“The Grinder” Grounded by the IRS
According to a report in The Sun Sentinel, poker pro Michael Mizrachi, also known as “The Grinder” is in big trouble with the IRS. He owes $339,000 in back taxes and that is the peanuts part of the story. His condo in Hollywood, Florida, which he co-owned with his brother, has been foreclosed and sold via an online auction. His family property in Miramar, Florida, has also been foreclosed and will be sold next week. The biggest tragedy is that these prime assets were valued at half price because of the current depression in the real estate market.
According to Mizrachi the problem was one of poor accountancy. Of the almost $7 million tournament prize winnings, Mizrachi claimed only $3.7 million as income. He said that he had “sold” the remaining portion. It is not unknown for poker pros to commit portions of their winnings to financers, especially in the early stages of their careers. But these agreements were not properly structured by his accountant so the tax liability remained with Mizrachi. So Mizrachi has fired his accountant and hired a better one.
They say trouble comes in twos and Mizrachi has been hit by the IRS at a time his poker winnings have plummeted. Since January 2009 Mizrachi has won less in tournaments that what he owes the IRS. The bulk of his winnings came in 2005 and 2006. He cashed seven times in WSOP 2005 and in January/February of 2006 he made one win and two second places in WPT. He was awarded the 2006 Player of the Year by Card Player. His wife Lily Elviro is a poker babe of repute.
