How did you get involved with poker?

 

My family always played lots of card games at Christmas and in the holidays, including brag and pontoon, so years later when I read that lots of people were earning money playing poker online I thought I’d give it a go for a bit of fun!

 

What was your motivation for starting to play poker?

 

Just for fun and hopefully to make some money doing something I enjoy.

 

How long have you been playing the game?

 

I started playing around three and a half years ago. I bought the book ‘Poker For Dummies’ and just got on with it! Very quickly I qualified online for a live TV tournament held in London  (the World Speed Poker Open), more through luck than judgement, and my luck held out! I won my heat for £2,000, then came second in the semi-final and third in the final, winning another £17,500, and from then on I was hooked!  However, I couldn’t bear to look at the TV recording now without having to hide behind the sofa…I was so ignorant it’s embarrassing. However, now I know how tricky it can be to play against someone who is very new to the game, so my ignorance certainly was a help in that the pros found it hard to have any idea of what I was doing - I know I certainly didn’t! 

 

After that I started going to casinos to play live, but the smoke was unbearable for me so I went back to playing online and was winning consistently until the US regulations changed.  I had been playing on Party Poker so it made a massive difference as a huge percentage of their customers were Americans – it became more difficult.  So back to the casinos I went - most of them had banned smoking in the tournament areas by then - playing mainly in Bristol. I had a couple of good wins live and online so decided I’d give the GUKPT Cardiff a go in the main event. Although I didn’t come anywhere I did make the second day and also met James Browning, who became my partner, so it wasn’t all bad!

 

How often do you play poker?

 

I now play poker most days. I go through phases of just playing live and then I’ll concentrate on playing online for a while…until I get too many bad beats in a row and/or start playing like an idiot!

 

What do you consider your greatest accomplishment in poker so far?

 

Winning the Betfred Ladies’ Poker Tour for the second time.

 

What is your style of play?

 

I would say generally tight aggressive, although I hope I can adapt my game depending on the table make-up and the stage of the tournament.

 

Have you got a bad beat story that is out of the ordinary?

 

Well it wasn’t a bad beat story as such but it was pretty stupid! I was playing in the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour in Walsall in February 2008, in the £1,000 main event early stages, and checked in the big blind with K3o. I was in seat 10 and as far as I was aware, it was only myself and the small blind in the hand. The flop came down K3x – all the same suit. The small blind bet out and I re-raised him all in. He only had about 3.5k chips I think and I still had more or less my starting stack of 10k. I just felt that probably my two pairs was winning and if not, it was still a big call for him and I could house up if needed, to win the hand. However, unfortunately I hadn’t realised Jeff Kimber had limped under the gun in seat 1 and he immediately called my all in – with the made nut flush! The small blind couldn’t get out of the way fast enough and of course I didn’t hit my miracle full house. Now, if I’m playing in seats 1 or 10 on a kidney-shaped table I try to keep particularly vigilant as you cannot always see around the dealer to know exactly what’s going on around the table. It was a very expensive lesson but one I hopefully learned from! The good news for Jeff was that he then went on to win the event with my ‘lucky’ chips. Nice…

 

How did you come to be a follower of the Betfred Ladies Poker Tour?

 

My partner, James, dragged me by the hair shouting and screaming to the first one, then I couldn’t wait to play the others!

 

What is your favourite BLPT moment?

 

Finishing fifth in the final heat of 2008 at the Western Club, which I knew gave me enough points to qualify for the final table again.  I had lost an epic heads-up battle in Birmingham at the previous event against Linda Blundell and didn’t know until then just how desperately I wanted to win it! Linda had enjoyed an incredibly consistent year and was a tough opponent. I looked forward to playing against her again at the final.

 

How do you prepare for the big events?

 

James keeps trying to persuade me to go the gym so that I’m physically much fitter, but who wants to go to the gym? Not me, that’s for sure! However, I must admit that just playing poker is not the most healthy lifestyle so I know he’s right – and it’s very difficult to find healthy food in most casinos.  It’s often tasty but not healthy!  I used to play a lot of golf before I ‘discovered’ poker and played off a handicap of 10, so I keep telling myself I will start playing again – it’s got to be better than torturing yourself at the gym.

 

Also, James and I usually discuss the structure of the tournament. He has been around much longer than me(!) and can often give me some background about players sitting at my table.

 

Do you get nervous when playing in big events and if so, what do you do to calm your nerves?

 

No, I don’t think I would say I get particularly nervous playing the event itself, although certainly I have sat at some particularly intimidating tables and so it’s always nice to win my first hand – it settles me down a bit.  Then it’s down to business!

 

Do you have a favourite hand? Is there a story behind it?

 

AA! Obviously the best starting hand, but early in a tournament it’s one that can get you into trouble – I’m ashamed to say I’ve been knocked out of too many tourneys by overvaluing it after a flop. That’s something I’m still trying to change. But of course in any tourney, if you can get all your chips in pre-flop with it you can rest assured you have done nothing wrong and that when the guy who has called your raise, re-raise, all-in with 88 and hits his 8 on the river, you just have to smile and say “nice hand” while spitting feathers silently as you begin that long walk through the card room to the outside world where you can really let rip!

 

What did/do you do as a day job before turning pro?

 

I’ve never been career minded so I’ve been a jack-of-all-trades. I used to break and school horses, event them, teach riding etc. I’ve waitressed, done bookkeeping, been a personal assistant, done up houses, lots of things.  Although the life of a poker player can be tough it’s always exciting – and frustrating….

 

Do you have any hobbies outside poker?

 

As I said above, I used to play lots of golf. James had been teaching me to play tennis but that has stalled a bit because I’m not really fit enough to give him a game (back to the gym idea…)

 

What are your aspirations as a professional poker player?

 

I’m a winning player online and live in both tourneys and cash (well, maybe not always cash online as I seem to lose patience, I don’t know why) so I hope to continue to improve in order to build a bankroll that will allow me to play in, and win, bigger events. That would give me the opportunity to play in EPTs, WPTs, WSOP etc – a dream, I know, but one I will be trying to achieve, especially with the help of the Betfred sponsorship.

 

Oh yes… and I’ll be trying to make it three out of three in 2009 by winning the BLPT again! Another dream of mine!

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