ICYMI: Wayland Pro Poker Player's Podcast Named Among Five Best in Country

WAYLAND, MA—With live tournament winnings exceeding $1.9 million by 2012, Bernard Lee started to make his name in the professional poker circuit when he finished 13th in the 2005 World Series of Poker. He earned three more titles in the next three years in the World Poker Tournament, and a multitude of other events and tournaments. Currently, he's won more than $2 million and has six titles.

Lee tells Patch that it was that big win in 2005 that prompted him to jump from making poker a hobby to a profession.

"I believed that I had the ability to play professionally," he said. "However, I didn't want to jump the gun, so over the next two years I continued to work full-time and play poker. After I won two major tournaments on tour and decided to make the leap. A decade later I'm still doing it. It wasn't just the poker playing that made me decide to make the change. After I made the Main Event in 2005, I began getting many media opportunities. I left my job knowing that no only would I be playing, but I would be an integral part of the poker media."

Lee, who lives in Wayland, did indeed become a household name in professional poker worldwide, became a part of the poker media, even called "the voice of poker in New England" by Cardplayer.com. Now, he's got another notch in his belt.

PokerUpdate recently announced its Top 5 Must-Listen Poker Podcasts, and the radio show hosted by Lee, called The Bernard Lee Poker Show, was included on this prestigious list.

“I’m honored for the recognition. It’s a lot of fun to share the show with my listeners each week, and I’m thrilled we will celebrate our 10th anniversary next year,” Lee said in a statement. “I have my loyal and passionate listeners to thank for my longevity, and I hope to give back to them when we start celebrating in a few months.”

The Bernard Lee Poker Show airs on Tuesdays on RoundersRadio.com, one of the largest online poker talk radio stations in the world with listeners in more than 85 countries, and podcasts are available on RoundersRadio.com and iTunes.

"It's a combination of things," Lee said when asked why listeners respond so well to his show. "First, my guests are top poker players, rising stars on the poker landscape, and industry professionals. When I am interviewing my guests, I ask them the questions players would ask if they had the opportunity. I'm not only a professional poker player, I'm also a poker fan. Through those questions I am able to provide listeners with the answers they want, whether it be about a guest's background, poker tournaments, or in depth poker strategy."

Poker apparel company RunGoodGear.com signed Lee on as a member of its team of professional poker players in 2013, according to an announcement. Lee became a spokesperson for Blaycation, a specialty travel company that combines individuals’ bucket lists with unique vacations, in 2015. Also in 2015, Lee joined the Blue Shark Optics Pro Team.

The Bernard Lee Poker Show incorporates interviews with poker players and prominent industry personnel with poker news and tips, said the release. Previous guests have included WSOP champions Doyle Brunson, Chris Moneymaker, Joseph Hachem, Jonathan Duhamel, Greg Merson and most recently the 2016 champion, Qui Nguyen; WPT commentators Mike Sexton and Lynn Gilmartin; ESPN commentators Norman Chad and Lon McEachern; poker superstars Daniel Negreanu, Erik Seidel, Dennis Phillips, and Jason Mercier; and members of the 2008 through 2016 WSOP November Nine.

Lee is also poker writer for ESPN.com, Card Player and All-In magazines. He's got two books, as well: The Final Table, Volume I and Volume II are compilations of the Sunday Boston Herald poker columns he penned for seven years. Lee is also a poker instructor and commentator for the WSOP and New England’s Eastern Poker Tour. He is a former co-host of ESPN.com’s weekly online poker show, “ESPN Inside Deal.”

Follow Lee on Twitter and Instagram at @BernardLeePoker.
Photo courtesy: Bernard Lee Poker