Chris Klodnicki's wallet might not be fatter than those of his fellow travelers, but it will be once he cashes his $591,869 check.

Klodnicki, 23, of Voorhees, Camden County, finished 12th out of 6,844 competitors in the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas on Monday, just missing the final table of nine.

"I'm a little disappointed because I came so far," he said by phone from Vegas. "It's going to be a nice flight home, though."

The 2008 World Series of Poker is the largest and one of the richest in the tournament's 39-year history. Each player who qualified online or in regional tournaments paid $10,000 just to get a seat at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino.

The final nine competitors will compete in the championship round in November for a coveted gold bracelet and $9.1 million.

If Klodnicki's parents had doubts about his job title in the past - and they did - there's no argument now: he's a professional poker player.

"At first, when I was away at college, they didn't like the idea of me playing poker at all," the Lehigh University grad said. "When I told them how much the buy-ins were, they thought I was crazy. They're coming around."

For the near future, Klodnicki's finance degree will be something he hangs on a wall. He's already planning to play in a tournament at the Borgata in Atlantic City later this year.

"The grind of working in an office doesn't really appeal to me," he said. "That's why I take this so seriously."

Klodnicki's brother Mike, a medical student, taught him how to play the game when he was still in high school. He steadily improved while playing in online tournaments and a few underage excursions to Atlantic City.

"When I first started playing in college, I kind of took some shots," he said. "I was playing above my bankroll. Now I play more conservatively."

Conservative play has been paying off for Klodnicki. Earlier this summer he won about $97,000 playing in a Razz poker tournament, in which the low hand wins in a seven-card stud game. That win helped him qualify for his third appearance in the series.

This year's World Series may have been Klodnicki's coming-out party, but he still doesn't think he'll be a household name until he makes a World Series final.

"There might be some poker players who recognize me," he said. "I don't think people will be gunning for me, though."

Klodnicki and other poker players have rented a house in Sin City since May. He's played poker 12 to 14 hours a day since then.

Klodnicki doesn't wear hats, sunglasses or headphones at the table like some players, who adorn extras to keep from giving anything away. And he doesn't get chatty with the competition unless they get chatty with him.

"All of that stuff is more of a nuisance than anything," he said. "Plus, I don't give too many tells away."

Like any single 23-year-old, Klodnicki's also been letting loose at Vegas nightspots like PURE Nightclub at Caesar's.

"Vegas is definitely a lot of fun," he said. "I've had my fair share of going out. It can get expensive, though."

Klodnicki says he's eager to fly home today for a little South Jersey rest.

"You can only spend so much time in Vegas," he said. *