Metairie native and businessman John Cressend is doing his half to problem the stereotype that an accountant’s life could also be boring.

For practically 20 years, the proprietor of Cressend CPA has helped people and companies throughout the Larger New Orleans space navigate their books, taxes, and monetary methods. Away from the workplace, Cressend’s different aggressive outlet has taken him from native card rooms to poker’s greatest stage, the place he has performed in opposition to a number of the prime gamers on this planet.

This summer time, the Archbishop Rummel and College of Louisiana at Lafayette graduate competed in his fifth consecutive and sixth total World Sequence of Poker occasion in Las Vegas. He entered the $10,000 important occasion and landed at a Day 1 featured desk that was streamed on the WSOP YouTube channel.

One hand rapidly made the rounds on-line. Cressend was all in with pocket aces in opposition to two gamers holding pocket kings and pocket queens. His aces held, and he gained the pot. Cressend was later eradicated on Day 2, however not earlier than competing in a discipline of greater than 9,000 gamers chasing an $85.6 million prize pool, the fourth-largest match within the occasion’s historical past.
The hand has acquired greater than 127,000 views on Fb and over 10,000 views on YouTube.

“Being on a featured desk and on TV this yr is one thing that I’ll all the time bear in mind,” Cressend mentioned. “[Professional poker player] Josh Arieh was at our desk, so the cameras stayed on us for some time, after which I had a hand that went viral, so it made for a good cooler expertise.”

Although he’s nonetheless chasing a WSOP bracelet, Cressend has gained greater than a dozen sanctioned tournaments, together with a deep stack combined match whereas on the WSOP this summer time and a $400 No-Restrict Maintain’em WSOP Circuit ring occasion at Caesars New Orleans in Might.

He has cashed for greater than $500,000 in tournaments and has sat throughout from a number of the greatest names in poker, together with Phil Hellmuth, former WSOP Essential Occasion champion Greg “Fossilman” Raymer, and Chris Moneymaker, the 2003 WSOP Essential Occasion champion who helped encourage Cressend and a era of newbie gamers. Moneymaker’s unlikely championship run helped gasoline the poker growth on tv, on-line, in neighborhood money video games, and inside on line casino poker rooms. Like Cressend, Moneymaker was an accountant.

“I used to be in faculty and had a waiter job at Bennigan’s,” Cressend mentioned. “I bear in mind seeing Moneymaker on ESPN working by means of all these professionals, and I used to be like, ‘I can do that. Why not me?’ So, I bear in mind taking my tricks to neighborhood video games or taking part in on-line. Poker was booming, and I used to be good at it. It helped me pay for lease once I was recent out of school and an unemployed, younger accountant.”

From household card tables to the poker site

Cressend’s poker story didn’t begin in a on line casino. It began across the household card desk with rummy, five-card draw, seven-card stud, Go Fish, and virtually the rest that might be performed with a deck of 52 playing cards.

“I bear in mind being round playing cards since I used to be in diapers,” Cressend mentioned. “My household was all the time taking part in one thing, so a desk filled with card gamers has all the time felt pure to me. I used to be 5 years previous continuously taking part in a poker online game on TV. I simply liked taking part in playing cards.”

In 2007, Cressend moved again to the New Orleans space and joined his father’s accounting enterprise, which has served the Larger New Orleans space for greater than 40 years. Cressend later turned a companion. At present, he and his spouse, Christy, who can be a CPA, run the agency collectively.

“I’m one in all three kids, and my siblings had little curiosity in taking on the enterprise, so my dad requested me if I wished to present it a shot, and my spouse and I did,” Cressend mentioned. “I take pleasure in accounting and serving to individuals set themselves up for his or her futures. Working in numbers, technique, and threat administration helps take my poker recreation to a different degree.”

Cressend took a quick hiatus from poker whereas he and Christy targeted on the enterprise and raised their two kids. He nonetheless performed often, inserting tenth in a WSOP Circuit match at then-Harrah’s On line casino, now Caesars New Orleans, in 2011, adopted by match appearances in 2014 and 2015 on the Beau Rivage On line casino in Biloxi.

In 2017, as his kids bought older, Cressend returned to poker extra significantly, making it a part of his routine earlier than and after tax season.

Again on the match circuit

Cressend competed in six tournaments in 2017, together with two WSOP Circuit New Orleans wins; 4 tournaments in 2018, together with his first WSOP expertise in Las Vegas; and 9 tournaments in 2019, when he recorded his greatest money of greater than $62,000 within the $1,700 No-Restrict Maintain’em WSOP Circuit Essential Occasion in New Orleans.

“That’s once I sort of knew that I might compete on the highest degree, and my spouse was satisfied as properly, which was most vital,” Cressend laughed. “It really is a passion for me. It’s my golf. So long as it stays enjoyable for me, I’ll maintain doing it.”

Since 2022, Cressend has change into an everyday summer time presence on the World Sequence of Poker in Las Vegas. His greatest important occasion run got here when he reached Day 3 earlier than being eradicated.

“Vegas is a special animal of competitors,” Cressend mentioned. “Irrespective of how good you’re feeling popping out of native and regional occasions, it’s a special expertise and really the stage for the perfect of the perfect. I’ve grown my recreation lots by taking part in on the market.”

Since returning residence from his newest WSOP expertise — full with a featured desk look and an all-in hand that made the rounds on YouTube — Cressend has laughed in regards to the consideration. There have been textual content messages, Fb feedback, telephone calls, and even purchasers coming into the workplace after recognizing him from TV.

His kids roll their eyes when he says, “Ya know, dad went viral. I’m sort of a giant deal now.”