Greg Raymer used to be a patent attorney that also played poker on the side. The 2004 World Series of Poker changed all that.

Raymer earned his way into the 2004 WSOP main event through an online poker site and became a favorite of the TV cameras due to his fun nickname and unusual glasses. Raymer is nicknamed “Fossilman” because he likes to collect fossils and actually uses one as a card protector at the tables. Raymer’s unusual glasses have holograms on the lenses which either show a pair of creepy eyes or two dinosaurs, depending upon the angle at which you’re looking at them.

The camera may have found Raymer because of his gimmicky specs, but it stuck close by him because he played great poker. Raymer lasted all the way to the final table and ended up heads-up with David Williams for the $5 million prize and title of Poker’s World Champion. On the final hand, Raymer’s pocket eights trumped Williams’ A-4 when the board ended up 4-3-5-2-2. Raymer pocketed the $5 million, which at the time was a record win, and was awarded the prestigious WSOP bracelet.

Raymer proved his poker prowess was no fluke a year later at the 2005 WSOP, after finishing an impressive 25th out of a huge field of 5619 players. Also that year, Raymer entered the inaugural British Poker Open in London and finished third, while taking on some of the best poker players Europe had to offer.

Since winning the WSOP main event, Raymer has stopped working as a patent lawyer and is a representative for PokerStars alongside other WSOP champions Chris Moneymaker and Joseph Hachem. Raymer doesn’t play in as many tournaments as most poker pros, instead preferring to spend time with his family in Raleigh, North Carolina. When you amass $5 million in one tournament you can probably do that.

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