How long have you been playing poker seriously for?
For about 2 years. I first started playing online poker 2.5 years ago.
Do you prefer cash games or tournaments?
I used to play half and half although nowadays I prefer tournaments, I find that there is more purpose and a goal at the end, i.e. to win! Cash games I still find interesting, but they go on forever and sometimes require more concentration.
Do you play much online?
I certainly play online more than I do live, because in Adelaide there aren’t many opportunities to play good live games, which means I have to travel. I’d say I’d play 20-25 hours a week online.
How did you find the field in the $5200 event at the Melb Champs?
Well since the majority of people didn’t qualify for the event, and coughed up $5000 to play, the field was made up of quite talented poker players and a few people with a bit too much money, although I would say players fell into the 1st category. Due to being on a table which didn’t get broken I played on the same table for the entire first day. So I perhaps didn’t get to play against as many players as some of the other people. From what I experienced, nearly all the players were good poker players and reasonably experienced. So I guess the field was a bit tougher than those tournaments with online and small satellite
qualifiers.
Did you have a specific strategy going into the event?
I generally don’t go in with any big master plan strategies, but I aim to analyse each situation in front of me. I decided I wanted to take my time since the structure was good, and work out all the players before making any moves. No sense rushing.
Give us a run down of how you approached the final table.
When we got to the final table I had only $15,000 in chips, with the chip leader on about 150k and the average somewhere around 55k. With the price of poker being a little bit over 4k a round, I had to try and maintain my chips whilst giving myself the best chance to double up at some point Although I didn’t get many hands early on, I was lucky enough to have the big blind folded to me once and I stole the blinds once also. Finally I picked up AK against KQ, and not long after I had AK against AJ putting me back in it. After that I just picked my spots carefully and worked out which opponents I wanted to target.
Where there are any keys that you were involved in that led to your
victory?
Well I guess it was a combination of patience and being able to have a feel for my opponents play. If you know how or at least think u know how your opponent will play then you give yourself the best chance of maximising chips and getting away from tough spots.
Early on for example I had pocket 3s and limped in early position. The player to my left raised it 3.5 times the blind and someone else called. The flop came 10-7-3. In this spot with 2 people behind me I sometimes check and let the preflop raiser take the lead, but I decided to lead out and bet 2/3 of the pot in an attempt to disguise my hand and confuse my opponent. The preflop raiser (PFR) called my flop bet and the turn came a Q. I again lead out and bet the turn for 2/3 of the pot, and here the PFR raised me. There was a flush draw out there, but instead of re-raising him I decided to flat call as I felt he either had a monster (TT), nothing, or may be he got lucky and hit the Q with AQ. Either way I was well ahead or well behind and gained nothing by re-raising him. The river was another Q. I checked again sticking with my initial read, looking to gain value from the hand by letting him bet with his strong hands as well as with air. I checked leaving myself 5k and there was already over 8k in the pot. He thought about it and pretty much put me all in. I called after thinking a bit with my 3s full and he showed pocket 6s for nothing! If I play the hand more aggressively I would not have gained that much value. My passive line was perfect for the situation. As it turned out I doubled up and had a good platform for the rest of the tournament.
In another hand late in the day I flat called with TT 5 handed. I would normally re-raise with this hand but this time I chose to play it slow. The flop came 8 high and I raised the PFR, who in turn re raised me. I muck my hand and it turned out he had KK so I certainly dodged a bullet there. Getting away from a few tough spots in a tournament sets you up with a chance to win later on!
What are your poker plans for the rest of the year?
Well I am going to head to Vegas for most of the World Series, and I might also be travelling around Europe afterwards to play some of the EPT events in September.
What tips can you give beginning players aspiring to become successful
tournament players?
The good thing with poker is there no one right way to play a tournament, especially a tournament with a good structure. Whether you are aggressive or conservative you can make both strategies work for you. I recommend a player to find a style that best suits them and perhaps observe a better player than themselves with a similar style and learn off them. Obviously the more you play the better you get. Also where possible try and evaluate your play after your tournament. Think of all the key hands, not the one you went bust with, and see if you were happy with how you played them. Study and practice.
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