Photos by Troy Conrad
Baccarat is at the top of the casino game hierarchy. The high-risk, high-reward game doesn’t feel as accessible as blackjack, nor does it get the PR that poker has received over the past decade. Baccarat feels like one of those ultra-exclusive mysteries of the super-rich, the kind of game where you have to don a tuxedo and have a martini in hand before you even think about sitting down at the table. Every time Mikki Mase enters the high-limit baccarat room, he shatters that image. No one expects a guy with long hair, tattoos, and street clothes to even be allowed behind the velvet rope. But then Mase sits down and most of the time he wins. A lot of.
Mase is one of the most successful players in the world at baccarat, an achievement that is impressive in itself but even more so when you consider how he got into the game. “It’s so funny,” laughs Mase. “I used to be an exclusively blackjack player and bet most of what was allowed to bet, but I always wanted to bet more money. One of my buddies from my degenerate gamer friend group said to me, “Bro, you’ll never be able to bet big enough at blackjack. Whatever you would bet in blackjack, you can bet double in baccarat.’ All he had to say was that I could bet double the money, and I said, ‘Okay, I think I’ll learn.'”
Given Mase’s motivations for trying baccarat, you won’t be surprised to learn that he jumped in headfirst and bet $500 on his very first hand. He won. Then he turned to his friend and asked him to explain why. A hand later his money was back in the hands of the casino and again he asked his friend why. Fast forward to today, where Mase routinely posts the highest limits in Las Vegas history on baccarat hands.
Mase grew up in a suburb of New Jersey, not far from New York City. From an early age he was an analytical thinker – a must-have for a professional card player – and he used this ability to give himself an edge in all the games he played growing up. And we’re not talking about Hungry Hungry Hippos here.
Photos by Troy Conrad
“My grandparents were very involved in my life. They raised me and they were sick, sick players,” says Mase in awe. “Minus my mother and father, my entire bloodline is filled with players. When I was 5 years old I learned Gin Rummy, Hungarian Rummy, Texas Hold’em. They liked to play and if they had to look after me all day they wanted to play with me. Even if it was just for change.”
As he tells me how he caught the gambling bug so many years ago, I notice the sound of chips in the background of the phone call. As we chat, Mase is playing blackjack and proving what an epic multitasker he can be. The conversation leads to the question of whether what he does for a living is actually a real gamble or not. He’s studied the games intensely, running all the numerous possibilities through his analytical mind, trying to read out every possible mathematical advantage he can find. While many people think that every casino game falls under the broad umbrella term “gambling,” it’s clear that what Mase is doing isn’t the same as when a drunk tourist stumbles over to a roulette table and rolls five dollars on his lucky number.
But despite the huge wallets he’s brought home, the countless selfies he’s posed with piles of money, he has yet to convince his parents to support his profession. Mase recalls a recent dinner where the subject was revisited.
“First of all, my father says that I should do something with my money so that I don’t gamble it away,” says Mase. “I know that’s good advice and I do it when most of my money is illiquid. But you know, those investments come from the money I made playing. I’m a multimillionaire ’cause I gamble, you know? They always talk to me like it’s a hobby, like it’s something bad, they always try to discourage me.
“I think I’m feeling rebellious and I want to prove him wrong,” Mase continues. “But it really upsets me. It’s very frustrating.”
During the pandemic, Mase became active on social media. Realizing that the extra publicity is a double-edged sword — “I didn’t put myself out there for people to pick me apart and berate me” — has also allowed Mase to explore new ventures. He’s forged connections with more than a few celebrity creators, which is nice, but he’s also shown the world at large that a heavily inked man can thrive in spaces that once seemed reserved for the elite.
By using his analytical skills to find an edge in one of the most exclusive games on the planet, Mikki Mase has not only proven that he belongs among the high rollers, but that he will walk away with a pile of chips and a smile on his tattooed face.