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Table Of Contents
- The Grinder Got It From His Momma
- "He's a Showman"
It's no secret that poker talent runs through the Mizrachi family. Between newly minted World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event champion and Poker Hall of Fame inductee Michael Mizrachi and his brothers Robert, Eric and Daniel, the Mizrachis have 13 bracelets, three World Poker Tour (WPT) titles and over $39 million in Hendon Mobearnings.
But the Mizrachi poker story doesn't start with these three brothers. The talented and decorated poker players, one of whom just pulled off the most remarkable feat in tournament poker history, learned cards from their mother, Susan Laufer.
"I played a lot of cards with friends and my kids would be there watching (and say), 'Mommy has an ace and joker!'" Laufer told PokerNews. "And then I would yell at them and they would go downstairs and make their own games."
Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi Ascends to Legendary Status
The Grinder Got It From His Momma
Just as she would teach the game to her sons years later, Laufer, who lives in Cooper City, Florida, learned poker in the household.
"We'd always play," she said. "We used to play at home when I was a kid, my dad and family and friends would play."
Laufer, who lacks the neck and knuckle tattoos of The Grinder but shares his charisma and welcoming personality, was on the rail in the Horseshoe Event Center as her son made poker history by winning the $10,000 Main Event just weeks after winning his fourth $50,000 Poker Players Championship title. As she stood in the Thunderdome watching her son give a round of interviews, PokerNewsasked Laufer who Michael got his poker talents from.
"Who do you think?" she replied. "It was from his MommaGrinder!"
"MommaGrinder" is Laufer's online poker screen name, which is precisely where Michael first made a name for himself growing up in the Sunshine State.
"He was very young, he was playing on the internet, and he was making all this money," Laufer said. "I was like, where are you getting all that money from? And the kids were laughing. They were kids playing poker, playing heads-up."
As the stakes grew, Laufer witnessed Michael demonstrate good character. "Once, Michael played heads-up for $5,000. I said, are you crazy? And the guy lost (internet) connection. Michael sent him back the money. He said, 'I'm not taking his money. He lost connection. It's not fair.' And I said, wow, I'm so proud of you, Michael."
"He's a Showman"
Laufer flew to Vegas from Florida as soon as she learned Michael had reached the Main Event final table, where he proceeded to crush his opponents to win the whole thing in a matter of hours in front of a rail that included his family and fellow grinders like Mike Matusow and Chino Rheem.
"He's an unbelievable poker player," she said. "I think, to me, he's one of the best in the world. And he has no fear. It's like he's playing with his homeboys. He plays like he's playing at home. Really no fear. Just goes all in. He doesn't care."
"It's like he's playing with his homeboys. He plays like he's playing at home. Really no fear. Just goes all in. He doesn't care."
The archetypal supportive mother, Laufer, who wore a custom-printed Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi shirt and donned patches of her son's sponsors, had plenty of praise left for Michael and his brothers. "Honest, good heart, good son, good brother, good friend. I think he's amazing. All my boys are amazing. I'm very proud of them. I'm happy to watch him. He's a showman."
Laufer has $20,931 in live earnings and recorded her first Hendon Mobcash in July 2004 — just four months after Michael's first career cash — from a runner-up finish in a $1,000 Bellagio tournament that earned her $16,509. She may even try to win a bracelet of her own one day.
"I never really have time to sit and do the WSOP," Laufer said. "But one of these days I'll get involved with it."
