I feel like the title of this blog is fitting, for more than one reason. I FINALLY won a WSOP bracelet, I’m FINALLY writing this blog, and other things are FINALLY taking their course as well. Since I have to cover almost three months of updates, I’m anticipating my longest blog ever. Just thought I would preface a little bit. Part of the reason why it has taken me this long to write is because I had some personal health issues immediately after I returned from Europe. It took longer than expected but I’ve FINALLY got that under control and am back to normal. This blog will be broken down into sections to make it an easier read.
———————————————————————————-
WSOP(E) Victory
Everyone entered the final table with roughly even stacks. To give a little history about the event, it was a $3k euro Shootout. Day 1 we started 8-9 handed. Day 2 we played 3 handed. Day 3 was the final table with 10 players and everyone about even in chips. It was an insanely tough final table. There were no weak spots. I watched as a few players were eliminated and the table started to become short handed. With seven people left I won a big coinflip against Steve O’Dwyer, my TT vs his AK. I was able to open up a little more shorthanded and eliminate Max Silver KK vs 44 when he 4bet shoved on me. I entered heads up against Mike Watson (SirWatts online.) He had about 1.4 million in chips to my 1 million. We went back and forth and I eventually was able to win the tournament when he 4bet shoved A5s against my JJ. The board ran out QQ4T2 and I won my first WSOP bracelet. That’s the short version of the final table haha.
Here’s a victory picture. I still can’t believe it.
Luckily I had a few friends with me in France to cheer me on. I want to thank my good friend Samantha and my new friends Kim and William who watched the whole final table. I also had my buddy Hans run over and watch when he wasn’t playing hands in his tournament. Sam and I (along with my best friend Brian) traveled together throughout Europe and she was beyond supportive and excited about the final table (she had a nice little sweat too lol.) She’s getting more experienced with poker, traveling to some of the events. I’ve been teaching her so hopefully she can have some success of her own soon. It was awesome to see my friends just as happy as I was. There’s nothing better than being able to share an incredible experience with people who enjoy it as much as you do.
Will, Sam, Kim, and Hans behind me.
Look at Hans’ expression lol. I think my JJ was cracked by KT this hand during heads up play to win the tournament. Classic picture.
The WSOP victory still hasn’t sunk in yet, even after almost three months. I have to constantly remind myself that I finally accomplished one of my goals in poker. I started playing in 2003, my freshman year in college. I went all these years without a big “signature” win, online and live. I have won my fair share of tournaments but I never was able to win a major tournament. I always fell short. This happens to be the harsh reality of tournament poker. Sometimes no matter what you do things don’t go your way and it is out of your hands. Everyone who takes this game seriously should understand that.
I had an amazing WSOP this year. I made two final tables in Vegas, went to Europe for the first time and won a WSOP bracelet. I don’t take any of it for granted. We are deserved nothing in poker. Remember that. Nothing. Appreciate what this game can do for you and understand how unfair it can be. After you’ve done that all you need to do is enjoy the game itself.
Some of my friends have given me a hard time about winning my first WSOP bracelet in Europe. I understand where they are coming from as I once felt the same way. I realize poker is a global game. After playing in the WSOP(E) I know that I earned my bracelet. The fields had a ton of great players and it wasn’t easy. I’ll always cherish my first bracelet but now there is extra motivation to win one domestically! Haha.
Here are the finishers at the final table:
1st Tristan Wade (Me, Cre8ive)
2nd Michael Watson (SirWatts)
3rd Richard Toth (RichardToth)
4th Max Silver (Not sure his online name)
5th Bertrand Grospellier (Elky)
6th Steve O’Dwyer (MrTimCaum)
7th Emil Patel (Whitelime)
8th Taylor Paur (ambiguosity, tramp$d0pray)
9th James Dempsey (Flushy, MKKMOO)
10th John Armbrust (texduke)
I’ll continue to let this all sink in and slap me in the face occasionally.
———————————————————————————-
Brazil, BSOP
I was scheduled to go to Sao Paulo, Brazil with Mike “The Grinder” Mizrachi on November 22nd. I almost didn’t make the trip because of the health issues I talked about earlier. I went to the doctor the morning of my flight and was cleared to go luckily. My best friend Brian also came along for the trip with Grinder and I. We went to play some of the tournaments for the BSOP (Brazilian Series of Poker.) I went last year with Mike Matusow and I must say, once again, the BSOP is an unbelievable tournament series. They have great fields, run awesome tournaments, have a nice venue, and make the experience enjoyable for everyone. If you can make it to Brazil for one of their BSOP events I highly recommend you do.
Grinder, Juliano, Brian, and me. [Small pic]
Juliano is a great friend. Both times I visited Sao Paulo he showed me around and taught me about the culture. He has his hand in a lot of things involved with poker in Brazil. Flop Magazine, Super Poker, BSOP, and I’m sure a few more other things. The Brazilians who read this blog will know what some of those things are haha. Another person who is probably more influential with poker in Brazil is Igor Federal. He is also involved in just about everything poker related. I applaud both of these gentlemen. What they are doing for poker in Brazil is amazing to watch. I’ve seen what they are doing for their country and poker players there. It’s truly amazing. There are many people in Brazil who are very passionate about poker. It helps to have knowledgeable, hard-working people spearhead poker efforts in Brazil. Keep doing what you are doing guys. Hopefully poker will one day be legalized in Brazil as well. I’m sure I could name a lot more people involved, there are just so many (including top Brazilian players, writers, enthusiasts, etc.)
My experiences in Brazil have always been good ones. There is something about the country and the people that you don’t feel when you’re in the States. Everyone is very friendly, outgoing, nice, and enjoying life. It is refreshing to be around people who are just happy to be alive. I only have good things to say about the country and all the people I encountered there. Grinder even mentioned that out of the ten days we were there he didn’t see a single person who was upset. Impressive. I’m not saying it’s a Utopian society but it a great place to visit. There is still a lot of room for growth on the poker aspect. After playing a few days in Brazil you can tell that poker is relatively new there. They have a different style of play that takes a little getting used to.
As far as poker is concerned, I didn’t do very well in the few tournaments I played at the BSOP. I busted halfway through day 1 of the Main Event and the 6-max event. I had a last longer with grinder in both tournaments and won those at least! I wish I would have been able to play more poker while I was there but that just gives me another reason to go back to Brazil.
I’d like to thank everyone I came in contact with and everyone I know over there. Thank you. Your hospitality is one of a kind and I can’t wait to return.
Here are a couple pictures from the trip:
Grinder doing an interview.
Figueira Rubaiyat restaurant. Built around a tree. Awesome.
Some of our dishes from Fig.
View from room. Sao Paulo is a HUGE city. (20mil people)
———————————————————————————-
December
December is always an interesting month to me. My birthday is in December, along with Christmas, and New Years Eve. I love living in Florida during the winter/December because it starts to get cold at night. During the day the weather is awesome. It usually is 70-80 degrees and sunny. You can’t beat that.
My birthday was low key. I didn’t do much. I had a dinner with the family and received a few presents. I never made a big deal out of my birthday or Christmas. My family has been able to provide me with almost everything I have ever needed, so I never felt the urge to ask for much, if anything. They always find something to get me though lol.
Christmas was fun. Again, I spent time with my family, watched them open up presents, and had Christmas dinner. It’s nice to have my immediate family close for the holidays. I think they like having me around too haha.
On New Years Eve I went out in Fort Lauderdale. A few of my close friends were able to make it out and bring in the new year together. I thought about going to Vegas for New Years. That probably would have been a lot more fun. I can just imagine how ridiculous Vegas is for New Years. Nevertheless, it was nice getting to spend some time with friends I don’t always get to see. The circle seems to be getting smaller.
Other than my birthday and a few holidays, I played some cash games in December. I still need to get out and play more, but I at least got to go a few times. It’s hard to know when the good games are running. That’s something I’m going to improve on. Live poker isn’t the same as online either. Playing so much live poker really makes me miss online poker.
———————————————————————————-
DeepStacks Big News
DeepStacks is doing some great things. We just announced a Televised Poker Tour. The final table will be televised regionally. It starts February 15th at the Seneca Niagara Casino. We have our DSPT (DeepStacks Poker Tour) main event on February 17th. It is a $1500 buyin, $200k guaranteed tournament. It will last three days. The tournament starts nine handed but when we reach 36 players we finish the tournament six handed. It should be a really great event and I am looking forward to it.
On the television side of the tour I will be doing commentary alongside Joe Stapleton. I’m excited about the whole experience. Hopefully we will be able to have a great poker tour and the television product will be able to match it. I don’t want to say too much about it. We will see how it goes!
———————————————————————————-
What’s Next?
On Friday (tomorrow) I will be going to the Bahamas for the PCA tournament series. For anyone who doesn’t know, the PCA is the PokerStars Carribean Adventure. Last year (when it was LEGAL to play ONLINE POKER) I won a package to go. I cashed in the main event and I’m hoping for better success this time around. So far I am only set on playing the main event. I don’t know if I will decide to play any other tournaments or cash games. I’m strictly going for poker. If there are good tournaments/games I will stay if I bust the main event. Maybe I won’t even have to worry about that. Wishful thinking.
After PCA I am going to go to Australia for the Aussie Millions at the Crown Casino. I’ve never been to Australia and really have no clue what to expect. Everything I have heard about the country has been positive, so this is definitely another trip I am looking forward to. I remembering watching this tournament on the television/internet and always wanting to play it. I can’t wait. I will play the main event and a few other side events if I get there in time.
———————————————————————————-
Thank You
I’m glad to FINALLY be caught up on this blog and to get back in the swing of writing. The last few months have been crazy. I just want to say thank you to everyone who has supported me or followed along with the ride. Even though I do all of this for myself (well not entirely for myself!), it is nice to have people who care about what you’re doing and have some interest in it. If there is anything anyone wants me to write about let me know. I’ve had a few people comment about my first WSOP Bracelet and the story I would tell. Hopefully I was able to touch on some interesting aspects. There’s always more I could write but I try not to go overboard.
I still have a lot to accomplish. I am optimistic I will be able to achieve everything I want to. I don’t know what some of those things are yet, but as long as you know what you want to do in the end, filling in the blanks is easy.
