Nick Sliwinski had two things going for him when he rolled off the sofa he'd been sleeping on at a friend's house and headed for Las Vegas: a degree in psychology from the University of Pittsburgh and $1,000 from his parents.

With those two hole cards, he was able to make it to 13th place in the World Series of Poker this week, earning $463,201 and narrowly missing a seat among the elite final nine who will play for the championship in November.

"I came out here to be a poker dealer," Mr. Sliwinski, 23, said yesterday in an interview from his apartment in his new hometown. "But the more I played, I started to believe that I could really win at this."

Mr. Sliwinski hails from Troy, Bradford County, where his parents, retired schoolteachers Steven and Susan Sliwinski, still live. The $1,000 they gave him enabled him to chase his dream.

"They understood that I was going to be playing on the side," Mr. Sliwinski said. "But no matter what decision I'd have made with what to do with my life, they are always supportive of me. They're the greatest parents."

Or maybe they just know a good bet when they see one.

Mr. Sliwinski got caught up in the no-limit Texas Hold 'em craze as a freshman at Pitt, where he and his friends watched tournaments on television and began playing in their dorm. As he progressed through college, he also progressed at poker, advancing to games at friends' apartments, then local fire halls and veterans' clubs. When West Virginia introduced the games in October 2007, he was seated at a table the first night.

"That's where we sharpened our claws," said David Zamule, his friend and fellow poker player. "Mountaineer [Casino Racetrack & Resort] was his preference, and he won a couple of tournaments and a few thousand dollars."

When he graduated from Pitt in April, Mr. Sliwinski was living in Mr. Zamule's apartment in Moon, sleeping on the sofa that he donated in lieu of rent. You might say he was unemployed, but Mr. Sliwinski would tell you that poker is a profession, and he was making a living at it.

But to really do that, he had to go to Vegas.

There are two ways to get into the World Series of Poker: You can play your way in by winning at a satellite tournament. Or you can buy a seat for $10,000.

After getting his own apartment in Las Vegas, Mr. Sliwinski began playing in some tournaments. Before long, he had won several thousand dollars and one of the coveted WSOP seats.

As much as he wanted the seat, he said, he knew he needed a bigger bankroll. So he sold the seat.

Then he entered another tournament and won another seat, which he likewise sold.

When he won his third seat, he figured it probably meant he was destined to be sitting at one of those tables.

The WSOP is a grueling marathon of card-playing over a weeklong span that reduces 6,844 players to nine. Seated at the tables around Mr. Sliwinski were the superstars that he had seen on TV, as well as some celebrities caught up in the game.

"I really just tried to keep a cool head," he said. "I let myself be star-struck the first day I got there, when I went just to watch. Inside, I'm thinking 'Oh, my God, that's so and so.' And then later, they're coming up and talking to me."

"Later" occurred after about three days of playing, when Mr. Sliwinski had secured $27,000 and advanced to one of the final tables at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino. He also caught the attention of legendary player Johnny Chan.

"That's when it really kicked in," Mr. Sliwinski said. "Halfway through this week, when I found out Johnny Chan had told a reporter that of the 187 players left, he picked me to win it all. That's when I really thought, maybe, just maybe, I've got what it takes to be a pro."

That's also when he got on the phone and flew eight friends and relatives to Las Vegas to share his experience. "I needed my own cheering section," he said.

Mr. Sliwinski is hesitant to reveal too much about his game because poker is as much about knowing your opponents as it is about knowing the cards. That's where, he said, his degree in psychology comes into play.

"You have to be a student of the people as well as the odds," he said. "Everything at the table is psychology. I can't play poker without thinking of psychology, and I can't think about psychology without thinking about poker."

Bluffing, he admitted, is a big part of his game. He also pays attention to the flow. When other players start playing tight, he gets aggressive. When they are aggressive, he pulls back a bit.

And, of course, he wears sunglasses.

When asked about the hand that busted him out of the game, Mr. Sliwinski doesn't blink. He recounts how Dennis Phillips, who would go on to be the top chip-earner, flopped a flush, but slow-played Mr. Sliwinski into thinking he was still chasing it.

"I'm not depressed," he said yesterday, two days after being eliminated. "I was in shock for about an hour."

In addition to the cash prize, he also picked up a couple of poker-related sponsorships and laid the foundation of a formidable reputation.

"This is my career now," he said. "I want to make it so I'm not a one-hit wonder who got lucky and went deep in one tournament."