Matt Jarvis a professional poker player seen here in Vancouver October 28, 2010.John Lehmann/The Globe and Mail
Whether it is cancer or poker, the Jarvis family of Surrey, B.C., is making a habit of beating the odds.
Matt Jarvis, a 26-year-old former dishwasher and lumberyard worker, is one of nine players at the final table of the World Series of Poker main event, first prize $8.9-million (all currencies U.S.). His father, Norm Jarvis, meanwhile, is on the cusp of beating cancer.
He was diagnosed with tonsil cancer in May, and was undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment as his son, over eight consecutive days of play in July, advanced to the "November Nine" from a field of 7,319 players. Last week, Mr. Jarvis's doctors told him that they can no longer detect cancer, and that his next appointment can wait until after Christmas. So the 58-year-old golf professional is clear to join the Jarvis cheering party of more than 100 friends and family members in Las Vegas on Saturday for the final.
"He's my reason right now," Matt Jarvis said. "He has been at home fighting so hard, and he's always been my No. 1 fan. He'd follow me online - not even able to see my hole card - and watch my stack fluctuate for eight to 10 hours."
The main event, a $10,000 buy-in tournament of no-limit Texas Hold'Em, is poker's richest and most prestigious event. Jonathan Duhamel of Boucherville, Que., heads to the finals as the chip leader with nearly 66 million, controlling 30 per cent of the chips in play.
Matt Jarvis drew his inspiration from Chris Moneymaker, an virtual unknown in 2003 when he became the first online qualifier to win the main event. It was a tidal shift for a tournament once owned by professionals, and for a game that is now televised by three Canadian all-sports cable networks. After that, ordinary Joes began authoring rags-to-riches stories, and gaining mainstream fame as the game's popularity grew.
"This random guy comes out of nowhere," Mr. Jarvis said. "I saw that and thought maybe I could do it, too."
Mr. Jarvis qualified for the main event by finishing in the top 15 of a Las Vegas tournament earlier this year.
Mr. Jarvis was always good at math, and was a money-maker since age 11, when he earned $150 in one day selling retrieved golf balls. He had been playing cards at the family cabin in Point Roberts, Wash., since age four, and was introduced to Texas Hold'Em in 2004. A part-time student, Mr. Jarvis was an online player until two years ago when he began travelling to tournaments.
Over the years, he worked a variety of odd jobs: washing dishes at a restaurant, selling knives by house appointment, and serving as a mechanic's assistant at Vancouver International Airport. The most tedious gig was at a lumberyard on Annacis Island, where he pulled 12-hour graveyard shifts, tossing planks into bins and dryers.
"It was good," Mr. Jarvis said. "Gives you perspective."
He learned of his father's cancer just weeks before leaving at the start of the main event, yet qualified for the final table and guaranteed himself $811,000. Since July, he has won two tournaments and $170,000, boosting his career earnings north of $600,000 and continuing a roll that began more than a year ago.
But Mr. Jarvis, who lives at his parents' home in Surrey, will consider himself "an amateur with a few decent scores" until he turns professional after this year. The Jarvis clan is tight, but when Norm began chemotherapy and 35 radiation treatments - without painkillers, which made him feel worse - he insisted that Matt play in the main event. At the time, Norm was facing stage-four tonsil cancer that had spread to his lymph nodes. Odds of survival: 50-50. But he still wanted his son to play.
"I had so much progress for the year leading up to it," Matt said. "He really wanted me to go."
There was good reason.
In the 1970s, the elder Mr. Jarvis showed promise as a golfer in Saskatchewan, so he moved to B.C. and spent 25 years chasing a PGA Tour card. He received lessons from Canadian golf idols George Knudson and Moe Norman, played the domestic tour sporadically, and qualified for the PGA's Champions Tour for players older than 50 as recently 2005. But he supported his family as a club professional, and never made it to centre stage.
"The glimpse - like Matthew has had - of talent. That was all I needed," he said. "I always wanted to make it as a touring professional, so when Matt came along, I knew exactly what he was facing."
Norm Jarvis said he attacked cancer as though it were a golf tournament: with preparation. He switched to a vegan diet, eliminated alcohol and boosted his vitamin intake.
He was strong enough to play - and make the cut - at a tournament in Washington two weeks ago, even though his power has been sapped. He said doctors are still monitoring a small lump below his jaw line.
"Believe it or not, I'm in no rush for them to tell me whether I'm cured or not cured," he said. "I'm just trying to live. I'm enjoying living right now because this is most living I've had in three months."