Martin Jacobson, Poker Biography

by Jennifer Newell

Growing up with dreams of becoming a chef, Martin Jacobson couldn't have predicted he would be one of the top poker players on something called the European Poker Tour. But with his success in the game in the last few years, he likely doesn't question changing career paths.

Jacobson was born in 1987 in Sweden, and he discovered poker on television when he was 18 years old. What started with a casual interest via home games with friends and free games online took a turn when he realized the talent he possessed for poker. He made a deposit on an online poker website and began playing low limit cash games and low buy-in tournaments. Though he was still on a chef path at the time, hoping to move to Barcelona and work at a top restaurant, poker became an income generator and filled in when restaurant offers did not happen.

In his first few years as an online poker player, Jacobson earned more than $300K in tournaments. Some of his wins included the PokerStars Bigger $55 and the $109 NLHE event. He also began to win seats to live tournaments through his online play at PokerStars. One such seat took him to the EPT Budapest in 2008, and he finished third in that Main Event for €197,904.

With a substantial live tournament bankroll in addition to continuing online success, Jacobson played more live events and did well. In 2009, he traveled to the United States and made the final table of the Mega Stack Series Championship Event and finished second. Back in Europe, he final tabled a €5K NLHE side event at the EPT Grand Final in Monte Carlo. Later than year, he took second at the World Poker Tour Venice Main Event for €238,840, and he made the final table of a World Series of Poker $1,500 NLHE event back in Las Vegas.

While the following year brought more success around the world, including another WSOP final table, that time for fourth place in a $1,500 NLHE event for $183,345, it was on the EPT that he picked up an even bigger finish. He played the EPT Vilamoura Main Event and finished second for €297,985. He then started 2011 on the EPT and finished second again, that time at the Deauville stop in France and took home €560K. He cashed in the EPT Copenhagen Main Event the following month, and he final tabled the Nordic Masters of Poker Main Event in Stockholm in March. At the EPT Berlin Main Event, he finished fourth for €230K and final tabled a side event as well.

In 2011, Jacobson cashed in another three WSOP events, then the EPT in Barcelona. His next final table was in September at the WPT Rendez-Vous a Paris, where he finished in sixth place for €88,900. Most recently, he went deep in the 2012 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas, finishing tenth in the $10K Main Event for $101K.

Jacobson is known for being one of the best players ever to compete in EPT events, and his live tournament earnings alone surpass the $2.7 million mark. One of the perks of his life as a professional poker player is the ability to travel, though he created a home base in London as a change from his home country of Sweden.

Those who know Jacobson on the tournament trail regard him as a model for other players, always showing respect for the game and his opponents. His skills garner much respect as well, and a big win for him is likely just around the corner.

Read Martin Jacobson's Profile for more information including tournament results and total winnings.

More Poker Biographies | Player Profiles

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Jennifer Newell is a freelance writer, originally from St. Louis but now living in Los Angeles. She fell in love with poker while working at WPT and began writing about it in 2005.