Isabelle Mercier

A poker biography of Isabelle Mercier.

Quick Information

Name - Isabelle Mercier

Born - August 5th 1975, Victoriaville, Quebec, Canada

Poker Room - Pokerstars.com

Biography

Most of the time, poker is just a mind game. In poker tables, when most men would be found playing, there is a certain charm when a female poker player joins the table. Intimidation could play out in the games, but this only means that the game is intense. Nevertheless, a lady player need not be carried away with the intimidation of men in the gaming tables.

In September 2004, Isabelle Mercier, became the top winner for the World Poker Tour (WPT) Ladies Night Out Invitational II event. A remarkable lady player has just made her way to the top of the poker industry.

Born and raised in Victoriaville, Quebec, Mercier first became associated with the poker industry by working at the dazzling Casino de Montreal as a casino blackjack dealer. While having a casino job, Mercier was also a University of Montreal law student. After college, she worked for one year as a practicing commercial lawyer. After a year of law works, Mercier transferred to Paris and became a Sorbonne University Master's degree student with an international law specialization. After her Master's degree education, Mercier became an Aviation Club de France poker dealer. Eventually, Mercier became the casino poker manager. Her four-year Aviation Club experience made her become the trusted assistant of the legendary French poker star Bruno Fitoussi. The decision to pursue her dream of playing poker professionally made her leave Aviation Club.

In 2004, Mercier entered her very first poker tournament. When she won the September 2004 event, she was tagged as 'No Mercy' by Mike Sexton because of the dynamic style she displayed in poker tables. Winning the three World Series of Poker events in 2005 made Mercier even more famous. Then, Mercier caught the attention of PokerStars.com that she became the traveling ambassador of the poker site. When not playing in tournaments, Mercier can be seen playing in the poker site using her 'NoMercy' name. Aside from winning in tournaments, Mercier has been an analyst in the three WPT Championship editions. Moreover, she has also been nominated twice as 'Casino Staff Person of the Year' and once as 'Rookie of the Year' in the European Poker Awards.

Mercier attributes her winning skills in having a good woman instinct. She finds her instinct very helpful when she is surrounded by men in poker tables. Mercier also thinks that reading other players is a skill that is hard to practice, yet this skill comes easily with women. Whereas, learning the mathematical skill of poker can be mastered by anyone with enough dedication. Although she plays using intense stares to intimidate other players, Mercier is honest to admit that she looks up to poker players Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, and her idol Gus Hansen, as tough competitors. Traveling most of the time makes Mercier a homeless player. Though she is away from home most of the time, she still finds time to run, read, listen to music, and have candlelit baths. When not playing in tournaments, Mercier reads and talks about poker.

Last Updated ( Saturday, 08 December 2007 )

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