Jason Somerville Com Out, First Openly Gay Pro Poker Player! - Perez Hilton

Contents:

• JASON SOMERVILLE COM OUT, FIRST OPENLY GAY PRO POKER PLAYER!
• THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985
• JASON SOMERVILLE, OPENLY GAY PROFSNAL POKER PLAYER: PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ACCEPTG
• "I'M MORE A POKER PLAYER THAN A MEMBER OF THE GAY MUNY" - JASON SOMERVILLE

JASON SOMERVILLE COM OUT, FIRST OPENLY GAY PRO POKER PLAYER!

Now, turns out, Jason is gay! He’s jt e out officially — which mak him the first prop poker player to be openly gay! Of all the diversy and variety that the poker world ntas, though, there is a noticeable lack of openly gay poker profsnals.

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

Vansa Selbst is a top tier player, a brilliant woman and an amazg person, but other than her, I’ve never met a sgle gay profsnal poker player, nevermd a high profile one. There’s plenty of speculatn – Daniel Negreanu, Tom Dwan, and a few other big name players who are actually very straight have received plenty of attentn om the gossip foms as beg potentially gay for havg a few mannerisms simply perceived that way. They’re not gay, though, and no man who is a well-known pro poker is open about .

SharkeyJay HayAs pta of New York Universy's men's volleyball team, Hay was open about beg gay, but shied away om makg an "It Gets Better" vio on his own. "Instead, I got a strong reactn of acceptance om both the poker world and the gay muny, " he says. He also is poker's first openly gay male profsnal petor.

"I [me out] bee was bt for me, but am amazgly moved and touched by the fact that people were touched, moved, spired bee of , " said Somerville, selected one of Out Magaze's "Out 100, " as one of last year's most proment gay activists, ambassadors and personali. Instead, was really well read the poker and the gay muni—and I got several thoand posive msag, jt wh the first 48 hours after g out. acceptg” of his g out gay.

JASON SOMERVILLE, OPENLY GAY PROFSNAL POKER PLAYER: PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ACCEPTG

The 26-year-old Somerville me out gay last year a lengthy. “I've had almost zero bad experienc as a gay profsnal. In part 2 of our terview wh Jason Somerville we learn what has been like to be one of the few openly gay high profile poker players on the circu.

"I'M MORE A POKER PLAYER THAN A MEMBER OF THE GAY MUNY" - JASON SOMERVILLE

What has the experience of beg the one of the only openly gay high profile poker players been like sce then? "I don't know why there aren't more openly gay players".

It seems odd that 2014 you are the only high profile openly gay male poker player. Do you thk somethg is preventg more gay players om g out, or do you thk somethg about poker is alienatg to gay players? My theory is that I thk that poker jt don't necsarily appeal to the typil openly gay person, but I don't know if that's really te.

I really don't feel like I n speak for the gay muny bee I'm much more immersed the poker world than I am to the LGBT muny.