Jean-Robert Bellande(pictured) recently surprised the poker community when he Tweeted a picture of himself holding bricks of cash, buying into the $1 million WSOP Big One for One Drop. Many wondered how someone who has built a social media following by styling himself as being perpetually broke could come up with the astronomical sum necessary to enter such an event.

Luckily for his fans, Bellande isn’t a man prone to mystery and in a candid interview with Bluff Europe gave more details on how the whole thing came about.

“I wanted to play last time a couple of years ago. I raised about 60% of the money and then it didn’t happen,” he explained. “Recently I’ve had a couple things go my way and had a few people say they were interested in partnering with me for the One Drop. So, I decided to give it a go.”

Bellande has reportedly been on a hot streak at the high-stakes games hosted at notorious Instagramer Dan Bilzerian‘s house. “I had a pretty good score recently at my buddy [Dan’s]house,” he said. “That gave me a chance to put a decent portion away. I’m not going to be broke living anymore!”

In a seven-figure buy-in tournament, even the most well bankrolled pros are wary of putting up the entire amount themselves. Even PokerStarssponsored pro Daniel Negreanu (pictured) has taken to selling 50% of himself for a seat. So how much of a stake does Bellande have in himself? “I can say I have less than 30% of myself,” he revealed. “I can’t say much more than that.”

But he did dish more on his relationship with Bilzerian, saying that the high-stakes gambler had staked him, but lost around $1 million and jumped ship. Even so, he said, the two remain friends and constantly needle one another at the tables. “He loves to give me a hard time and loves busting my balls and I do the same to him,” he said. “I’m a fan of his; I’m not going to say he’s a fan of mine, but he’s definitely in my corner.”

Bellande claims that much of Bilzerian’s social media success stemmed from the popularity of his own Twitter following. “He saw my broke living thing and said, ‘Let me give the world a taste of some rich living,” he said.

For someone who will soon play in a million-dollar tournament, Bellande is surprisingly relaxed about the whole experience. While many would take the opportunity to hone their skills, the 43-year-old revealed that he has only played “something like 2-3 tournaments in the past six months.”

Even so, Bellande thinks he is underrated by his peers and has a unique advantage due to his experience in private high-stakes games. “I know how to play against fellow pros and I know how to play against business guys,” he claimed. “In the cash games, I play against both groups all the time,” he said. “There’s a difference: you can’t play against the two the same and I’m somebody who understands that difference. I think that’s going to give me an edge.”

There are some, though, whom he would rather avoid, calling Brian Rast, Andrew Robl, Scott Seiver, and defending champion Antonio Esfandiari (pictured) “super tough.” “I’m not fearing anybody, though, but obviously I’d rather be up against less tough opponents,” he admitted.

Bellande, known for being charismatic and down to earth, thinks that a One Drop win for him would also be a win for the entire poker community. “Me winning this One Drop would be akin to when Chris Moneymaker won the WSOP Main Event. It’s something that would be great for poker.”

Seats for the Big One for One Drop are filling fast, with the event set to run from June 29 to July 1. The One Drop foundation, created by Guy Laliberte, will receive $111,111 from each buy-in as a charitable donation.

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