Published 5 years ago

Poker Night In America - Matt Berkey Is FEARLESS!

This $50/$100 no limit hold'em cash game on Poker Night In America is full of action, and Matt Berkey is showing his skill in two ...

5 years ago16,637BDJB,

Published 5 years ago

Poker Night In America - S06 Ep07

9 players remain in the  $5,250 Championship event at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open presented by Poker Night In America a...

6 years ago61,422PokerTube,

Published 6 years ago

Poker Night in America Season 05 Episode 11

Top pros Tom Marchese, Jessica Dawley, Matt Berkey, Jennifer Tilly, Dan O'Brien, Aaron Mermelstein, and Dan Suied turn up for this...

9 years ago23,459ThePokerAces,

Published 9 years ago

Poker Night in America - S01 Ep16

The Poker Night in America high stakes cash game heads to the PepperMill Reno Casino in Nevada, featuring well known nam...

Want to Make a Million Playing Poker? Pros Tell You How

Noah Kagan recently asked a bunch of poker pros how they would make a million dollars if they started today

Doug Polk Takes Pot Shots at Matt Berkey in Nik Airball Spat

Doug Polk, Matt Berkey and HCL reg Nik ‘Airball’ Arcot have spent the past week feuding on social media

Doug Polk Annoys Veronica Brill by Mocking the Sports Illustrated Cover Woman

Polk received a lot of outraged tweets after referring to the current Sports Illustrated cover girl as "obese," with a furious Brill leading the charge

Bill Perkins Offers to Sponsor $200k Prize Boxing Match Between Matt Berkey and Robert Kuhn

A Twitter spat between poker pros Matt Berkey and Robert Kuhn escalated so far this week

Inside Mike Postle’s $330million Defamation Conspiracy Lawsuit: Who He Is Suing And Why

Now with access to the details of the complaint, we investigate not only who Postle is suing, but exactly why…

Mike Postle's Magazine Releases Anonymous Article Casting Doubt on Cheating Claims

Rounder Life magazine claims alleged cheat’s winrate is way off mark

Has Matt Berkey Discovered The Postlegate Cheating Method?

If Mike Postle is cheating, how is he doing it? Matt Berkey thinks he knows the answer…

Accused: Is Phil Hellmuth Ripping Off Stakers?

So far at least two people have been publicly called out and blocked by the Poker Brat.

Matt Berkey Hits Back at Doug Polk in TV Poker Row

It’s been a difficult time for high-stakes pro Matt Berkey, losing a $400k+ pot on Poker After Dark and incurring the wrath of Doug Polk for pulling out of a recent game.

Polk Slams Berkey Over Failed Live at The Bike Appearance

Doug Polk’s YouTube broadside this week against fellow highstakes pro Matt Berkey for not appearing at a big cash game has sparked a Twitter storm.