Meet the Mod: Interview with English Community Moderator 'HollyMichelle'
We take some time out to get to know Gary Cunningham, better known in the EN community as 'HollyMichelle' to find out all about the life of a Mod.
"Everyone is willing to help each other"
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| "HollyMichelle" AKA Gary Cunningham |
PokerStrategy.com: Tell us a little bit about how poker started for you.
hollymichelle: I got introduced to poker through the normal avenue - friends. After a drunken night out, we decided to have a game! So that's where I made my debut. It must be about ten years ago now and all I can remember from the night was that I managed to win, despite falling asleep during the game for a short period!
At the minute, I am not really playing. My wife just gave birth to our second daughter so my spare time is occupied with my family for now. I love MTTs but I've never really binked anything huge. I have won a live tournament, a side event at the Betfair Live in Cork, Ireland, last October.
PokerStrategy.com: How were you introduced to PokerStrategy.com?
hollymichelle: Wow, I'm going to sound like an alcoholic now! I was introduced by a guy I met in my local pub. He and his family were holidaying in my area and we got talking about poker (I believe there was a poker game on the TV). He then mentioned about a poker school that was offering free starting bankrolls to players. The rest, shall we say, is history.
PokerStrategy.com: What did you like so much about the site it made you get so involved?
hollymichelle: I like a lot of things about this website. I think the best thing is the closeness of the community members when there is considerable geographical distances between people.
I know a lot of people who have met with fellow members in the past and I am sure new friendships will be formed in the future. I, myself have had the pleasure of meeting guys from the community. Everyone is so down to earth, welcoming and willing to help one another. That is what makes it a community in my opinion.
PokerStrategy.com: Where did the name 'HollyMichelle' come from?
hollymichelle: I don't have a secret female alter-ego as has been suggested down the years! It is my daughters name.
"The community spirit is the best part"
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| "Customer service is something I have a real passion for" |
PokerStrategy.com: What made you want to be a mod?
hollymichelle: I found the community very welcoming when I first joined. I had plenty of newbie questions and problems and each one was dealt with professionally and quickly, which I really appreciated.
From there my interests grew. I've spent most of my life in customer service and it's something I have a real passion for. When I joined I really enjoyed the vibe from the community so I wanted to get more involved. When the chance arose, I snap called!
PokerStrategy.com: What do you spend most of your time doing as a Mod?
hollymichelle: Working hard, obviously! Ah no, having fun with the moderator team! Making sure we are happy and always moving forward.
PokerStrategy.com: What is the best and worst part of modding?
hollymichelle: Worst part of the job is its repetitive nature. Answering the same questions, over and over.
Best part is without doubt the people and the community spirit. From day one, it's so nice to see everyone being genuinely nice to one another, helping them out, with their game or real life troubles. It's something that you don't see everywhere and I am very proud to be a part of it.
"Our blogging section is full of some wonderful stories"
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| Join Gary and thousands of other keen members in our English Community Forum today.
We have a huge range of poker, strategy and hand analysis discussions taking place, as well as fun stuff and small talk. Plus right now we have an exclusive Guess The Hand forum where you can win $50 just for guessing the villain's hand in a selected hand history. |
PokerStrategy.com: What are the best threads our members must check out from the forums?
hollymichelle: Best threads? Hmm, there are quite a few.
For cash game players - Pleno's AMA on 6max is an absolute must read! As also is TwiceT's AMA.
Our blogging section is full of some wonderful poker stories.
We've also recently introduced a challenges/successes board so I'm hoping to see some epic threads develop in the coming weeks and months.
PokerStrategy.com: Has being exposed to so much high level poker discussion improved your own game?
hollymichelle: Yes and No. I'm definitely not the HUGE FISH that I was ten years ago. I have picked up some decent knowledge over the past four years as a PokerStrategist. I would love to devote hours upon hours to my game but I'm a realist and this is not possible for me. I have improved but probably not as much as I should have.
PokerStrategy.com: What do you do outside of poker?
hollymichelle: Well outside of poker and work, I devote my time to my family. Three women can be quite demanding you know!
I am quite a keen musician, I love my guitar and have been playing it since I was 11 years old. That is about as interesting as I get!
PokerStrategy.com: Thanks Gary, keep up the good work!
