Jason Kage (born August 31, 1980 in Flushing, New York) is an American professional poker player. In addition to playing in major online poker tournaments and online cash games at various stakes, he also makes his living playing live poker in Atlantic City, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas.
Early life Jason Kage was born in Queens, New York to Swedish and German parents. In 1987, he and his family moved to New Hyde Park, New York on Long Island, where he would earn his high school diploma from Herricks High School. In 1998, when he was still only 17 years old, he moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue a degree in Education. Kage attended , earning his bachelor's degree in 2002, while also playing college Hockey for the University. He then added a Teaching Credential to his credits in 2003. Before starting his career in teaching, he spent the following summer as a background actor on the HBO series "Deadwood". Kage then went on to teach Physical Education and Math in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) from 2003 all the way through 2007. Kage took classes at the to clear his teaching credential and earn professional development in the field of Education as he pursued a career in poker. As of today (September 2008), Kage still donates his time tutoring and mentoring at-risk and inner-city youth when he is not working the poker tables.
Poker career Late in the year 2001, Kage began playing micro-stakes in home games and small home-based tournaments. An interest originally sparked from his uncle, who according to Kage, is the best unknown poker player he has ever seen. Then a new chapter in his life opened up after meeting a professional gambler in 2003, introducing Kage to his first poker book. After reading one of the more popular works written by the famous David Sklansky, Kage realized how much skill was involved in poker and wanted to learn more. His new friend showed Kage the ropes and introduced him to online poker for the first time. He deposited $200 (USD) online and lost it within two weeks. Kage spent the next two years using trial and error to improve his game, while also picking the brains of established poker pros, to finally became a winning player in late 2005.
Over the next 2 years, Kage improved his poker skills to the point where in December of 2007, he stopped teaching middle school full-time and started playing poker professionally full-time. After much success, he now has a place to call home in the areas of Los Angeles (California), Las Vegas (Nevada), and Atlantic City (New Jersey). After being discovered by the owner of the Vista Poker Tour, Kage officially became a VPT Pro, which consists of a group of professional poker players who teach poker courses online.
Kage makes his living primarily by playing poker tournaments on various online websites and also playing live cash games in Las Vegas, Nevada.