When Rand McHenry (also known as RandCorp on socials) sits down at the poker table, you’re not just facing a player—you’re facing a force of nature.
Known as “RandCorp” online, the Cincinnati native has lived more lives than most poker players could imagine: third-place finisher at the first-ever U.S. Cannabis Cup, concert and festival producer, real estate investor, crypto miner, and now co-founder of the rapidly growing blockchain convention Rare Evo.
McHenry’s journey has always been fueled by curiosity, competition, and a fearless entrepreneurial drive—the same traits that first pulled him into poker as a teenager and continue to guide him today.
From winning five figures on Full Tilt overnight to hosting high-profile tournaments at the prestigious PokerGO Studio, Rand has never been afraid to take a big swing.
As Pokerati caught up with him fresh off running the Rare Evo Poker Classic, Rand reflected on how poker shaped his mindset, why he thrives on risk, and what it takes to build an empire from scratch—while still chasing the thrill of the next hand.
What’s your earliest poker memory?
My earliest memories are playing poker with my Dad and against friends at a young age. I was naturally competitive and sometimes bored, and would love to play during a vacation or a road trip.
What kick started your poker journey?
Honestly, I was really inspired to get into poker a bit more seriously by Chris Moneymaker.
I graduated high school in 2004, and played a lot on PokerStars and Full Tilt. I won a nightly 50/50, $50 buy-in with a $50,000 prize pool on Full Tilt, and then final tabled another $109 tournament, and walked away with about $15,000 overnight.
The next week, I started living in Denver with two high school buddies, just following a dream of growing and selling cannabis legally.
Can you tell our readers how we connected?
We got connected via Joey Ingram, and the fact that you were playing really well in our Rare Evo Poker Classic at the PokerGO studio a few weeks ago.
Note: To read of Sara O’Connor’s adventures, check out this article.
You’re something of an entrepreneur, aren’t you?
My parents were entrepreneurs, and I think it was just instilled in me at a young age to make money providing a product or service.
As a little kid, I remember selling glow sticks at the local fireworks shows with friends and doing things like lemonade stands and more. I started being a businessman at a very young age and don’t see myself stopping anytime soon.
You’re something of a show runner and organizer, producing concerts and music festivals, and you have even dabbled in real estate and have rental properties. All of that takes hustle and internal determination. How does that positively or negatively impact you on felt?
During my college years, poker helped me learn bankroll management, and really, risk management and assessing a gamble. It’s very competitive, very player versus player, and I like winning.
I know you’ve played both online and live poker. Which do you prefer and why?
I prefer live poker these days; it’s more social. I do play on WPTGold online when I have some downtime. Shoutout to Code Doug!
Have you ever streamed your play? If so, what was the like?
I used to stream on Twitch, a long, long time ago – back when Jason Somerville was big and getting started. Jaime Staples and I started at the same time.
Honestly, streaming is just a long grind daily, and building Rare Network and Rare Evo takes up most of my time these days. I wish I could stream more often, and I still do from time to time.
Are you more of a poker player or a businessman?
I am a better-than-average poker player. I have studied with online tools, groups, and private coaching, but I don’t keep up or play that often these days. I am very focused on building Rare Network & Rare Evo.
Can you tell us about Rare Network and how that got started in 2020-2021?
During the COVID-19 pandemic, I was streaming poker, stock trading, and investing on Twitch, just like a thousand other bored people stuck at home.
Wes, the co-founder of Rare Network, contacted me to talk about crypto because he had seen me selling Bitcoin mining computers on Facebook. We hit it off and started Rare Network as a node operator at first.
When our node broke and we couldn’t fix it, we went to the largest Bitcoin conference in Miami to meet like-minded people. We found a group of friends that, to this day, helped us fix our node and also helped us realize our background in live events production was handy. We decided to spin up an industry convention.
You’ve told me your Blockchain node broke. What does that mean?
Basically, it means that our computer, which helped store data for the Blockchain, was not able to sync up with the rest of the system, and we were offline for about four months trying to fix it.
What was it like to combine two of your passions and areas of expertise: blockchain and your live event experience?
It has been a long grind and a learning experience. Transitioning from live concerts to conventions, there are a lot of contractual differences in venues, union labor, and audio and visual production. We are always learning. Every year, we level up and beat a new boss.
What’s it like having built a Blockchain industry convention that wasn’t just focused on one coin or Blockchain, but covering the whole industry that now boasts 2500 attendees at Caesars Palace, with enterprise speakers from Citi Bank, Revolut, Custodia Bank, Bitwise, Deloitte, and so many more?
It is incredibly fulfilling. I am honored and humbled to have survived the past four years. It is wonderful to have built it as big as we are.
From just Wes and me the first year, planning everything, placing out every sign, checking on the stage, and running parties, not to mention juggling family, work, and registration.
Now, we have a full-time team of eight people. There are even parts of our event I didn’t know about, and it was a nice surprise to see someone else handle it.
The team we have built is all like family. People who have joined the office, put in time, and made themselves indispensable make all the difference each day.
Why do you end the convention with a tournament at the PokerGo studio?
Why wouldn’t you?!
PokerGO is the pinnacle of poker production, and a great way for top sponsors and exhibitors to socialize in a fun way to wrap up the weekend. And, heck, someone takes home $15,000.
As a poker player, it has always been a dream of mine to play there – the team, the commentators, and the production is top-notch. It was a moonshot of mine to make it happen the first time, and now it is a staple event.
There is also a ton of crossover between poker players and crypto, and we won’t stop running the event until 50,000 people come to Vegas for it and the wheels fall off!
Do you think poker and crypto are good companions with intersecting skillsets?
Yes, absolutely. I believe that poker helps you learn a lot of things you can apply to life, but even more so when it comes to taking risk assessment and investing.
When Black Friday happened and legal online poker in America was shut down, tons of offshore poker sites thrived, and the only way poker players could deposit or transfer money was with Bitcoin or Ethereum.
I remember always depositing with ETH because it would confirm the deposit faster, so I could register for whatever juicy tournament was happening. Looking back at my Coinbase transactions makes me sick, depositing 1-3 BTC at a time to gamble with $100-300.
Lots of people in the poker community were first introduced to Bitcoin and crypto this way, and a lot of smart poker minds adopted the technology early and became developers, project founders, or venture capitalists in the space.
I also think there is a lot of crossover with trading and gambling. Lots of the attention in crypto is gamblers trading the latest fad, and those same gamblers like poker.
Who is your favorite poker player?
There are so many great poker players to follow or watch as content creators, but I have to give it to Joey Ingram. He took a shot on us when I reached out. He attended our event in Denver, Colorado, in our second year, and has become a friend and a huge help.
He introduced us to PokerGO, the nightclub we did our afterparty at, and gave me Vegas advice on how to not get out of line (although sometimes I fail at this part).
I loved his investigation content, and he is a poker OG. Joey is a class act, and is always looking to meet people, is interested in hearing stories, and is always one to help people.
Who wouldn’t you want to see sitting at your tournament or cash table?
I will play anyone. I only fear variance. Let’s compete! But beware, I don’t chop.
Anything you wish I asked or you’d like to shout out?
If people have an interest in the Blockchain industry, come to Rare Evo! Check out this link for more details. Information for the conference in 2026 is coming soon!
Conclusion
Rand “RandCorp” McHenry has always treated life like one long poker session—calculated risk, relentless pressure, and the confidence to shove when others hesitate.
From grinding Full Tilt tournaments as a teenager to building a multi-million-dollar Blockchain convention, his story is proof that the same traits that create great poker players—curiosity, discipline, resilience, and the ability to read the room—can also build empires.
Even as his time at the tables takes a backseat to Rare Evo’s rapid growth, McHenry still lights up when talking about poker. It’s the foundation of how he thinks, how he competes, and how he bets on himself.
Whether it’s battling for a pot or steering a convention of 2,500 industry leaders, Rand plays every hand with purpose—and he’s nowhere near done stacking chips.
Whether you have hopes of building your own empire or competing in the PokerGo studio, good luck on the felt, be kind, and run good!
