Poker Bio / Intro

(Last Updated - February 12, 2007)


My life story as it relates to Poker-

Lucky for me I've been given the gift of math ability. I remember before even starting kindergarten that I was telling my mom one day something like “yeah, four times thirteen equals fifty-two, because four times three equals twelve and four times ten equals forty and twelve plus forty equals fifty-two”.

I learned to play chess as an 11-year old. When I was 15 I took second in the state at the high school chess tournament (I grew up in Minnesota). I quit chess when I was 16 because I thought it was boring.

When I turned 21 I learned to play blackjack (“21”) and became a card counter. I’ve won money playing blackjack in Vegas, usually enough to pay for my trip, but I never saw blackjack as a viable way to make a living.

When Canterbury Downs Horse Track opened in Shakopee, MN in 1985 I started reading books on Horse Racing. I later won the pick six twice, and posted winning seasons every year after 1985. In 1989 I entered a contest to pick the most winners for the whole season for the right to sell tip sheets at the track. At the end of the contest, I had picked more winners than any of the other 20 or so contestants including the incumbent tip sheet sellers and all of the 'experts' in both of the local newspapers. Unfortunately, the track did not open the following season and I was not able to sell tip sheets.

During the stock market peak in early 2000 I started to play stocks. I was a short-term (a few days to a few weeks) trader and I was very profitable at first until the market started to tumble, then I started buying short-term put options and made money that way. I still dabble in stocks but not with near the energy that I once did.

While pursuing the hobbies mentioned above I developed a career in IT and obtained my college degree. I graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Colorado’s School of Business (B.S. in General Business). In 2001 I started my own IT consulting company, which is going pretty well.

In the summer of 2003 I started playing Texas Hold’em and immediately got hooked. What other game allows you to combine math skills, game theory, psychology and more all at once!? (Other things I like about the game - the luck factor makes a lot of players think they are better than they are, you can go head-to-head against a pro and have a chance, and you have the opportunity to compete for huge cash prizes and maybe even play on TV!) It helped me to get hooked when I won an $11 tournament on Poker Stars for $1150 in my first month playing.

I think I probably have some kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder, because once I find something that I like to do, I totally immerse myself it in. While OCD can destroy a person, I think it can also make a person great at something – if they can stay focused and controlled (ala Michael Jordan). Regarding poker, I’ve read over 27 books on the subject (I’ve read over 40 books on the stock market) and I read poker magazines, forums, and blogs whenever I get a chance. In my free time I’m always doing something related to poker.

As for results, the last time I thoroughly analyzed my results was July 24th 2006 – at that time I had 1501 Tournaments recorded in my spreadsheet where I placed in the money 15.5% of the time and my ROI was at 307.6% (about 4 times my buy-ins). 2005 was the first year that I played events in both the WSOP and on the WPT. Currently I play tournaments on PokerStars, UltimateBet, FullTilt, Bodog, Absolute Poker and Doyle's Room. I’m interested in finding a partial backer for some of the larger events since I’m still not at the stage in my poker career where $10,000 represents <2% of my bankroll, a bankrole management rule that I live by. I am currently ranked on both internetpokerrankings.com and on pocketfives.com.

I’m always looking to improve my game. I definitely believe in the saying that “Hold’em takes minutes to learn and a lifetime to master”. Discuss poker with me in the poker forums on twoplustwo.com.