Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why did you create this site?
A: In order to have an easier time answering the question "Who is Rafe Furst?"

Q: Who asks you that question?
A: Mostly people who see me playing poker on FullTiltPoker.com?

Q: Why do they ask?
A: Because on the site, I am highlighted alongside well-known professional poker players like Phil Ivey, Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, and many others.

Q: What's your affiliation with Full Tilt?
A: I am a representative of the site. I play there regularly, and I try to encourage others to come play with me.

Q: So are you a professional poker player?
A: It depends on how you define "professional", but typically I answer "yes".

Q: So what's your definition of a pro?
A: Someone who makes a significant portion of their livelihood by playing.

Q: How much do you make?
A: While I understand and appreciate your curiosity, I choose not to reveal my personal finances. I'm sure you understand.

Q: I think you suck. Isn't the only reason I've heard of you is because you are friends with Phil Gordon?
A: Perhaps. I'd be happy to let you find out for yourself, just find me on FullTiltPoker.com and challenge me to a game :-)

Q: When did you become a pro?
A: When they fired me at my job for playing too much poker :-) Actually that's just a joke I tell, but the truth is, I can't really put a date on it or remember a particular decision point. I've always played poker as a serious hobby, and when I took a break from the corporate world in 2001, I found myself playing a lot of poker and other positive EV wagering, and I haven't yet returned to a more traditional job.

Q: What did you do before poker?
A: I was a web entrepreneur in online games and promotions, and before that a computer science researcher specializing in artificial intelligence.

Q: Why did you stop working in technology?
A: The company that I was working for went under during the dot com bubble burst. And also I was burnt out from working 70 hour weeks for 4 years without any real break, so I decided not to look for a new gig right away.

Q: Did you do anything besides play poker after you left Silicon Valley?
A: Yes, I did a lot of travelling, both internationally and across America, plus I spent time reconnecting with family and friends who I had neglected while I was working too hard. One of the most interesting and fun years of my life was in an RV travelling around the U.S. with Phil Gordon going to sporting events; it's all chronicled at UltimateSportsAdventure.com.

Q: So do you plan to ever return to a normal job?
A: Phil Gordon and I founded Expert Insight in 2005 along with two talented filmmakers. I was the interim President to get us off the ground, and now I serve as the CTO. I don't know what a normal job is anymore, I just do what is compelling to me and I tend to find things compelling that can be lucrative as well. The beauty of playing poker these days is that you can very easily fit it into a balanced life outside of poker, which is what I do.

Q: What kind of formal education do you have?
A: B.S. and M.S. in computational and cognitive sciences from Stanford University.

Q: Where and how did you learn to play poker?
A: I started playing with friends from school as a teenager. When I got to college, I started a regular game that still exists today. You may have heard of it. If not you can read all about it at Tiltboys.com. After college I spent a good amount of time on Rec.Gambling.Poker, and reading most of the good books available on the game. I went to Vegas and the public card rooms in California and played a lot. I spent a lot of time (still do) talking about the game with friends whose expertise I respect. And once internet poker came along, I started spending more and more time playing there.

Q: Do you play the major tournaments like the WSOP and WPT?
A: I have played a limited number of major tournaments over the last few years. I don't play nearly as many as most of the players I know who consider themselves pros these days.

Q: What's your best finish in a major?
A: I won a WSOP bracelet in PLH in 2006, won an Ulitmate Poker Challenge bracelet in 2005, and have a few other cashes of note.

Q: How did you bust out first in the 2003 World Series of Poker?
A: I flopped a set of tens against John Juanda, who had a set of queens. We got all his money in on the flop (I had him covered by about $1500). Layne Flack busted me a few hands later when one of us had a medium pocket pair and the other had AK, but I can't remember which of us had which. ESPN said it was 11 minutes into the tourney. They liked the story and did a piece on it the next year.

Q: Any other claims to fame in poker?
A: I finished 5th in a Ladies Only poker event at Bay101 dressed in drag. Along with Phil Gordon, I was featured on a national public radio show called "This American Life" during the 2001 WSOP. Phil and I were also the first to give daily national radio updates from the WSOP (in 2003) on Sporting News Radio. And while travelling the country during the Ultimate Sports Adventure, I proseletized for the poker lifestyle and discussed poker in over a hundred different radio, newspaper and television interviews across the U.S. and Canada. Most importantly though, I invited Phil Hellmuth to my home game where my buddies and I administered him the single biggest drubbing any of us has ever seen at a $1-$2 ($100 cap buy-in) NL session.

Q: How much money did Phil Hellmuth lose at the Tiltboys home game?
A: About $3,000.

Q: What other wagering do you do besides play poker?
A: Stock market, sports betting, blackjack, proposition bets and roshambo are some of my favorites. Occasionally I'll throw some money away away on negative EV games (like Pai Gow), but mostly I get no enjoyment from that. I'm very competitive, and if I know I can't win in the long run, I'm not really interested.

Q: What kinds of other projects are you involved in these days?
A: I am a Board Member of the Cancer Research & Prevention Foundation, a charity specializing in preventing and finding cures for cancer. I occasionally organize and help run poker events, like charity poker nights or corporate sponsored boondoggles.

Q: I would like to get involved in charity work too, but I don't really have much time or money to spare, or even know where to start. Have any advice?
A: If you are a poker player, I highly recommend checking out BadBeatOnCancer.org. You can make a difference with very little personal sacrifice of time or money.