"My main goal is to win a High Roller" - Dominik Nitsche
We talk to the 888poker pro about bracelets, swap deals, studying and the freedom poker has given him.
PokerStrategy.com: Sorry, but we all had a good laugh at this hand? Was it your quickest ever exit?
Dominik '
Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: The hand actually sounds a lot more exciting than it really was. In my opinion it was just a cooler. Also I'm pretty sure I busted at least five WSOP events in less than 15 minutes so I know what it feels like to lose before other people even show up.
PokerStrategy.com: What is the worst swap deal you have ever made with a fellow player?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: Well from my perspective it was the best because I got the day off while still retaining an extra 5% in the tournament. Being results oriented Rupert didn't cash either so the swap went about as badly as possible. Thankfully a few of my other swaps made it past day 1!
PokerStrategy.com: What is the best one ?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: I had a few 20-50k scores with swapping (and buying pieces) but nothing too major. Well except for one time when a friend of mine came 2nd in the SHRPO. I had 10% and that was good for 100k+. I'm usually the one paying out the swaps though. Mostly to my friends like Rupert Elder or Manig Loeser
"I'll never beat Hellmuth's record"
PokerStrategy.com: Do you think live poker is sustainable without staking and swapping for most pros?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: Yes, but you have to be willing to grind way lower stakes at a slightly lower hourly. There are a lot of people that have been making it work for years. Is it for me though? No. I prefer playing for seven-figure first prizes, even if it means selling a little bit of myself (or a lot in some cases).
For me personally it's just more profitable than playing lower stakes on my own. I get paid quite a bit of markup too which makes it even more sweet!
PokerStrategy.com: Do you think poker would be more profitable overall if staking and swapping wasn't allowed? Because there would be less pros in the field.
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: Well that's obvious. I can't think of a single pro that had 100% of themselves in the 200k in Manila I played last month for example.
If you look at more affordable buy-ins like EPTs banning staking would surely reduce field sizes to less than 200 per stop. Would it be a more +EV tourney for me? I'd say yes. The less pros the better.
PokerStrategy.com: You already have three bracelets at a young age, are bracelets your ultimate goal in poker?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: No. My main goal right now is to finally win a High Roller tournament. I see great potential in these things as they seem to be very popular with a lot of the richer amateurs. I also enjoy the challenge of playing against some of the world's best.
Obviously I will be trying to win my 4th bracelet all summer but I realise how lucky I have been to win three. Winning more bracelets for me as a No Limit Hold'em player is just too unrealistic of a goal but I am definitley going to try!
PokerStrategy.com: So you don't have a long term plan to beat Hellmuth's record one day?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: Hellmuth's record is simply amazing and I will honestly admit that for me it's impossible to ever beat him. I have no ambition to learn Mixed Games (other than PLO) since most of my poker work these days is to work on my shortstack NLHE game.
I want to make it to the top in NLHE before I branch out into other games and I have a long way ahead of me still.
It was obviously way easier to win a bracelet back in the day when they were handing them out in two table SNGs where only five players actually knew what they were doing These days pretty much everyone knows at least basic poker strategy so it's going to be tougher to win.
"My confidence comes from studying"
PokerStrategy.com: Success, travelling and being your own boss have come to you very early in life. If poker disappeared tomorrow, do you think this would help or hinder your next career move?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: Well I doubt it would be helpful unless I move into something poker related. Luckily it's not something I need to worry about. I still think there is plenty of money to be made and hopefully I won't have to get a real job ever in my life.
I honestly can't see myself working for the man at any point in my life anymore. Poker has given me all the freedom I want in life.
PokerStrategy.com: How do you keep a level head with so much early success?
Dominik ' Ace0nTheRiver' Nitsche: I study hard pretty much every day and that helps me realise how much there is for me to learn still. Every time I play I make mistakes. Now some of these mistakes I make might not be super obvious at first but that doesn't mean I played perfectly.
Every day of poker I look back on there are at least 2-3 hands I'm pretty unhappy with. That doesn't even mean that I made a mistake in the hand but rather that it was a spot where I wasn't sure how I should play my range.
A lot of my confidence in poker comes from studying every day so I always have a rough idea of how I should be playing my ranges in all spots.
If a spot I don't fully understand comes up I write it down, go home and break it down so I'll know better for next time.
PokerStrategy.com: Thanks Dominik, good luck shipping that High Roller.
