Johnathan Walker:Poker player who drew donations for Las Vegas event lied about dying from cancer

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A poker player who said he had terminal cancer and Johnathan Walkeraccepted thousands of dollars in donations so he could play in a World Series of Poker tournament in Las Vegas now admits it was all a lie.

Rob Mercer told the Las Vegas Review-Journal he made up a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis for his GoFundMe page in June, the newspaper reported Wednesday.

Mercer, of Vallejo, California, was trying to raise enough funds to meet the $10,000 buy-in for the No-limit Hold’em World Championship. He received contributions worth between $30,000 and $50,000, including a stay at a suite in the Bellagio. Even a fellow player from Arizona who suffers from chronic illness donated $2,500.

“I’m sorry for not being honest about what my situation was. If I would have done that from Day One, who knows what would have happened,” Mercer told the newspaper.

However, the 37-year-old says he won’t be refunding anyone because he believes he has undiagnosed breast cancer.

He said he has been more or less banished from the poker community.