Eric Wasserson

Eric “Wass” Wasserson is an American professional poker player from the Philadelphia area whose broadcast appearances include High Stakes Poker, Hustler Casino Live and No Gamble No Future. His career is rooted in live cash games, with a background in both no-limit hold’em and mixed games.

Wasserson became interested in poker at 13, and his enthusiasm grew through his friendship with Jake Shak, the son of high-stakes player Dan Shak. Spending weekends in the family’s poker-playing household helped inspire him to pursue the game. He later studied finance at Lehigh University before leaving after just over two years to turn professional.

His mixed-game education began with books and low-stakes games at Atlantic City’s Borgata, where fellow players including Melissa Burr and Chris Klodnicki helped him develop. He has also spoken about learning to handle poker’s setbacks: reviewing mistakes, identifying improvements and then moving on rather than carrying frustration into the next session.

Away from the cards, Wasserson grew up playing basketball, baseball, tennis and golf. His public poker persona also includes the nickname “Popcorn,” used when he joined Daniel Negreanu as a guest co-host on the Full Contact Poker podcast to discuss the game and its personalities.