Pokerchampion throws towel in the ring
Poker professional Rob Hollink from the Netherlands won from the best poker players troughout the world, millions of poker fans followed he's accomplishments while he was winning tournament after tournament. Last summer he acchieved the best result in he's entire career as an professional poker player by winning on the World Poker Championship in Las Vegas. Despite of all he's accomplishments Rob Hollink desided to quit playing international tourneys, according to him, the government made it impossible to play.

In 2005 an Australian poker player Joe Hacher won 7.5 million dollar playing a poker tourney in Vegas. He was welcomed home as as Hero in he's own country. The government was proud of him that he put their country in the international spotlights. With the dutch government however, you can forget about that kind of treat...

A gambling calculator, Or a calculating gambler, it doesn't mather to Rob Hollink what he is called. More then 20 years he made playing casino games he's profession.

"I just want to do what i like, take care of my family and don't be a burden to anyone else".

Luck seems to be on he's side; In eight years time he played almost 500 big tournaments in which he raked about 2 million euro's.

"It is my wage and i earn a good living. Poker is a game of skill and on a certain moment i found out how to win at it", he explains.

The basics according to him are mathematics, combined with tactics, bluffing and psychology. For Rob Hollink it is hard to beleive the operations of the government's financial system.

"I got a lot of bills from them, the one says i have to pay income tax, the other says i have to pay gambling tax". The gambling tax is 29%, a lot less then the normal 42% or 52% that is held from a normal wage.

That's good, you think! "What everyone is forgetting is that in eight years time i have spend 1.4 million euro on buy-ins and another tenthousands of euros on hotels and restaurants and flight tickets. When they just see me as an poker professional, then i can get back a certain amount of money, but when i pay gambling taxes, i have nothing left".

In addition he says "I better start earning my money playing illegal poker tournaments".

Click here to watch Rob Hollink win the first ever Dutch WSOP bracelet ever