PokerStrategy: Hi Nik, there are probably a few people who don't know you, so please introduce yourself.<\/b>
Ragen: <\/b>My full name is Sven Niklas Heinecker, there were definitely a few who had trouble finding me on the WSOP entry list. I'm 23 years old and was born and raised in Hamburg. I moved to Marburg to study and still live there now.<\/p>
PokerStrategy: How did you get started with poker?
Ragen: <\/b>A few buddies of mine introduced me. They started and I found it pretty interesting. My first attempts had nothing to do with success, though. I thought I knew how it worked but that I just had bad luck. Today, a few hundred Euros later, I know that I knew nothing then. The same friends of mine advised me to learn some more strategy and recommended PokerStrategy.com. At that time, it was 5$ free and just a few articles, but even with just those it was clear to me that there was a lot behind Texas Hold'em and since then I've studied intensely and tried to improve my game continuously. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: Besides poker, what do you do in your offline life?
Ragen:<\/b> I'm studying economic mathematics. I was interested in this in school and now I notice that this helps me along in poker, too. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: And besides poker and studying?
Ragen: <\/b>Not a whole lot, actually. Between school and poker most of my time is taken up. But I do make it to the gym sometimes, hang out with friends on the weekend and fire up the PlayStation once in a while. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: How did you qualify for the WSOP 2007?
Ragen:<\/b> I just bought-in myself. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: What were your expectations for the main event?
Ragen: <\/b>Based on the strength of my game, I believed the tournament to be +EV for me and the results show that I wasn't so far off. Of course, nobody can say for sure that they'll get in the money on the ME, but there are so many bad players who qualify through a streak of good cards in some satellites and against them I think I'm surely more than a match. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: Did it make you uneasy when you found out that Huck Seed (winner of the main event in 1996) and later Scotty Nguyen (winner of the main event in 1998) had position on you on day 5?
Ragen: <\/b>Nope. I thought before day 5 that I would be nervous at the table, but then it wasn't like that. All the players, even the stars, are nice, likeable fellows and I thought it was even an advantage to have well known players at my table since it makes it easier to estimate gaming strength. With an unknown player, I often asked myself why they played a certain way, but with the stars I knew why and the reads were easier. That doesn't mean that I was better than them, but I did feel more comfortable among the stars. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: Are you satisfied with the result?
Ragen: Yep \ud83d\ude42<\/b><\/p>
PokerStrategy: How important was your education at PokerStrategy.com in regard to your performance here and to your skills in general?
Ragen:<\/b> Like I said before, I didn't have a clue before PokerStrategy.com, even if I thought I knew everything. The site is very good for beginners. You'll have a good base if you follow along and learn what's there. I'm of the opinion that you can win on 90% of the limits with the strategies at PokerStrategy.com, but it's important to continually think about the hands you played and to talk with other players about possibilities, reactions, and moves. I think in the endgame, discussion with other players makes up the majority of what you need to learn, but you should get started with that early on. If you only learn by reading, you'll just be playing from rote memory and won't really understand the game. So sit down with friends as much as possible and talk about the hands you've played. <\/p>
PokerStrategy: Do you plan on playing more tournaments after your success at the WSOP 2007?
Ragen: <\/b>I'm going to focus on cashgames for now and build up my skills there. I will surely play more live tournaments but probably opportunistically or with friends where we can have a lot of fun in whatever town is hosting the tournament. I'm not going to be a tournament only player because of the WSOP. In cashgames, you can play more mathematically and think about the long term results. In a tournament like the WSOP or EPT you only play a few hands and so, for me, there isn't enough math behind it.<\/p>
PokerStrategy: Thanks for the interview, and we wish you further success in both tournaments and cashgames.<\/b><\/p>
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