How The Star of VeniVidi1993 Was Born

Introduction to Poker

Somewhat surprisingly, Gerrits started his poker career as a 14-years-old teenager in the Netherlands. He played poker for the first time with his friends and even then, his poker decisions were both tough and bold:

“During one game, I found myself drawing to a gutshot straight on the turn. My friend Roger made a big bet, and I called, hoping to hit the nuts. When the perfect card landed, I bet big and got called, feeling pretty pleased with myself for winning a sizable pot.”

However, he didn’t let himself drown in self-praise and started to analyze the game for the first time:

“How lucky had I been to hit that gutshot? What would I have done if I hadn’t? Was it even a smart play? That moment sparked my interest in poker, and it was only the beginning.”

A few months later Dirk caught his brother playing on one of the softest poker websites of that time — PKR. He was fascinated and started to play too:

“The games were softer compared to other networks since it wasn’t purely focused on poker. I started out playing for fake money, and since no one took it seriously, I quickly rose through the ranks. Soon, though, I was craving a new challenge.”

When his friend Ward informed Gerrits that he can play some tournaments for free and win money, the future poker boss rushed to grind the poker freerolls:

“I began grinding the freerolls with serious dedication. By then, I was 15, and I knew PKR’s freeroll schedule better than my own high school timetable. Sometimes, I’d win a few bucks, but I’d usually lose it just as fast at the $0.02/$0.04 NLHE tables.”

First Real Money

To start playing real games, Gerrits obviously needed to make a deposit into an account, which is difficult to do when you are just 15. That’s why he went to his parents seeking help:

“I wanted to put that 50 euros into a poker account under my dad’s name. When I brought it up, my parents were understandably hesitant. My mom flat-out disagreed, and my dad didn’t think it was a good idea either. But he had recently read a book on parenting, which suggested sometimes saying “yes” when your instinct is to say “no.”

His father spent some time thinking it over and approached Dirk with a suggestion:

“Listen, don’t tell your mom, but we’ll put the money into a poker account in my name. You can give this poker thing a shot. If you lose it, though, you’ll have to drop this dream.”

However, after they made a €50 deposit into dad’s account — which Gerrits named “kidpoker14”, as a nod to Daniel Negreanu and football legend Johan Cruyff — the money lasted only a week. In an attempt to continue his poker dream, Gerrits made a big mistake — he opted to use his father’s credit card and deposit around $1,000 to the poker account:

“I had to come clean to my dad before he found out on his own. To my surprise, he stayed calm and simply asked if I had lost it all. I told him the entire sum was gone, even though I had $100 left. “We’ll get rid of the credit card and this will be the end of your poker career,” he said. “And you’ll have to pay me back the extra money you took.”

For the next half of the year Dirk grinded like a madman and eventually turned $100 into $16,000, becoming very proud of himself:

“Did I have a real edge over my opponents? I’m not entirely sure. But I felt confident that I was smarter than most of the field, because PKR was incredibly soft at the time. When you’re 16, $16,000 feels like a million, so I went downstairs to share the good news with my parents, fully expecting them to be thrilled. Their reaction? Well, let’s just say it wasn’t what I imagined.”

Initiation by Cashout

With $16 grand in his account and stone cold confidence, VeniVidi1993 was ready to tell his parents about his success. But their reaction took him by surprise:

“The room falls silent as they exchange glances, clearly stunned. After what feels like an eternity, my dad finally speaks up, “Son, you do realize you’re not playing for real money, right?”

Gerrits was frustrated by the reality check. He tried to explain that the money was more than real but his parents insisted on consulting with their banker neighbor. The neighbor suggested they try to withdraw the money from the poker room and see if it works. Unfortunately for Gerrits, weeks after the cashout request his family didn’t see a cent. The teenager began to lose patience:

“After several discussions with my parents, I finally reach out to customer support. “Why is my cash-out taking so long?” I ask. Their response? “The financial department is on holiday, so withdrawals are delayed.”

I head downstairs and relay the message to my parents, who burst into laughter. “You’re never going to see a dime of that money,” they tell me. At the time, I was furious at them for not taking me seriously. But in hindsight, their skepticism made sense—the delay was starting to sound ridiculous.”

However, this story came to somewhat happy ending: a short time after, when his father decided to check his bank account, the money was finally there: 

“His face goes pale before he suddenly shouts, “Dirk! Dirk! The money — it’s here!” We celebrate, I quit my paper route, and start living like a 16-year-old baller. I offer my dad a percentage of the winnings, since he played a role in making it happen, but he declines. “You earned it,” he says.”

A Secret (Almost) Worth $25,000

With the money out of the poker account, Gerrits savored every second of his newfound wealth within his age range. At the same time, he began to play more and more poker up to the point when he had been logging between 20 and 25 hours a week at the table, which inevitably affected his performance in school. This didn’t stop him from playing though:

“It got to the point where, if I kept it up, I’d have to repeat the year. My parents warned me to stop playing and focus on school, but the appeal and passion for poker had taken hold. Whenever they came into my room, I’d quickly minimize the poker client and pull up something else on my screen — something they wouldn’t question at the start.”

Dirk’s parents’ concern continued to grow until reaching climax:

“Then one day, my mom walked into my room and asked what I was doing. “Just playing a game,” I told her. She wasn’t buying it. “You can play games with your opponents, but you can’t play games with your mom. I’m coming back in a few moments, and you’ll show me your poker account. If it’s not empty, you’re going to be in serious trouble.”

At this point, Gerrits’ poker account had $25,000. He needed a way to move the money while still having a quick way to return it. The solution he found became “one of the dumbest financial decisions” of his life — Gerrits decided to place a sports bet:

“I open the sportsbook on PKR and begin searching for a bet that’s likely to win but won’t be paid out for a while. Scrolling through the options, I come across the Premier League championship — England’s top football league. Chelsea to become champions with two matches left. Odds: 1.25. Based on the odds, it’s likely to happen about 3 out of 4 times. The payout would hit my account two weekends from now. Chelsea was leading by one point, with more goals than their closest rival, Manchester United.”

So, by the time the mother returned to the room, the account was emptied. And for the next two weeks Gerrits and a few of his close friends at school became die-hard Chelsea fans:

“They win their first match, and the excitement builds. The second weekend, I’m on holiday with my parents in Paris. But all I can think about is Chelsea’s last match. I’m constantly refreshing the live scores, likely setting a personal record for the most refreshes during a single game. They go up 1-0, 2-0, and by the time they reach 4-0, I stop checking and quietly celebrate.”

Happy he’d won the bet, Gerrits invited his parents, brother and sister to go out for dinner. He wanted to tell them that the reason for celebration was $31,250 iin his account but instead told them that he just wanted to thank them “for always taking such good care” of him. That evening they celebrated his success together without even knowing it. 

However, in the end Gerrits was held back a year in high school:

“At 16, I have to repeat my 5th year of high school, mostly due to poker and being completely disorganized. While the people around me aren’t impressed, I’m actually excited. Repeating the year will give me an easier time at school, allowing me to focus more on poker.”

During that year Gerrits increased his bankroll to more than $100,000, confirming his natural poker talent:

“Reaching that milestone showed I had raw talent, but I was overlooking how fortunate I had been in critical moments. It’s easy to attribute success solely to skill, but in both poker and life, luck often plays a much larger role than we’re willing to admit, especially when it matters most.”

At that time Gerrits already chose his future as a poker player but decided to finish high school for his parents. People around him weren’t pleased by this choice, except for his father who continued to support his son no matter what. As he told Gerrits:

“If you believe in this, you should chase it.”