Diamond Interview Series: smidlo
That's right, we finally managed to get a hold of our top player. In this interview, he finally reveals the secret to his success so far, as well as his plans for the upcoming races and the future of his poker life.
Ladies and gentlemen, we got him! I have to admit he was quite an elusive prey, but persistence alone kept me going. This week's Diamond interview features a(nother) Slovak player who is the current leader of our Top 20 race and he is known as one of the top English community members for quite a while now.
Come to think of it, it seems like Slovaks have some sort of secret agreement, as they take turns in dominating our ranking and crushing the others. I have lost track of how many Slovak players have been in our Top 10, for instance.
If you would like to help me pick next Diamond interviewee, read the previous interviews or if you simply want to add suggestions, then check this thread specially created for these interviews:
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This interview was conducted by
PokerStrategy.com: Hello, smidlo, you sneaky Diamond, it's great to finally tell you
"Welcome to my Diamond Interview Series!" I've been chasing you for
quite a while, but I like the "hard to get" types. Since you're quite a rare bird here, can you please
introduce yourself to the readers?
smidlo: Thanks. First I would like to say hello
to all poker fans out there. To be honest, I am pleasantly surprised and
I appreciate this opportunity to be interviewed. I hope that your
effort will be worth it - I promise I will do my best :). So here is my
short intro: my name is Peter and I am 27 years old. I come from
Slovakia where I am still living. As for hobbies (except poker of
course), I like martial arts and my new motorbike.
PokerStrategy.com: Alright, so basically you're a poker playing biker ninja, is that what you mean? Well that's pretty manly. If you also like to wrestle bears or something, then you're pretty much complete in my opinion. Now tell us, how did you actually get into poker and how did you find PokerStrategy.com?
smidlo: First time I have seen Hold’em poker on Eurosport cca. 3 and half years ago, I was fascinating and horny to try it :). Commentators mentioned online poker and that was all what I needed. Next day I installed my first poker software and "THE TIME OF FREEROLLS HAD BEGUN". Of course I lost all my winnings from freerolls in cash game or Sit and Go. After one month I realized that I have to study. Thank good I found PokerStrategy.com, where I found everything that beginners needs and as a bonus I received $50 as starting capital.
Seeing poker on TV made me horny
| smidlo can rip your heart out with his toes and any nearby item |
PokerStrategy.com: That's right people; he said that poker gave him a boner. Alright, if you say so... But tell us, what is your favourite part about PokerStrategy.com?
smidlo: At the beginning It was $50 starting capital :). Then I went through all the strategy articles. This gave me basis of math and also psychology for my game. To be honest, now I am not really active here but I am still checking news and articles. I would like to check also your video section but now I am rather playing than studying 🙁
PokerStrategy.com: You MUST check our video section. In fact, I'm gonna ask you to promise that you will watch at least one video after the interview. I guess playing is the main reason why we barely see you active over here eh? And if so, how much do you play there every day in average? What's an average play day for you?
smidlo: Ok, tell me which videos are the best for cash game players and I promise that I will play one of them immediately after the interview... It is difficult to say how much I am playing. My hobbies take me some time so it depends on the situation. In general, I am playing 2-4 hours per day. This month was a bit different for me, as I set up a personal challenge. My plan was 150k hands/month and I am almost over. I need cca. 7k hands to reach my goal. This month I played 8 hours 20 min (source PT3 🙂 ) in average every day.
PokerStrategy.com: Alright then, I will recommend you some videos but I don't want to give any names yet. What about your plans for the next few months? For example, you're the leader of our Top 20 this month, with a ridiculously huge lead. What's your secret? Is it just this personal challenge of yours or will we see you dominating our ranking again?
smidlo: After this month I will take some break. I definitely need it. I would like to analyze my game and study more. Of course I will play poker but less. I expect cca. 50-60k and I will focus on quality instead of quantity. That is good news for my competitors :).
Slovaks and our Top 10
| When the sun goes down... |
PokerStrategy.com: Yeah I bet the others will be happy to hear that. I don't know why, but there's something wrong with you Slovaks, because you keep dominating our rankings. Why do you think this happens?
smidlo: Hard to say. I cannot reach a conclusion for my Slovak mates as I am a "lone wolf" - I mean I am not in touch with other poker players in Slovakia. So this is only my description: I keep poker really serious, I am motivated and persistent. I busted my whole BR 3 times and was forced to start from zero. It did not stop me and I was able to get to NL1k. Now I am more experienced and hope that I will never bust my BR any more.
PokerStrategy.com: Three times? Damn, you're persistent. Well it's definitely nice to see you made it this far, even though you had these problems. By the way, since I mentioned Slovakia, what do you do over there in your spare time?
smidlo: The same things like young people in other European countries. Slovaks are not different ... Oh, I am little bit different. I am not going to pubs as that is not fun for me. I spend all my spare time in the gym.
PokerStrategy.com: So you're a poker playing ninja biker who's who also works out. I hope you follow Richard Simmons' workout programs. And since we mentioned your poker program a bit earlier, tell me a bit more about it: what do you need to feel comfortable at the tables and bring your A-game there? Do you have some lucky (dead) rabbit's foot or something to keep you company when you're bluffing with your muffin?
smidlo: I have to disappoint you: I am not superstitious, so I have no talismans or things like that. I need only two things - working PT3 and stable internet connection 🙂
PokerStrategy.com: That's really disappointing. I thought you Slovaks believe in witchcraft, given the fact that so many of you are in our Top 10 at any given time (hello, thelastnail!). And since there might be some beginners who want to be just like you (excluding the ninja biking part maybe, cause that’s just too much), what would you advise them to do at the start of their poker career?
smidlo: First of all, read articles about the rules. You should understand why you are losing. Second step is to read the basic articles at PokerStrategy.com, as you should know why opening 72 from UTG is not profitable although it is suited. And finally, the next three steps are really important: 3rd step FOLLOW BR MANAGEMENT, 4th step FOLLOW BR MANAGEMENT, 5th step FOLLOW BR MANAGEMENT. Believe me I know a lot about it...
smidlo = Bruce Lee + Valentino Rossi
|
... I go to the beach and eat
some fried chicken.
|
PokerStrategy.com: Yeah I bet you know those last three rules, especially after losing your BR three times. Now if we were to look into the future of smidlo, what do we see? What are your plans for the next 5-10 years?
smidlo: I believe it will be poker. At the moment I do not know how far I can get. I know myself and I will try to play as high as possible. As for non-pokers goals ... "master of martial arts" and "master of motorbikes". Something like combination of Bruce Lee and Valentino Rossi... but a little bit more attractive 🙂
PokerStrategy.com: Well, smidlo, I can tell you now that riding bikes and doing bicycle kicks at the same time is one of my childhood dreams, so you have my respect if you can manage to do both these things. Ah yes, I almost forgot: what does smidlo mean? To me it sounds like a Slovak Smeagol. Is there a story behind your nickname?
smidlo: Unfortunately, again nothing special and interesting. It was my nickname during my studies and it comes from my last name. So it has no special meaning.
PokerStrategy.com: At least you got the ninja and biking stuff to be proud of. I think we're pretty much done, so if you have any shout-outs, questions or any comments, feel free to do that now.
smidlo: I want to say “Thank you” for this opportunity to be interviewed and good luck at the tables to all the PokerStrategists!
PokerStrategy.com: Thank you for joining us and good luck with your poker career!
