Susan Mercier prepared the couple’s 2019 Form 1040, U.S. The Merciers always used their player cards, and they gambled exclusively on days when the casino featured extra points, free play, or some other player advantage. Such records purportedly documented gambling activity any time a player card was used. The couple did not keep written records of their gambling activity, relying instead on the casinos’ electronic records. Citing their extensive knowledge of video poker, the Merciers considered themselves professional gamblers.

Statistical information about the game gave them a strategy they employed when playing.

The couple played only video poker, a game they knew well and believed offered the best odds of winning. The Merciers gambled at several Nevada casinos during the year. A married couple could not deduct their gambling losses because evidence, including their prior tax treatment of the activity, indicated they were casual rather than professional gamblers, the Tax Court held.įacts: In 2019, Susan Mercier worked as an accountant at a Nevada charter school, and her husband, James Mercier, owned and operated an appliance repair business.