A couple days ago, Poker.org released Moneymaker 20 Years Later, a documentary that explores Moneymaker’s win in the WSOP Main Event and how that win changed his life. It is definitely worth a watch for any fan of Moneymaker or those interested in the history of the modern era of poker.

Beer, Sports Betting, Accounting, and Poker

The first thing that stuck out about this documentary was the style. It reminded me a lot of some of the poker documentaries that came out around the start of the Poker Boom. While this isn’t PokerGO-esque level production, if you want an honest look into the life of the WSOP’s most famous champion, this is the interview to watch.

Like many documentaries, this one started with Moneymaker talking about his childhood. The highlight of the opening segment, in this reviewer’s opinion, was Moneymaker speaking about his relationship with his Dad. From there, the documentary switched to Moneymaker’s college years.

We learned about how Moneymaker discovered beer and sports betting. He also talked about how he started a career in accounting despite being “too dumb” to work at some of the top accounting firms. He split his time between work and poker, quite literally, and that eventually led to his run in the WSOP Main Event.

Most of us know the story about Moneymaker’s run as ESPN presented it back in the day, but in this interview, we hear more of his story. We also learn about some of the “creative liberties” that ESPN took in presenting the 2003 WSOP Main Event. This part of the documentary was fun, honest, and gave a fresh look at the Moneymaker run.

What If… Moneymaker Was a Full Tilt Pro

Imagine a world where Chris Moneymaker was an investor in Full Tilt Poker. According to Moneymaker, that almost happened! One of the more revealing sections of the documentary detailed Moneymaker’s contracts with PokerStars.

He started out making $5,000 a month “to do nothing.” After a year, Isai Scheinberg decided to 5x his contract. Scheinberg’s generosity earned Moneymaker’s loyalty, which was soon tested. While Chris was renegotiating his contract with PokerStars, Howard Lederer offered Moneymaker the chance to invest in Full Tilt Poker.

Moneymaker declined the offer, which he initially felt was a -EV play. Ultimately, it proved to be one of his smartest moves. Of course, it does make one wonder what the poker world would have been like if Full Tilt Poker had Moneymaker’s services. Fortunately, we will never have to find out.

The Future With America’s Cardroom

The last few minutes of the documentary gave insight into how Moneymaker signed on with ACR Poker. He spoke about how Black Friday impacted his life, his ability to play on PokerStars, and his future in poker. At one point, he revealed that he was considering retirement from poker. (We all know just about how long poker retirements generally tend to last.)

While some may see this as a backdoor plug for the website, it is still an important part of Moneymaker’s story. Listening to Moneymaker talk, you get the impression that ACR Poker is on a similar trajectory as PokerStars back in 2003. The right amount of time was spent on this topic. It covered his transition to ACR Poker without making the documentary seem like an infomercial.

Moneymaker Documentary: A Fun Look In

Moneymaker 20 Years Later is an entertaining look into the life of poker’s most famous World Champion. The interview helped to paint a complete picture of the man behind the legend.

The best parts of the interview focused on Moneymaker’s mindset while going through the Main Event and the realities of being the first mainstream poker ambassador. Unless you lived through those years as a part of the poker community, it is hard to imagine what the early days of the Poker Boom were like. This documentary helps to paint a clearer picture of that time.

As far as critiques, because poker fans have gotten accustomed to A+ level production from the likes of PokerGO, my principal gripe was with production quality. I felt that there was a bit too much reliance on stock photos and music, plus the background music just seemed unnecessary and could have been eliminated.

With that said, overall this is still a feature worth watching, particularly for any Moneymaker fan or anyone wanting to learn more about the early days of the Poker Boom. You can watch the documentary for free below, courtesy of Poker.Org’s YouTube channel.

The Bootcamp will include a tournament where the final table of recruits will win an all-expenses paid trip to the EPT Cyprus this October 11-22 to take part in the PokerStars x Poker Power Women’s Bootcamp Showdown. The winner of this Showdown will receive a special package to the EPT in Prague December 6-17.

Image Credit: PokerStars

For beginners only, this year’s Bootcamp recruitment window is open until July 22 with successful applicants receiving one on one tutorials from the best females in the game, including PokerStars Ambassadors such as Lali Tournier, Georgina James and Jennifer Shahade who will be on hand to provide their support and tips. The participants will also have access to the Poker Power Play app.

Poker Power Partnership

PokerStars and Poker Power became partners in November 2022 with a shared goal to increase the participation of women in poker with a long-term approach. Women comprise only 4% of players in the global poker community. Last year’s female-only Bootcamp ran for four weeks, and culminated in sending seven women to compete in the “PokerStars x Poker Power Bootcamp Showdown” tournament at EPT Prague on December 12^th. Roxanne Johnson from Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada won the ultimate prize of a “Platinum Pass” worth $30,000 to this year’s PSPC.

Poker Power, founded by Jenny Just and Juliette Hulsizer in 2019, has become quite a presence in women’s poker; inspiring, informing, and financially backing female poker players to help them achieve success. Their motto is  “Be fearless. Bet on yourself.” Their goal is to create opportunities for women and help foster their ability to take risks in an industry that’s predominately male.

Image Credit: PokerStars

PokerStars Women’s Bootcamp LiveStream

Host of the livestream, James Hartigan (Presenter, Commentator and Head of Poker Editorial for PokerStars) welcomed panelists: Rebecca McAdam Willetts, PokerStars Director of Partnerships, PR and Consumer Engagement; Francine Watson, Executive Producer at PokerStars for TV shows and live streams; Jennifer Shahade (2x US Women’s chess champ, Author, PokerStars Pro), Line Peteri, Executive MBA in Strategic Leadership and Management from the University of Exeter and longtime industry veteran; and Alex O’Brien, Association of British Science Writers Vice-Chair, Science Writer, Author and Poker Player.

James touched on why each panelist was passionate about getting more women involved in poker. Rebecca spoke about starting to play at 14 or 15 and being excited about being able to be a part of the poker world when she was able to play her first live game. She wants to create and investigate what makes a poker environment better for women.

Francine, who made her way to poker after working in cricket and football, was enticed by the stories in poker, as she says “I’m a storyteller.” She was also drawn to poker because an amateur could sit “next to (Phil) Ivey” to play. After being in sports where that wouldn’t happen, she enjoyed the equity that anyone could play at the table.

Jennifer has played chess since she was 5 years old, and found her way “to the beauty of the game” of poker at 15. She enjoyed being around people that were unlike her but with a shared passion of poker. Poker also allowed her a way to see the world. Jen stated that she wants to give the women in poker a community, which was a common sentiment amongst the panelists.

Image Credit: PokerStars

Alex became more interested in poker after another female writer that she met with frequently had to cancel their plans because she’d stayed up all night to make $6,000 playing poker. Alex riffed on Mike Sexton, saying “the rules of (poker) take only 5 minutes to learn, (but) a lifetime to master.”

Line encountered poker when friends took her to a tournament to help distract her from a bad breakup and she ended coming in third place. She commented that “everything starts with confidence” and women’s events “nurture don’t mock” the players. It was also discussed that women’s online poker groups, such as Poker Power, Pocket Queens, and PokerStars, are valuable and can help create a village mentality.

It was a huge honour to be on stage with these powerhouses to announce the launch of the @PokerStars Women’s Bootcamp 2023. A fantastic initiative in collaboration with @joinpokerpower to commit to making poker as inclusive & accessible as possible for everyone. CHANGE IS COMING. pic.twitter.com/3iSTmKPjIt

— Alex O’Brien (@obrientweet) June 30, 2023

The audience asked questions of the panelists, and brought up the strong point that women need to have more male allies in poker as advocates. Francine suggested that women need more representation in senior floor staff at tournaments. Alex added that penalties in poker need to be equitably applied, with a tightening of rules as with other sports. She said that we need to empower the dealers to also step up and know they’ll be backed up by the chain of command.

A question from the audience led to a discussion about the importance of ladies events. Alex commented that these events provide a safe environment, a comfortable one in which to ask questions, and receive support from more knowledgeable female poker players. “Show them the ropes and release them into the wild.” Jen commented that years ago she liked women’s events because they were usually more affordable. In addition to the “gender gap” there’s also a “wage gap” in poker. Women usually don’t have “as much capital” as their male counterparts.

Alex added a final note that “the cards are blind, (they) have no gender.”

*If you’re interested in signing up, go to: PokerStars x Poker Power Women’s Bootcamp 2023 – PokerStars Learn  The Bootcamp is free for its participants.

We’re proud to announce that Mixed Game Festival V will take place once again at the fabulous Resorts World Las Vegas from July 2-6. In what’s sure to be another thrilling week of mixed game poker, we’ve incorporated some new elements to ensure this will be our best festival yet.

On the menu will be five straight days of low-stakes cash games — mainly $4/8 and $8/16, with higher stakes games available upon request — catering to lovers of all poker variants, from weekend warriors to home game hotshots, and even to grinders and pros just looking to splash around and take a relaxing break from the major tournament series happening around the city.

But there’s much, MUCH more!

Grand Prize Package Details

For every hour of mixed game cash play you log, you’ll receive an entry into our random drawing to win an EPT Cyprus prize package (estimated value over $3,000), which will consist of:

• Mixed Game tournament buy-in up to €550
• Roundtrip airfare for one
• Four nights’ accommodation

The drawing will take place on the festival’s final day, Thursday July 6th, and the lucky winner will have the opportunity to play against some of the world’s top mixed game players at the first ever European Poker Tour stop in Cyprus this October. Here’s what that type of experience feels like.

Schedule of Events and Giveaways

A hallmark of our Mixed Game Festivals are the “value adds”, and we’ve got quite a few in store for you this time, including:

• Kickoff pizza party
• Poker Trivia Competition
• Scavenger Hunt
• Poker book signings
• Grand prize drawing
• Multiple other daily merchandise giveaways, and more!

Poker Trivia Competition — Details

Think you know a lot about poker, poker history, the poker industry, and our Cardplayer Lifestyle Mixed Game Festivals? Come match wits against your fellow players to see who among you is the true poker trivia boss!

Scavenger Hunt — Details

Resorts World will become your playground, as you scour the venue for items that will sometimes be challenging to find, while at other times perhaps be right under your nose in the poker room.

Prizes to be awarded to our top finishers in the Poker Trivia Competition and Scavenger Hunt include:

• Free first rack of chips
• $100 vouchers to the PokerStars Store
• Merchandise “grab bag” courtesy of: BBO Poker Tables, RunGoodGear, D&B Poker Publishing, Faded Spade Playing Cards, and PokerGO

Book Signings — Details

• WSOP bracelet winner Dylan Linde will be signing copies of his book Mastering Mixed Games, available for purchase at a discounted price of $25
• Poker Hall of Famer Eli Elezra will be signing copies of his autobiography Pulling The Trigger for a discounted price of $10

A Nod to Charity

A portion of all proceeds derived from book sales, the scavenger hunt, and poker trivia competition will be donated to Poker Gives, a non-profit organization that distributes funds to assist military families, homeless veterans, and youth programs in Las Vegas.

Daily Event Coverage + Player of the Day

Hill Kerby, a veteran poker reporter and Cardplayer Lifestyle contributor, will be on-site producing daily recaps that highlight all the action during our Mixed Game Festival, and you’ll be able to find them right here on Cardplayerlifestyle.com. We’ll also be covering the festival extensively via social media on our Twitter and Facebook accounts.

A Pokercoaching.com Player of the Day will be selected on each day of the Mixed Game Festival and will have “their story” written up on our daily recaps.

Show up and take part in the festivities, and you could “see your name in lights” alongside some top poker pros and popular poker personalities who’ve pledged to come and take part in all the fun.

You can score discounted hotel room rates at Resorts World by using promo code YYPKR when booking online or calling directly: 1-833-930-3888.

Looking forward to seeing you all in Las Vegas!

Got questions about our upcoming Mixed Game Festival? Please contact: [email protected]

We’re proud to announce that Mixed Game Festival IV will see a return to the fabulous Resorts World Las Vegas from March 19-23 to stage what’s sure to be another exciting week of mixed game poker.

This time around, the festival will include a pair of tournaments, namely a $260 Omaha 8/Stud 8 tournament on Monday March 20, and a $260 H.O.R.S.E. tournament on Thursday March 23 as our grand finale.

Alongside the tournaments, nonstop dealer’s choice cash game action will be spread at stakes as low as $4/8 and $8/16, with higher stakes available upon request.

“We are delighted to be welcoming back Cardplayer Lifestyle’s Mixed Game Festival. Last year’s festival was so successful that we are thrilled to have the opportunity to host it again and can’t wait to get started,” said Leon Wheeler, Director of Poker Operations at Resorts World Las Vegas.

Cardplayer Lifestyle Omaha 8 – Stud 8 Tournament Structure + Rules

Cardplayer Lifestyle H.O.R.S.E. Tournament Structure Sheet + Rules

Grand Prize Package Details

The EPT Prague prize package, which will be awarded to the winner of our H.O.R.S.E. tournament, will consist of:

• Mixed Game tournament buy-in up to €550
• Roundtrip airfare for one
• Four nights’ accommodation

Estimated total value of the prize package is over $3,000. Beyond the objective monetary value, however, our winner will have the opportunity to play against some of the world’s top mixed game players on the prestigious European Poker Tour stop in Prague this December. Here’s what that feels like.

Freebies and Giveaways

A hallmark of our Mixed Game Festivals are the “value adds”, and that will begin right away with a fun-filled feast:

Hey @PokerLifeMedia #MixedGameFestival fans, guess what?

We’ll be having a (FREE) pizza party to kick off the dealer’s choice cash game festivities at 12pm Noon on March 19th!

Be sure to join us at @PokerRoomRWLV from March 19-23!

Tons more stuff waiting in the wings pic.twitter.com/1fU6ioIqDF

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) March 2, 2023

Beyond the EPT Prague prize package, we’ve got some sweet extras that our players will surely enjoy, including:

• “Bubble protection” for both tournaments + FREE poker training site memberships courtesy of Pokercoaching.com
• Multiple daily merchandise giveaways courtesy of premium poker industry brands like: RunGoodGear, BBO Poker Tables, D&B Poker Publishing, PokerGO, and more!

In addition, over the course of Mixed Game Festival IV, we’ll be staging three poker book signings:

• On Tuesday March 21st, WSOP bracelet winner Dylan Linde will be signing copies of his book Mastering Mixed Games, available for purchase at a discounted price of $25
• On Wednesday March 22nd, WSOP bracelet winner Chris Wallace will be signing copies of his book Getting Started With HORSE at a discounted price of $25.
• Poker Hall of Famer Eli Elezra will be signing copies of his autobiography Pulling the Trigger for a discounted price of $10.

A portion of all proceeds derived from the book sales will be donated to Poker Gives, a non-profit organization that distributes funds to assist military families, homeless veterans, and youth programs in Las Vegas.

You can score discounted hotel room rates at Resorts World by using promo code YYPKR when booking online or calling directly: 1-833-930-3888.

Among the highlights our players love during @PokerLifeMedia Mixed Game Festivals, is the chance to mix it up for low stakes with poker celebs.

We’ll be back at @PokerRoomRWLV from March 19-23.

No telling WHO might show up to join us… pic.twitter.com/9TzWjPgQ3D

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 12, 2023

Daily Event Coverage

A couple of our wonderful contributing writers — Christina Bradfield and Brian “Bizzy” Gutierrez —  will be on-site producing daily recaps that highlight all the action during our Mixed Game Festival, and you’ll be able to find them right here on Cardplayerlifestyle.com. We’ll also be covering the festival extensively via social media on our Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Show up and take part in the festivities, and you could “see your name in lights” alongside some top poker pros and popular poker personalities who’ve pledged to come and take part in all the fun.

Rebecca McAdam Willetts, Director of Partnerships & PR at PokerStars said, “What we love about this event is it has a very specific purpose and style; it provides players who love to dabble in a variety of games a home-game type atmosphere and environment, but of course with some serious competition. We always try to encourage and support such demonstrations of love for the game and are very happy to be a part of it by giving the community something that continues the journey onwards after the Vegas shenanigans!”

Looking forward to seeing you all in Las Vegas!

Got questions about our upcoming Mixed Game Festival? Please contact: [email protected]

2019: Ramon Colillas
2023: Aliaksandr Shylko#PSPC Champion pic.twitter.com/c6BmRPWHad

— PokerStars LIVE (@PokerStarsLIVE) February 4, 2023

This year’s PSPC Main Event witnessed the on-the-felt continuation of introducing poker celebrities and casual players to high profile professionals from around the globe. Famous folks like Breaking Bad and Billions actor David Costabile, Teen Wolf actress Arden Cho, and longtime Team PokerStars Pro Andre Akkari of Brazil all competed in the tournament, which attracted 1,014 total runners.

With the 2023 PSPC has officially wrapped up, here is a look at how this year’s event compares to the inaugural PokerStars Players Championship that took place in 2019.

2023 PSPC vs. 2019 PSPC: By The Numbers

Similar to 2019, the 2023 PokerStars PSPC hosted players from 63 countries, spanning a total of six continents worldwide.

The United States was the most heavily-represented country during both events, with this year’s U.S. participation reaching 265 contestants.

However, the countries of Spain and France surpassed Canada in 2023 as the second and third most highly represented countries at the PSPC (132 players from Spain, 105 competitors from France, and 87 entrants from Canada). This number could be reflective of the event’s European popularity following Spaniard Ramon Colillas‘ inaugural PSPC victory in 2019.

Overall, 69 of the 418 Platinum Pass winners (16.5%) eventually cashed in the 2023 PSPC — a significant percentage-based increase over the 14.3% of Platinum Pass winners that cashed in the 2019 PokerStars PSPC (46 out of 320).

The event awarded 98 (30%) more Platinum Passes in 2023 than in 2019, and two Platinum Pass winners found themselves at the 2023 PokerStars PSPC final table (similar to 2019).

2023 PokerStars PSPC: A Truly “Global” Poker Tournament

Any high stakes live poker tournament that is capable of attracting competitors from six different continents (and 63 countries) has shown its ability to become a truly global affair.

The PokerStars Live brand has established an extremely unique format through its PSPC events in the Bahamas that pits the knowledge and skills of veteran poker pros against the aspirations of casual players as well as mainstream celebrities. To paraphrase legendary UFC announcer Bruce Buffer (who was also in attendance and competing after kickstarting the festivities), it was “the pros vs. the average Joes”.

Such an environment not only appeals to poker players throughout the world who get to achieve their “poker dream” by rubbing shoulders with some of the top poker professionals and content creators, but also ensures that these individuals are able to compete against each other for high stakes cash prizes.

2023 PokerStars PSPC: Participating Countries

265 USA, 132 Spain, 105 France, 87 Canada, 64 Germany, 60 United Kingdom, 43 Brazil, 18 Austria
17 Portugal, 16 Romania, 14 Ireland, 14 Russia, 13 Italy, 12 Argentina, 12 Hungary, 11 Bulgaria
10 Netherlands, 8 Lithuania, 6 Belgium, 6 Poland, 6 Ukraine, 5 Belarus, 5 Peru, 5 Finland, 5 Norway

4 Australia, 4 Colombia, 4 India, 4 Denmark, 4 Sweden, 4 Switzerland
3 Greece, 3 Latvia, 3 Thailand, 3 Venezuela, 3 Turkey
* More than two dozen other countries were represented in the 2023 PokerStars PSPC

Live Poker Boom in 2023 and Beyond?

High profile live poker tournaments such as the PokerStars Players Championship and others seem to be giving rise to a new “live poker boom,” especially when considering the multi-cultural, worldwide representation that PokerStars and other brands are able to attract through marketing and “poker vacation” awards.

Viewership numbers on both Twitch and YouTube tend to spike once action has played down to a few tables, especially when the high stakes competitors represent a blend of well-known pros, big-name celebrities, and unknown poker hopefuls — all of whom have a legitimate chance at a six (or even seven) figure payday.

Huge global poker festivals also allow hosting casinos to spread the game of poker 24 hours a day (even when televised tournaments are on break) through cash games, side events, and qualifier tournaments.

If the congenial mix of poker pros, poker celebrities, and poker hopefuls is able to be replicated on a consistent basis, chances are that live poker tournament fields will continue to increase due to the corresponding positive exposure (and massive participation numbers) that the game of poker receives during these events.

While the poker world’s attention was dutifully focused on the $25,000 buy in PSPC, from a player’s perspective there was only one event on the schedule that particularly caught my eye, namely, the $550 H.O.R.S.E. Anyone who knows me knows that while I enjoy playing Texas Hold’em, mixed games are really more my bag.

Thus, it was with, ahem, unbridled excitement that at “high noon” on Wednesday February 1, I traded in my media badge for a Player ID and bought in to my first PokerStars Live tournament.

Time to H.O.R.S.E. around a little at the 2023 #PSPC

Giddy-up! pic.twitter.com/5pIgmDDjMY

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 1, 2023

While I’ve played in higher buy-in events twice before, I had all 100% of myself in this one, making it the most I’d ever shelled out of pocket to play in a poker tournament.

Visions of Mixed Game Poker Glory

This obviously sounds presumptuous — maybe even preposterous — but I genuinely envisioned myself winning this event. If I didn’t fully believe it could happen, I wouldn’t have plunked down the buy-in.

I know what you’re probably thinking; this from a guy who doesn’t even have a HendonMob profile?! Plus, however many players enter a poker tournament, only one can actually win. Just cashing and making it into the money of a poker tournament is unlikely, winning it far less so, even for a professional — much less a serious recreational player.

But I actually have a couple legitimate reasons why I don’t have any recorded tournament results:

1. The nearest land-based poker rooms are accessible to me only via international flight.
2. I’ve always had to prioritize work over play on my trips abroad.

As such, I’ve only played in about a dozen tournaments over the last 20 years. I’ll note that apparently no record exists of the one tournament I did cash in, a 4-way chop for $495 (apiece) of a Harrah’s Atlantic City $80 NLHE daily back on my 28th birthday in November 2009, but I digress…

I woke up on the morning of February 1 fully intent on heading to sleep that night after having my winner’s photo taken with a PokerStars “Spadie” in hand. While I might have been under illusions, my vision was not delusional. I’ve been a lifetime winner over thousands of hours of mixed cash games and have butted heads with decorated pros in stakes as high as an $80/160 mix.

Moreover, in poker we’re not supposed to be results-oriented; we’re supposed to be process-oriented, and I believe I’ve got enough experience under my belt as well as the skill and patience to win. Even so, at the end of the day, if you don’t actually compete at the felt you’ll just never “have concrete proof” of said skill.

As it turns out, for at least the first six hours, my premonition was actually spot on.

169,500 good for the chip lead with eight players remaining as we go on dinner break of the $550 HORSE

Feeling good about this one pic.twitter.com/E9RYW18JFl

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 1, 2023

In Championship Company

Lest one think that a $550 PCA mixed game side event would be “full of random recs”, I recognized a decent percentage of the field. At one table I noticed PokerStars ambassador GJ Reggie, who had just won a Spadie for taking down the Ladies Event. Seated next to her was 2004 WSOP Main Event Champion Greg Raymer.

At my table on my right was Mihails Morozovs (2nd on Latvia’s all-time money list) while seated three to my left was none other than Phillip Hui, winner of the 2019 WSOP $50K Poker Players Championship.

To be sure, the ambience was plenty friendly, especially with the delightful Keith Becker on my immediate left, but the competition was certainly tough!

Out of the PCA $550 HORSE but had a very fun time chatting it up with @cardplayerlife‘s Robbie Strazynski – even as he was dragging my chips and knocking me out!

Mixed Games Festival in March in Vegas??? pic.twitter.com/T4zyOWRx7k

— Keith Becker (@whoopsboom) February 2, 2023

It’s pretty safe to say that a $550 buy-in tournament was likely a mere drop in the bucket of the aforementioned pros’ respective bankrolls. For me, by contrast, this was a pretty big deal and a not insignificant chunk of my bankroll that I’ve painstakingly built mostly at sporadically occurring $0.25/$0.50 home games over the years.

Again, though, bankroll doesn’t necessarily equal “poker aptitude”. And when you’ve got the chip lead, one of the greatest poker players of all time on your virtual rail, and you’ve been consistently building your stack and “holding over” your table for six hours, you start feeling pretty damn good about yourself and your poker game.

After the dinner break, the field suddenly ballooned from 8 to 15, as some players rebought — must feel pretty great to be able to just rebuy carefree, eh? — while we were also joined by some very notable late entries. These included Adam Owen (and his $3.6 million in lifetime live tournament winnings) and Anthony Zinno (and his 4 WSOP bracelets, 3 WPT titles and over $11 million in lifetime live tournament winnings).

Who Moved My Chips?

The next 90 minutes or so were a bit of a rollercoaster, chip bleeding away about one-third of my stack due to escalating blinds, only to build all the way back up to just over my dinner break chip count. My confidence that I’d win never wavered; not even for a moment.

Then, utter disaster struck as I lost half my stack in a Stud 8 or Better hand with multiple streets of me leading the betting. A complete brick of a Queen of diamonds on 7th street did absolutely nothing to improve my 2-3 | 4-5-J-9 with four spades.

A pair of sevens gathered up all my chips. His chips, now. His chips and his f***ing pair of sevens!

If I scoop that hand, I’m coasting; perhaps towards that winner’s picture, but almost surely towards making the money.

If I chop, great; no harm, no foul.

Alas the poker gods had other plans, as they so often do.

I managed to hang on tight and make the unofficial final table of eight players, but my decimated chip stack needed help and sadly found none.

And so I busted just three spots short of the money, with nothing but a bad beat story to tell.

My current chip stack in the $550 #PSPC HORSE

They got us

Damn… This was SUCH a big deal to me. When you play 1-2 tournaments s year and have to fly thousands of miles just to buy in to one…

Sigh.

8/26 did the best I could.

We’ll get ’em next time. pic.twitter.com/NqicHLNX9f

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 2, 2023

Oh, to have been that close to my first official tournament cash, a Bahamian (first) flag on a brand new HendonMob profile, and (at least) $650 extra in my bankroll.

For everyone else either busting out or still jockeying for position at the table, it was “just another tournament; on to the next one.” For me, this was my PCA main event; my PSPC. I don’t really know when the next one will be. At the very earliest, we’re talking months…

Now, a couple weeks removed, I can make do with sighing at the utter disappointment I felt in that moment. But let’s just say you wouldn’t have wanted be anywhere near me within the first 30 minutes of my bustout. I was in pain, and “raw Robbie” was feeling every bit of it.

All’s Well that Ends Well… Really Well!

Yet, some bad beat stories have a silver lining.

Emerging from the pain, still wandering aimlessly about the tournament area a bit shell-shocked, I realized that it would be my last chance to play poker for a while. The upside of hopping into a low-stakes NLHE cash game for what would hopefully be a calming experience outweighed heading back to my room to lick my tournament wounds, even if I’d lose a little bit more money.

My instincts proved right as Bruce Buffer soon pulled up a seat, his presence quickly helping me find my smile again.

Nice treat to play a couple $1/2 orbits at @PokerStars #PSPC with @brucebuffer (he moved to the bigger game ) pic.twitter.com/4VbHh6PvSr

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 2, 2023

Bruce subsequently left the table, but I still found myself surrounded by some extra-friendly Canadian Platinum Pass winners, including Chad McVean, Chris Robinson, and Jennifer Carter.

Over the next four hours, while having the time of my life, I could seemingly do no wrong. I might primarily be a mixed game guy, but thankfully this hold’em session was kind to me. Extra kind.

You know what takes a lot of the sting out of just barely missing the money in the $550 HORSE event at @PokerStarsLIVE at @BahaMarResorts?

Winning back the buy in, and then some in a therapeutic $1/2 Hold’em session.

All’s well that ends well. pic.twitter.com/ZXLOdJNoM4

— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 2, 2023

The game broke just after 1:30am, which was good because I had to get to sleep and wake up for work the following morning. I didn’t have a Spadie to take back to my room, but my wallet did have $150 more in it than when I woke up that morning.

I wrote all of this up because I suppose that at this stage of my (poker) life, every tournament I get to play in still feels “story worthy.”

And that’s a pretty damn good feeling, especially when you’re just HORSE-ing around.

While not solely responsible for the growth of poker in South America, the long-beloved Akkari is owed a great debt by his Brazilian countrymen for aiding the growth of the game in the region.

Akkari is a proud PokerStars Team Pro member and his infectious smile matches his on and off-felt personality. The party doesn’t start until Andre Akkari has arrived!

Andre was kind enough to spend some time chatting with Cardplayer Lifestyle at the 2023 PokerStars Players Championship.

A transcript of our interview is included below.

Robbie Strazynski, Cardplayer Lifestyle: You’ve cashed about a dozen times across its various iterations of the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure here in the Bahamas – what makes playing in this part of the world such a special experience for you?

Andre Akkari, PokerStars Team Pro: Well first, being Brazilian it’s like being home; being in my country. I have a lot of Brazilians who make the trip to the Bahamas. The group of Brazilians hang out. We drink some beers. We have some fun at the pool. It’s super nice, and — aside from that — we play some super-amazing poker. So it’s great to be here.

Robbie: You’ve finished second and you’ve finished third in the hunt for one of the ‘Spadies’ — the PCA trophies. Just how badly do you want to lift a ‘Spadie’ and to put one in your trophy cabinet?

Andre: When you’re a professional poker player — of course — for people outside of this ‘poker world,’ seeing trophies and bracelets and those kinds of things. They look important and they are. But more important than that [for a professional poker player] is being profitable, running the circuit in a good way, and trying to do it more and more years.

So, in order to do that, you have to play well; you have to have a good graph. So that’s what I focus on more. Of course I want to win. Of course I want the trophies. But for a [professional] poker player, that’s not the most important part. The most important part is to keep working on your game and getting results through collecting profit. So that’s what I focus on. I’m going to try to keep winning trophies, too.

Aniversário de 10 anos do título da WSOP! Respeita o Brasil!!! O brasileiro é forte demais. pic.twitter.com/T0YA10SCAp

— andre akkari (@aakkari) June 28, 2021

Robbie: I guess it’s like professional athletes also. You want to look at your performance. You always look at your performance after that fact and think, “What could I have done better? – Did I make a mistake?” That sort of a thing?

Andre: When you decide to be a professional player in any kind of sport — including mind games or analytical games — you’re going to lose more than you’re going to win when it comes to trophies. Take Michael Jordan: he lost more than he won in the benchmark of NBA World Championships.

What we have to focus on is improving, continuing the evolution, and that’s what I’m focused on.

Robbie: I want to talk to you about resilience, because you did come very, very close to winning your second WSOP bracelet. You finished runner-up this last year in the 9-Game Mixed Event. As you say, at the end of the day, you’ve got more money in your bank account. You can look, you performed your best. But sometimes, someone will just pip you. A little kicker. How do you rebound from what is an amazing finish, but still nonetheless, a second place finish.

Andre:  When you’re in that moment, all of your focus is on winning and taking the right decision. My tilts take about 10-15 minutes after I lost, because what I put my mind on is everything around me. What kind of life I’m living. So when you realize that it’s a Wednesday at 4:00pm and you’re in Las Vegas playing poker. That’s so different from what I was living 20 years ago.

I don’t have the right to complain. I don’t have the right to be upset more than normal people just because of lost bracelets, but 15 minutes after [I lost a tournament], I’m smiling and laughing and doing jokes. I’m having a good dinner, and it’s not just about having money in my pocket. It’s a dream.

Robbie:  I have to say that answer resonates very with me because I’m obviously not a professional poker player. But I get knocked out of a tournament and it takes me 30 minutes. So for a professional, I guess it takes only 15 minutes.

Andre:  [laughing] Twenty-nine, twenty-eight, twenty-seven.

Robbie: I almost made the money in the $550 buy-in H.O.R.S.E. event here. It took me 30 minutes, and then I was like, “Don’t be upset. I’m in the Bahamas. I’m enjoying…”

Andre: If you forget those kinds of things, then — in my opinion — nothing makes sense. You’re never going to be happy. After you win a bracelet. Or you win a big tournament — then the next day, you’re not winning anything anymore. So you have to win again, and then again. So you’re going to be forever upset and sad, and I’m not that kind of guy with all the happiness in my life.

Robbie: You’re a PokerStars Team Pro and you’re wearing the patch from Brazil, so of course we’re going to talk about Brazilian stuff. The growth of Brazilian poker — especially after the pandemic — is incredible. And I don’t think the ‘outside of Brazil’ world can even realize just how big the game is. To what do you attribute that growth?

Andre:  There is a negative point in Brazilian poker history that brought us to this position. Brazil, in 1945, all the mind-gaming and skill-gaming became illegal in the country. So you couldn’t play. We were only able to play later on in 2005, 2006. The only way you could play poker was if you could prove that poker is a mind-sport.

In order to prove that, we have to study. We have to debate with the government and the Minister of Sports. We have to debate in terms of how much skill is important in poker and we have to prove that.

So what happened in Brazil, was the development of a lot of poker schools. A lot of coaches. A lot of stables, and it didn’t happen in any other part of the world like it happened in Brazil. So when that situation was happening in 2006-2007-2008, and then you take that volume. So in 2018, Brazil would be have the best poker players in the world. That’s exactly what’s happening right now.

Nobody can compete with Brazil in online poker because. Naturally, online poker is easier for a Brazilian to compete at because we live far away from the action. A Brazilian has to go to Europe; take a flight; pay for a hotel. So everybody’s focused on online poker, and we’re top ranked.

Robbie: And on that note. On one hand, you’re all over-achieving almost. You’re hitting all the high notes and winning titles and lots of money. And at the same time, of course, Brazilians are known for just being the most boisterous, fun-loving, loud, Vamooooos type of rail.  Is it two different types of things? Or are they connected to each other.

Andre: It’s a mix. The same history that has brought us to that positive situation is the same history that brought us to be a “one sport country.” You know, Brazil is all about soccer. So we live about soccer. Everything is about soccer. When you go to a soccer stadium in Brazil, that’s the kind of buzz that you’re going to see. The music; the screaming.

So for all the sports that we play. If you go to a volleyball match in Brazil, it’s going to be the same. It’s going to be crazy. People are going to be screaming because the school that we had, everything was soccer.

Akkari and global soccer superstar Neymar | Image credit: Neil Stoddart, PokerStars

For example, the United States is different. I now live in the United States — near Miami. in Boca Raton. The whole perception about gambling and skill games is different in the United States because gambling was always allowed in some way.

So in 1985 or 1995, when your kid was playing poker in the United States, you weren’t thinking that he/she was doing something wrong.  Like that person should be punished. It’s something that — when I talk to some American people — you consider it even as some kind of positive thing.

“Oh, he’s smart. He’s intelligent.” Or he takes risk. He’s a gambler. And a gambler is not something super-negative anymore in the United States.

In Brazil, saying you gambled for a living, you were treated like you were a criminal, because in 1945 they made that illegal. The perception was different, and the only way to make poker big in Brazil was by creating schools and studying a lot. And then when you put in all that effort, and you conquer something… you scream, and you make parties. Because it’s nice; everything that’s happening.

It doesn’t mean that the American way is not the right way, it’s just the culture is different.

Robbie: You mentioned putting a positive spin on poker and you mentioned football-soccer. You are well-known friends of Neymar and many other footballers. And I imagine that the major, gigantic superstars not only within the country but around the world playing poker obviously helps with the public image. But I want to ask you about another footballer — Rest In Peace, Pelé.

He recently passed away, and he was like the Michael Jordan or Mohammed Ali level of that sport. It doesn’t get any higher. What is sort of the national mood now? To many, he was the personification of what it means to be Brazilian. How about now after his passing? How has that changed or maybe perhaps inspired another generation of people in the country?

Eu vi também, muito foda!!!!!
É o Rei

— Neymar Jr (@neymarjr) February 25, 2021

Andre: Brazil is a special place from both the negative and positive sides. Brazil never had a war. We never had a war. Nobody sent soldiers to another place. War is a horrible thing, but in some way, war brings people together. They are united to go to war. Brazil never had that experience. So the only way that Brazil was united by history was through soccer. And Pelé was The General; The Captain of everything.

He was like the most promoted in the most positive way in the Brazil spirit and everything around Brazil.

The good thing that I saw on the way that he left us was that he was preparing the country that he was getting sick. He was posting. Almost saying “goodbye.” Almost appreciating everyone; appreciating everything he loved. And we as a country had a chance to give it back.

Obviously the news was about him. The news, every article, every post, every story. So we did our best and after his passing, what is left is going to be forever. Videos and memories and everything that he made. It’s amazing. There is no negative point about him. He was the biggest Brazilian in history.

Robbie: Well, ‘sportifying’ a game is not something that’s new to you. Away from poker, you co-own the Furia eSports team. What’s it been like to sort of be the owner of a professional sports team? Do you see any sort of competitive similarities between that and poker?

Andre: That’s the kind of things that happens with adrenaline; the victories. I’m addicted to adrenaline. I’m always looking for action. I found eSports, and that’s huge action. Everything is about adrenaline. There are so many connections to poker. There are so many things that poker is helping our guys to improve; to be better.

In terms of thinking and risk. Thinking and looking for the optimal decision. I try to pass those kinds of points to them and I believe we have like 11 teams — for different games — and they are all impacted by poker. It’s great.

What we’re trying to do now is like trying to focus them on more behind-the-scenes poker and skills. Everything about reading people. Playing a lot of tables at the same time to see how you reflex is working and how you can look for small decisions. No matter what the results are.

The experience that you are going to get now is going to matter in the long term. Those kinds of concepts really impact them a lot. And that’s not the way that eSports was grown in Brazil, with those kinds of concepts. They just were looking for a win.

They know that they have to improve, but improvement was not the priority. It’s always like, “how can we win?” And of course, you’re just going to win if you improve your skill.

Poker is helping them a lot, and I think there’s going to be an explosion in eSports in the next two or three years because poker is going to invade all of these sports. Esports is huge. We don’t know which one is bigger between poker and eSports because both are great.

But I believe it’s going to be that invasion. Every eSports organization. It will be almost mandatory to connect at least some poker concepts.

Robbie: You’ve been around the block many times in poker. You’ve been doing this professionally for many, many years. It’s not like back in the day; 15 years ago, when people were getting into poker. “Okay, I could do this!” You see now that anyone who is exposed to poker now — they realize.

All of these professionals: they are working hard, they’re in the lab on poker training sites, they’re focusing on fitness. You know, it’s like no one is going to go and watch Rafael Nadal on the court and say, “I can beat him! I can hang with these guys”. Poker though, it’s still a mind-sport. What would you say to someone who is just coming into poker and to say, “Don’t necessarily be intimidated by the pros. You can also still succeed even now in 2023. What would they have to do?”

Andre:  The nature of poker gives them the chance and gives them the adrenaline and the option to succeed against those players. More important than that is the experience.

There is no sport in the world where you can play against the Rafael Nadals, and you can test them. You can test the table and be with them and see how they react and improve yourself in those kinds of moments, in those kinds of experiences that you’re having.

So everybody in the United States who is playing home games with friends. They play the game because they love it. They play the game because they want to see flush draws hitting. They play the game because they want to improve. They want to be better in some way.

So what’s the best way then to face Roger Federer? You see how he’s acting; how long it takes him to bet. So it’s amazing, and you see everything. You see the Flop, you see the Turn, you see the River, you see the showing of cards. How he acts.

So it’s a “live school.” It’s like a live class that you can have all the time… and, besides that, you can beat him! You can beat him, you can get lucky. You can have that kind of moment — more skilled than him, and you can him like on the real tennis court [when playing poker]. So it’s amazing.

That’s the reason that poker is going to be forever. I don’t see anything comparable.

Robbie:  Last question — we started out by saying you have been to the Bahamas many times. Probably many months of your life have been spent in the Bahamas. But this PSPC, it’s the first time it’s been held here at the Baha Mar. So in a sense, it’s a little bit of a new experience for you.

Besides playing poker in the ballroom, what are the types of things that you’ve enjoyed here that you haven’t done before?

Andre: Oh man. I have at least 25 close friends from Brazil here; we all came out here together. I’ve played pickleball every day during this trip. So we enjoy spending time together and having fun. Every time we’ve also had amazing food because this place is amazing.

Baha Mar is wonderful. The rooms are great. The restaurants are nice and not like super-expensive in a way that you cannot afford it.

And PSPC, in my honest opinion — it’s a revolution in terms of how huge poker events should be. Because this is one person that organizes events believing that you have to provide to all the players. Not just for the regulars or for the pros, you have to bring new people together to experience something that they’re not going to experience in their lives.

For example, there are 10-12 Brazilians who got a Platinum Pass and I was talking to them and taking pictures. Their reaction is something that I’ve never seen. Because I never saw somebody that doesn’t have $25,000 playing a $25k event and see $4 million [as the top prize].

The way that they’re reacting is like, “Man, the only way that I can see $4 million in Brazil is through the lottery!” Which is 100% impossible. Nobody’s going to win that.

So then, here, it’s some kind of skill, experience, an amazing venue. and they are facing the guys that they are seeing on TV. So for me it’s a revolution. It’s another kind… there’s no Main Event in the world that can compare to that process, in my opinion.

And what I am rooting for is for PokerStars to expand not just the PSPC, but expand the concept. And see how they can move forward and bring many more people together.

Robbie:  That would be amazing!

Robbie: Let’s start by asking how much you think you’ve won at previous PCA events prior to this year?

Parker: Negative hundreds of thousands.

Robbie: Well, the public records show it to be $29,530.

Parker: That’s what I would have cashed for; that’s not what I won.

Robbie: LOL, okay point made. Well, in the 2019 PSPC you finished 177th, and also there was a $2,200 side event that you played. What was it like that first time, back in 2019, to be a part of the PSPC? How has it changed over the years since you’ve now become a PokerStars Pro and now that you’re here for a second time?

Parker: Yeah, definitely a different vibe being a part of the team here. But both events have very similar vibes. Everyone is just very excited to be here. Just a great place to be, the Bahamas. I prefer this venue, and everyone’s having a good time. It’s hard not to have a good time when a third of the field is here on a Platinum Pass and we’re here playing a $25,000 buy-in tournament. You know, it’s difficult to be too upset.

Robbie: For sure. Ok, let’s rewind. Back in 2020, you were one of the last players to cash in a live ranking event before COVID closed all the doors. You finished 15th in the WPT Fallsview event at Niagara Falls. What are your memories of that event and what was daily life like in Toronto for you at the time?

Parker: Daily life would have been normal I think. That was a little bit pre-COVID I think. But I do have a funny story from that tournament. Seventeen players left. We have 15 minutes left in Day 3, I guess. It must have been Day 3. An old fellow on my left, must be about 70-75 years old. With 15 minutes left in the day, he’s got about 18 blinds. And he just turns to me and goes “I’m too tired, I’ve got to go to bed.” And I was like “Yeah. Fair enough. I mean there’s only like 15 minutes left.” And he didn’t understand, I guess, that it was an option that he could just leave. So he sat there and went all in until he busted.

Robbie: Wow!

Parker: And he just blasted it off. He busted in like 16th or 17th place, right away.

Robbie: So that’s something you aspire to when you’re 70? Same thing?

Parker: [laughs] Listen, I do aspire to become a recreational player. That should be everyone’s aspiration. If you can become recreational, you know. Then you don’t have to be one of these sharks, licking their chops, playing. You can just sit there and play and have a great time. But I would probably never do this. I would probably just get up and leave. And hope to come back with 8 big blinds the following day or something.

Robbie: Ok. Well, you really pushed yourself in the 2020 WSOP online series, cashing eight times. It was a unique experience in general, the fact that all poker was online exclusively for a long time. Do you think that that period of time that we all went through and yourself as primarily an online player helps us all appreciate the live poker experience more?

Parker: I think so. I feel like live poker is booming at the moment. I feel like everywhere we go it’s decent fields. Especially in America. There’s a lot popping off in America right now. But in Europe we had massive fields in EPT Prague in December; record breaking. There’s a lot of people looking to play live poker right now. And I feel COVID has to have a hand in that. People must have been so fired up to play after two years of not playing.

Robbie: Yeah.

Parker: I know a lot more private games, underground games, started during COVID. People couldn’t play at the casinos, live cash games, like that. I feel like people are so excited just to get back in the casinos and that.

Robbie: Well, that’s other people. How about you? I specifically ask about you, again, because you made your name primarily online. Obviously, you’re doing a lot more live poker now. But how do you feel about it now, having gone through that period where it just wasn’t possible?

Parker: Yeah, I’m a lot more interested in live poker these days, to be honest. I’ll be playing all the EPTs this year. I’ll be going to Vegas to play the World Series, probably just to play the Main Event, maybe a couple of other tournaments. I’m definitely a lot more interested in live. I was just saying, it’s been 13 years of live poker and I have never won. I’ve never even gotten second, actually.

That’s my only real goal in poker right now, to win a live poker trophy. To get a nice winner’s photo and a win in a tournament. I see a lot of people win a lot of live poker tournaments. I see a lot of players win multiple – even back-to-back sometimes. I see they may be a decent player, but I know that I’ve put in the work. I know that I am definitely better than some of these individuals. And some of these players just rip through a bunch of titles.

I’m just like “I could do that! Surely that’s going to happen at some point.” I just want to win a trophy. I’d love to win a spade at an EPT or something. I’ve been out here trying. I’ve been grinding a lot. I’ve played a lot of tournaments here. I’ve played lots of side events. But still no luck. But yeah. I’m definitely loving live poker big time. I’ve definitely enjoyed playing live poker a little bit more than online. I love the atmosphere. I love the game. I love the live poker game at the moment. I’ll be definitely playing a lot this year. Really looking for that trophy.

Robbie: Well, since you brought it up, at the end of the day, poker is a game where you try to “score the most points” and win the most money. Simultaneously, we’re not supposed to be results-oriented – even recreationals – we’re supposed to be process-oriented.

Parker: It’s tough not to be at some point.

Robbie: That’s exactly my question. Given that, why is it that the trophy is so important to you? If you can just keep winning money, being a winning player, and being profitable at the game?

Parker: Well, in a live poker setting, I’m feeling like I’m not winning money. I mean I guess I am winning recently, a little bit. I just got a score in Prague where I got fifth place. My biggest score ever, actually, $270k or so. It’s obviously a much more profitable venture if you do win. And I’m not being results-oriented in that I’m saying that I think that I’m a bad player or that I’ve really screwed it up. Listen, I’ve definitely screwed up some deep runs. You know, I’ve had a lot of sweats. I’ve had a lot of 10-20th place finishes in $10k high rollers and stuff like that. A couple of Main Event final tables, a couple of Main Event final table bubbles, lots of side event nonsense, you know.

I think it’ll just come. It’s just frustrating because it’s 13 years, you know. That’s a long time. I guess only really seven or eight years of actually playing a lot of live poker and taking it seriously. The first four or five years of playing poker and going to live events, I really just treated it like a vacation. Because I really didn’t like live poker too much. So I’d win a package to an EPT, come to an EPT, play the main event, and then go out drinking for a week and a half. That was what we did when I was 23 at live stops.

Robbie: You only live once.

Parker: Yeah. These days I only play live tournaments. So it’s a little bit different.

Robbie: Gotcha. Well I do have to ask, do you think that you’re due for a ridiculous months-long sun run? Or is it that you generally feel that there’s more you need to be getting into the lab to do to take your game to the next level, and that’s when the big scores and wins will happen for you?

Parker: No, I think I just need to get a lucky streak of cards and just absolutely tear through it. I don’t know, the whole “due” stuff. I feel like I want to think that I’m due and I’ll have some sun run. But no one’s owed anything in poker. And especially in live poker where even if you’re a grinder, even if I go to eight live stops this year and spend a big portion of my year playing live poker, I’m still playing literally a handful of tournaments that I could play online in like a week. That’s the crazy thing about live poker. It is just a variance shit-show. Obviously, the elite players have a little bit of a step up on the other players. But at the end of the day it really is a shit-show. Sometimes even a recreational player will go on a heater, win three out of five tournaments, and everyone thinks they’re a god now.

That’s really how it goes in poker. It’s pretty wild how, especially in America. I’m just looking to be that lucky donk. A donk for a couple of months. I just want to be that lucky donk.

Robbie: Well you mentioned Prague. Obviously, that’s got to be one of your favorite experiences, making the final table at EPT Prague Main Event.

Parker: Twice!

Robbie: Twice! Tell us about that journey, and what that meant, being in that spot, just a couple of months ago.

Parker: Yeah, in December. It was an incredible experience. It’s so much fun running deep in live poker tournaments. It’s one of the reasons that you love it so much, you know. Especially because I play quite aggressively. Often when I do I manage to have a big stack. There’s nothing better than having a big chip stack deep in a big live poker tournament.

Robbie: To play your game.

Parker: Yeah. That was a really enjoyable experience. It was an incredible, incredible time. Yeah, it was fun.

Robbie: Ok. Well obviously you do a lot of co-commentary yourself. That final table that you made was commented on the stream by your fellow PokerStars ambassador Sam Grafton. What do you make of his thoughts on your play? Or have you not watched it?

Parker: I haven’t watched it back yet, actually. But I hope he said nice things. Sam’s a very high-level elite player. I think I feel okay about how I played on the final table. There are a couple of spots where I messed up a couple of sizes a little bit. But I don’t think I made any tremendous blunders or anything. I was quite pleased with that. I don’t know why I haven’t watched it back yet. To be honest, I don’t really like to watch myself.

Robbie: Really? You don’t find it instructive to watch for live tells? Or how you would have done things differently?

Parker: You know, live tells is just a myth in my opinion. I don’t really believe in it. I believe there are maybe three to five people in the world who can actually live-read players at the table. And I believe that everyone else who thinks they can are just bullshitting themselves.

Robbie: Interesting.

Parker: I think it’s just important to not give off live tells.

Robbie: That’s fair.

Parker: As long as you do the same thing in every hand, and you don’t do anything weird or foolish, I think you should be good. But in terms of being able to pin down reads on people at the table, I think it’s just a guessing game that people do and people convince themselves they’ve got something on their opponents when they don’t.

Robbie: Playing poker in a location like the Bahamas is pretty amazing. Does it make it harder to focus at the felt? Here, specifically, as opposed to other live stops? Knowing that the beaches, the sand, the pool, the other distractions are there, and that it’s almost a shame that you don’t necessarily leave the building too much.

Parker: Definitely, for sure. And I would say that 6-10 years ago not so much for me. But these days I’m definitely getting older and now I would just like to go to the beach today and just lounge. Whereas 23-year-old me would have been like “Nah. I’m not going to the beach. We’re going to gamble, we’re going to drink, we’re going to go out, and do something.” But these days I’m much more like “Yeah, I would like to sit on the beach and have a little dip in the ocean.” So, yeah, more than ever now. And I would assume for other people, for sure. More than myself. Because usually I’m really into the cards and whatnot. I mean, I don’t really find it hard to stay away from it to be honest, personally. Even though we’re heading in that direction a little bit. I’m still fired up and ready to get in that $2k side event.

Robbie: You’re hugely popular. You’re a known name, a known personality for all the stuff you’ve done over 13 years. You’ve also been an ambassador for other online poker companies, previously. How does being a PokerStars Team Pro differ and is being a sponsored PokerStars Pro all that you might have thought it would be prior to signing your deal?

Parker: Oh definitely. I think maybe it’s a little bit – when I was 18 looking up to PokerStars Pros, I was like “That’s cool. I bet that would be cool.” And it is cool, but it’s such a different world once you’re in it you know. I’d say Stars’ team is incredible. It’s so nice to work at Stars, because all my friends work at Stars. Like Spraggy (Benjamin Spragg) and Lex Veldhuis, and Fintan Hand. I’ve been good friends with the three of those idiots for so many years. It’s honestly incredible. Spragg and I are going to make a ton of content this year. We’re going to make some stuff with Fintan. We’re going to do a lot of YouTube stuff, we’re going to do a whole bunch of stuff this year. I’m really looking forward to doing all that this year. But just in general it’s great to work with Stars. It’s great to work with your buddies.

Robbie: Awesome. Funny you mentioned Mr. Spragg. That is our last question, actually. You can either give up poker for a whole year or you have to spend one straight month rooming with Spraggy, playing every day on stream. Which do you choose and why?

Parker: Ha! I mean, it would be really good content. And really good for me to trip my ass just to stream for a whole month. So I’ll take the streaming with Spragg for sure. Although we’re going to beat each other up.

Robbie: And that’s your final answer, you’re locking it in?

Parker: Final answer. Get me in the mix with Spragg.

Robbie: Awesome. Thanks so much for your time.

One family member who is right by her husband’s side is Concetta Rand, whose other half Jon is also known as ‘Slow Poker’ on YouTube.

Running for His PSPC Life

If you aren’t already familiar with the story of Jon and ‘Runner Runner’ then you missed out on the opportunity to win a Platinum Pass to play in the $25,000-entry PSPC. Spending three weeks as a fugitive, Jon had to evade capture by any would-be ‘bounty hunters’ out there as the world of poker fans turned sleuth in order to catch him and claim the Platinum Pass. If he evaded capture, then he would win the Platinum Pass.

There was just one cardinal rule, namely that Jon had to “come of of hiding” to play one hour of live poker every other day in a land-based poker room and publicly demonstrate proof of said poker play. Here’s what happened on his incredible journey.

Having successfully evaded capture for 18 days, thus winning himself the Platinum Pass prize package, Jon opted to bring his family out to the Caribbean as they travelled to Baha Mar Resort, the stunning location for the PSPC. His wife, Concetta, was drifting along the on-site waterpark’s lazy river one morning when she spotted yours truly in a pair of PokerStars swim shorts. I’m all-in on a poker trip, and I don’t mind wearing a ‘Spadie’ on my trunks.

Concetta approached me, thinking that with Jon at the felt playing Day 1 of the tournament that “shouldn’t I be there, too?” That’s when I explained I was neither a player nor PokerStars staff member, but rather a member of the poker media corps. I then proceeded to ask her about her husband and slowly, but surely, uncovered the untold story behind Runner, Runner – the family Jon Rand was coming home to.

“We live in North Carolina and don’t have a huge poker circle, so it’s cool to see him in this environment,” said Concetta. “What Jon did on Poker.Org as Runner Runner…” she drifts away, clearly in awe of her husband. “He was approached with this opportunity; they said, ‘These are the rules — you’re going to be a fugitive’.”

The Family Man Explains

As you might imagine, Jon had a fair amount of explaining to do to his wife of 11+ years and their two children aged six and nine. Or rather, just Concetta.

“When he pitched it, he was like ‘I don’t know if I need burner phones, or if we can talk.’ I said ‘I gotta know where you’re staying, what hotel you’re in.’ I’d run into friends and they’d say ‘Is Jon away again?’ I had one very awkward conversation where one of my friends said ‘Where is he?’ I was like, ‘He’s away,’ and he was like ‘Where?’ He was genuinely curious. I found out after the fact that people were asking questions on the kids’ playdates. I couldn’t explain while it was happening [to the children] because kids talk! I told them ‘Dad’s going away for a couple weeks.’ He’s done playwriting commissions that might take him someplace, but they were broad strokes.”

Jon has been an entrepreneur and creative professional for over 20 years. It fit in with his skills as a performance coordinator in schools brilliantly, and also with his recent adaptation to the poker industry.

“Jon started playing poker in late 2016. He didn’t have a lot of experience. He started playing in home games. When COVID hit and live performances stopped, he was trying to navigate a new path and has been on this creative experience ever since. On one hand, [Runner, Runner] seemed completely absurd and out of left field, but I believed him 1000% because the thing about his creative work that I love and celebrate — and struggle with at times — is you don’t know where it’s going to lead.”

Concetta freely admits that her husband Jon has ‘an incredible creativity and talent and a brain that combines art and science in a super amazing way’. For this challenge, those skills were relied on like never before, and both the Rands were blown away by Poker.Org’s trust in his ability to deliver. He didn’t let them down, providing drama until the very last seconds of the challenge.

“We’ve never been apart for three weeks since we met. Just knowing that his writing talent for so long has been concentrated with high school and parents and a specific niche, and now he’s exposed that writing and performing ability to adults – I was so thrilled it was with Runner Runner. Who doesn’t need three weeks on the road? What a cool thing. But I don’t want to take any credit for anything other than being a sounding board.”

Rating Their Chances of Victory 

Concetta says Jon was ‘more paranoid’ about his chances of success, and flew by the seat of his pants. For a ‘poker fugitive on the run,’ he couldn’t possibly plan every aspect of three weeks on the road ahead of time, having to be flexible and change plans frequently along the way, driving thousands of miles in the opposite direction at times.

“He was driving to Cherokee and [the Only Friends Podcast] mentioned [the casino] live on air. He said ‘You try to figure out as far as you can see’. One day he stayed up ‘til after midnight so that would be his day [playing an hour of poker every other day].

The process was a fascinating one to watch from afar in Concetta’s shoes. She thinks that the restrictions helped her other half this time round, but — should such a content happen again — that it might get tougher to outrun the bounty hunters in the future.

“It’s like watching Survivor season 1,” she says. “You watch it saying ‘Next time they’ll tweak it’. In my head I always believed he’d win. He has so many incredible gifts and talents and I remember telling somebody, ‘The internet’s not going to find my husband.’”

On the very first day of the challenge, Jon put out a clue of a photo of a Texaco gas station. It almost turned out to be a disaster.

“Within six hours, they knew where he’d been,” says Concetta. “The fact they pinpointed his location as quickly as they did was crazy. Had they published that security video [showing his face], then they would have caught him.”

When Jon outran the bounty hunters and won the prize, it was a magical moment, but Concetta couldn’t share it with him at the time. With Jon in a different time zone, communication was already difficult, but then a family drama threatened the announcement of the news.  A few hours before Jon won, he called his wife for a chat.

“Not only was it three in the morning but I was in the Emergency Department of a hospital on that Friday night. Our daughter had stomach issues and I’d begged a friend to pick my son up from the emergency room… then Jon called me. I had no plans of telling him [about our daughter] but he heard the hospital announcement in the background. We were going on a trip to the mountains on Saturday morning. Jon was going to fly in and meet us there.”

The family descended on the mountains after Concetta woke up to the news and sent back a flurry of emojis. The reunion was special.

“He met us in the mountains five or six hours after we got there. At this point, he was exhausted. It’s a really complicated thing to explain [to friends]. He hadn’t been with people that knew him [for so long]. It took me a day to realize the implications of him winning, and the release of not being alone as a single parent to get through it all!”

Coming to The Bahamas

Having Jon back was very special, and it wasn’t long before the couple brought their children to the Baha Mar Resort in The Bahamas.

“He’s working all the time because he wants to put on his own blog, the downloads of the competition, so I have him back, but I know he’s so excited to be a part of it and make it a great experience for everyone. Stepping into this ‘Slow Poker’ experience, seeing this persona and content that brings people a lot of joy – that flow state – is super attractive. When you see your partner doing what they’re meant to be doing, and in a way no-one else could do… its what we should all want for each other.”

Jon – who essentially began his content-led journey to Baha Mar during COVID – put his head down and did something new. Concetta admits it’s made her ‘itch’ for more travel.

“No two days have been the same, and in a place so extravagant, what I take from it is that I hope we get the chance to come back. I haven’t thought about [Jon winning] because Jon has said its highly unlikely. The stuff we love in life doesn’t cost anything. It’s more about the journey and what he’s doing. I just want people to see his channel and what he’s creating.”

Poker’s Runner Runner, Jon Rand, managed to execute another deep run, outlasting over 75% of the field in the 2023 PokerStars Players Championship. While he found two bags along the way and made it into Day 3, his run ultimately came to an end a few dozen spots away from an in-the-money finish.

Concetta’s reaction to her husband’s PSPC run was telling, “the stuff that we love in life doesn’t really cost a ton, and while it would be insane to have a windfall, to us it’s more about the journey and what Jon’s doing. I just want people to see his channel and what he’s creating. The money side of it is very much an afterthought. I want him to be proud of what he does and be energized by the experience. I would love for him to surprise himself and run way further than he thought he would.”

While making the money proved elusive, it’s abundantly clear to the poker community that Slow Poker is a winner in the game. And from having gotten to meet and speak with his wife, Concetta, and learn about the rich family life of Jon Rand, it’s clear that he’s also quite the winner in the game of life as well.

*Ed. note: Thanks to Paul Seaton for his behind-the-scenes assistance with the crafting of this feature.

Early Sunday evening local time, a heads-up deal was reached between Michel Dattani and Pedro Neves of Portugal in the $10,300 buy-in PokerStars PCA Main Event. Dattani took home $1,316,963 for post-negotiation win at the luxurious Baha Mar resort complex in Nassau.

With the PCA Main Event victory, the poker rounder from Porto more than doubled his previous career live poker tournament cash prize winnings now moves into the all-time Top 5 among Portuguese poker players, according to The Hendon Mob.

Neves, who currently resides in Luxembourg, also became a “poker millionaire” on Sunday at the PCA Main Event, claiming a $1,183,037 cash prize for his runner-up performance. Once the 2023 PCA Main Event played down to its final two competitors, an ICM deal was struck that left $50,000 to play for.

With the conclusion of this year’s PokerStars PCA Main Event, all eyes now turn to the $25,000 buy-in PokerStars Players No Limit Hold’em Championship.

The high stakes live poker tournament boasts the inclusion of veteran and new poker players alike who will compete for a seven-figure payday starting Monday. With over 400 Platinum Pass winners, many industry guesstimates have the field topping 2019’s 1,039 players.

2023 PokerStars PCA Preliminary Event Results

Longtime professional poker player Isaac Haxton continued his winning ways in the 2023 calendar year by earning a victory in the $100,000 buy-in PCA Super High Roller tournament for $1,082,230 via a three-way final table deal.

Oregon poker mainstay Seth Davies approached $20 million in career live poker tournament cash prize winnings in the deal, and was awarded with a $1,078,347 payout (eventual 2nd place finisher), which now represents a personal best for his largest career live event haul.

Four-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Adrian Mateos of Spain added another above $1 million in prize money to pad his already stellar $31 million in live poker event winnings.

Mateos exited the PCA Super High Roller in 3rd place for $1,095,093 as a result of the three-way chop.

Allan Barnes Wins 2023 BSOP Bahamas Main Event

Allan Barnes of Canada outlasted a field of more than 450 participants in the $1,100 buy-in Brazilian Series of Poker (BSOP) Main Event at the Bahamas – taking home his largest career live cash in a poker tournament of $86,650.

With the achievement, Barnes enters the Top 1000 all-time Canadian live poker tournament prize winners.

PokerStars Caribbean Adventure High Stakes Short-Handed Event Results

The PCA has also concluded its high stakes “short-handed” No Limit Hold’em events. Each tournament had a $50,000 buy-in to compete.

6-Handed NLHE 1st place:  David Yan – $485,690

7-Handed NLHE 1st place:  Conor Beresford – $436,812

8-Handed NLHE 1st place:  Jonathan Jaffe – $194,814

2023 PokerStars Players NLHE Championship Begins

The wait is over.

It's time to do it again.

The #PSPC starts tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/3VZv4l2aNS

— PokerStars LIVE (@PokerStarsLIVE) January 29, 2023

Hot on the heels of a very successful 2023 PCA, the 2023 PokerStars Players No Limit Hold’em Championship (PSPC) is set to kick off today at the Baha Mar resort complex in the Bahamas.

A one-of-a-kind happening with a big time feel, the 2023 PSPC is only the second incarnation of the $25,000 buy-in event that was first run back in 2019. With over 400 Platinum Pass winners slated to take their seats, the total prize pool already exceeds $10 million – and a four-figure player field wouldn’t be surprising.

The inaugural winner of the prestigious PSPC event was Ramon Colillas, who parlayed a Platinum Pass into a $5.1 million victory in January 2019.

While the live action is happening at the Baha Mar resort complex, cash games and side tournaments are being spread 24/7 with poker room cashier options available to attending players at all times.

Poker fans who are unable to make the trip to the Bahamas to rail the action in person this year can catch a large portion of the 2023 PokerStars PCA action as it happens live on the official PokerStars YouTube Channel (on 30-minute delay).

Image credits: PokerStars | Joe Giron Photography for PokerPhotoArchive.com