Nearly one year ago Ari Engel should have been on top of the world. He moved into sole possession of first place all-time for World Series of Poker Circuit rings with 17. He should have been toasting his friends, he should have responded to the round of applause the floorman called for in the Horseshoe Hammond – he should have been happy.
He should have had someone to call.
It was October 9. Two days after the horrific events of October 7 in Israel. Two days where he didn’t know if family members were dead or missing. Two days without any contact.
Two days removed from one that will haunt him forever.
Painful return to Hammond
Engel struggled through a meaningless winner’s interview, saying, “It’s nice to win, but my heart is in Jerusalem right now, so it’s bittersweet.” He tried to force a smile, but his thousand-yard stare screamed a different story.
He left Hammond the next day, moving on to his next home for a few days, while thousands of miles away his ancestral home struggled to recover from the worst act of terror in a generation.
Engel had some guilt about being so far away. "I was thousands of miles away with physical worry," he said. He was on his own path, playing poker across America as his people tried to come together.
Two weeks shy of a year on, Engel won his 18th WSOPC ring and returned to Hammond. A place that brings more pain than anything else. Earlier this year, he lost his friend Justin Brown to an aggressive form of cancer, who was a staple at Hammond events.
“Coming here brings out a lot of feelings,” said Engel. “Coming back is…,” he paused to collect himself. “We always joked that Indiana was my second home with him.”
In a secluded corner of the Horseshoe, Engel opened up.
Growing up with generational trauma
“My grandpa is a Holocaust survivor and I’m named after someone who was killed in the Holocaust,” he began. “For most Jewish people there’s a generational trauma.”
“There’s an important line in the Jewish faith that says, ‘every generation someone tries to come after us and kill us,’” he said.
“I always had a bit of a problem with it because it’s a pretty negative way of thinking,” Engel continued. “But it seems to be that’s the case. This was another act that happened to us on a Jewish holiday.”
Engel’s family waited for days to hear from his family in Israel. Most of his family are largely Orthodox, which meant they wouldn’t use a phone during the holiday. “We had no idea what was happening to my brother, grandparents, and many cousins,” he said.
“It was a very painful time for our people,” said Engel. “When you’re a tiny minority in the world, you end up feeling more of a connection to people that have gone through something – we’re all kind of related to each other.”
Engel mostly travels alone while grinding the circuit. He felt tremendous support from friends – Jewish and not. “It’s a call back to after 9/11, when Americans had so much unity with each other,” he said.
“Horrible times can bring unity out that’s within us,” he continued. “It’s such a shame and I wish we could have that feeling when things are better.”
“Social media tends to highlight people fighting and extreme viewpoints that people latch onto,” said Engel. “I believe that the vast majority of people are more similar to each other than they know – whether it’s pro-Israel or pro-Palestine – I believe peace is something that can happen.”
Engel is a modern-day vagabond, living home-free and chasing the next tournament endlessly. He’s been without a permanent address for years – one of the reasons he piles up so many results.
“I’ve lost all my other hobbies,” he said. “I just don’t really have other things I want to do. If I go on vacation, I’ll sit on the beach for 45 minutes before I want to play again. I like the competition; I like what I do.”
“Because I play No Limit and Mixed, online and in person, there’s always a choice for me,” he said. “I just want to play; it’s what I want to do most.”
The never-ending road
Earlier in September, WSOP.com and PokerStars had an online series in Pennsylvania. “I’ll go back and forth between Pennsylvania, Michigan, Vegas, and Jersey when I’m in the mood to play online,” Engel said. “There wasn’t any live stuff I wanted to play, and it just worked out timewise to spend three or four days there.”
His restlessness, his drive – that’s what it takes to earn 18 WSOPC rings, three bracelets, and 344 WSOP cashes (3rd all-time). “I’m playing a little less than I did at different times,” he said. “There’s definitely a pull to how hard I want to go. It fuels me when I hit something, but when I don’t hit – that fuels me too.”
He only took time off from playing in the last year to visit Israel twice. Engel’s most recent trip had a lasting impact. His oldest nephew was celebrating his bar mitzvah and his looming, mandatory military service hung over the event.
“We can just hope that things are different in a few years,” he said. “But it’s almost being utopian to think that everything is going to turn around by then.”
“You just can’t compare being here (the US) to being there,” said Engel. “Israelis have been dealing with this since our independence in 1948, when six different countries invaded. There’s always this thing hanging over us.”
Engel considers Israel a second home. “It’s very tough right now but Israel is such a beacon of hope for Jews worldwide,” he said. “Knowing there’s somewhere to go if things hit the fan, that’s a beautiful thing for the generations to come.”
“It’s approaching 50% of all Jews worldwide live there,” he said. “Throughout history, there’s always been countries after us. This is a thing in history that repeats itself.”
Five hours after the interview, Engel was on his way out of town. Even though there’s a slate of events still to come in Hammond, three days in one place was too long for someone who answers when the road calls.
“I don’t like staying in one place,” he said. “I’m already ready to leave. Something within me likes the first day in a new place more than the last day in the last place.”
For Engel, it’s less wanderlust than an eagerness to experience as much of a country he loves while praying for the future of the other.
“I’m a proud American patriot,” Engel continued. “I’ve never experienced any antisemitism at the tables but not everyone has experienced that as easily as I have. When I first started playing, I wore a yamaka and was very visibly Jewish.”
“There have been a couple close calls over the last year, but the opinion of one or two people doesn’t affect me,” he said. “The poker world is pretty great and accepting.”
