Interview with TGT moderator and Pro Gambler "KidPoker"
Welcome to the latest edition of TheGamblingTimes.com Premium Member mailshot. This month, we have been talking with TGT moderator 'kidpoker' to find out a little about his life as a professional gambler.
Q: Can you tell us about the kinds of gambling related activity you do and how you first became interested in such pursuits?
A: Right now I am involved in poker and sports betting as gambling activities. I do some matched betting here and there to bust some bonuses but, since I have exhausted almost all sportsbook bonuses, this is very limited these days. I will also do any casino bonus available that is +EV. I became interested in gambling mainly because I have always loved sports and making money the easiest way possible and sports betting, poker, and matched betting combined these things.
Q: Now, I'm sure many TGT users know you for the kickbacks you offer them for joining up to particular books and casinos when using your links and you've also been able to bring some great offers to TGT players and even some contests. How long have you been involved with affiliate activity and what kind of responsibilities do you feel you have in fulfilling that affiliate role well?
A: I have been involved in the affiliate side of things for about 6 years. I was never really hard core into it, or didn't do it much at first. I started as just a moderator and another person handled all affiliate accounts. He then asked me to start setting up some poker tournaments and other affiliate deals. Once I got into it and started learning how things worked, I decided to start asking these books and casinos for special deals. I figured all they could say is no. And, luckily, if you work with them and do a lot of negotiating, you can get some special deals. But believe me, it is more work than you think sometimes.
Q: 'Kid Poker' is the nickname of one of the most famous poker players in the game today, Daniel Negreanu. Is he one of the players you most admire?
A: 'Kid poker' has been my handle on gambling forums before Daniel hit the scene. I got the name when I was in high school. My dad would always have poker parties every week. And they would let me play. Well, to sum it up, I would usually win and win big. They would always say; "who is this kid?" And that eventually turned into them calling me 'kidpoker'. I don't really have a favorite poker player. There are many I like to watch and whose play I respect but no real favorites.
Q: You're travelling to Las Vegas in June for a World Series of Poker event. Tell us a little about that.
A: During the World Series of Poker, there is the main event that is a $10,000 buy-in but before that there is a month of lower buy-in events, mostly around $1500 to $2500 buy-in. I have played in them before but usually I play in the side cash games during this time because a lot of sub-par people come and play poker during this time. This year I am going 2 different weeks for sure and playing in at least 1 event but probably more. It won't be a satellite. It will be in a NO limit series event. I expect to cash. I am a very solid tournament player with a lot of patience. Usually I play very disciplined till I make the money, then I play for the final table.
Q: And beyond this WSOP event in June, what do you have planned for the future with your poker?
A: That is about as far as I have planned so far. I usually play it by year at the series. If I get hot at the side cash games, I stick to those. If I run sub-par at those, I play in the tournament. This year I will be playing in at least 1-2 tournaments for sure because I have people that have bought shares of me for it. That basically means if the buy-in was $1000.00 then they give me, let's say, $50.00. So if I cashed $50,000, they would get a pre-agreed percentage of the winnings. I have done this in the past for tournaments and have made some nice cashes and made some people some nice money. Also, since you can basically watch the results live online, people can follow how I am doing. It's kinda like playing the lottery but with better odds for those people.
Q: Many of us that have played poker may have only done so online. Just how different is the game when you're sitting there in person?
A: Live is a different beast. You need to be able to be much more patient and you need to control yourself and the way you act. The good players can read you. But live, it is much easier to find the bad players and really take advantage of them.
Q: Moving on to the sports betting side of things, as well as general advantage play, you are a handicapper too. What's your methodology when handicapping and how has this changed over time?
A: I handicap myself almost strictly on prop bets. On regular games, I have access to some solid handicappers and I just play their plays. I have a list of about 3-5 at each sport and I bet all of each of their plays. This helps because even if one is having a bad run, the others can usually cancel it out. I used to handicap myself on regular games but just don't have the time anymore. And the way I do it now, makes me just as much money.
Q: If you have a particularly bad run of losses, how do you find it best to deal with that?
A: This is something that everyone needs to learn how to deal with to be successful in this line of work. Personally, I take a break. Luckily I have a pretty broad range of things I can do well. If poker starts running bad, I take a break for a month and focus more on prop bet handicapping or I will email and talk to as many affiliates as possible and get as many deals done as I can. I will focus on working out and make a goal in that area also.
I am in my early 30s but stay very active in sports and working out. I stay healthy and in pretty good shape. I think this is important because the better you feel, the easier it is to succeed.
Q: You're an advocate of having a structured routine when it comes to making the most from gambling activities. How do you feel this helps you and what would be your other more generalized tips for people in making the most out of their sports betting activities?
A: Yes, structure and a routine are huge if you ask me and doing this will help you stay on top of things. Bankroll management is also key, especially in handicap betting. You should never be betting more than 3% of your bankroll on one game no matter how much of a sure winner you think it is. This is also key in poker to knowing what limits you should be playing. If you play above you bankroll limits, it can affect your play.
Q: What have been your greatest gambling related achievements so far?
A: My greatest achievement if you ask me is that I have been able to make a living out of gambling. I have learned some key things from people over the years that helped me stay disciplined enough to never bust or screw things up. I started out strictly as a poker player. I was a prop poker player online for about 2 years. This basically means you get paid to play at poker sites that have limited number of players. I then met a very intelligent person that introduced me to casino bonuses. I turned a $100.00 investment into about $15K in profit in casinos alone the first year. It was nice to do casinos about 3 hours a day to take breaks from poker.
Over the next couple of years, I made thousands more just doing casinos a couple hours a day. This helped me raise my bankroll high enough to raise my poker playing limits which increased my profits there. Then, through some casino forums, I met a guy that taught me about handicap betting but he also taught me about money management at the same time.
I have made plenty of mistakes over the years but, because of good money management and learning from my mistakes, I have been able to live a comfortable life that I love. I have had many large poker tournament wins. Some online, and some live. I have had many poker tournament cashes ranging from $50,000 to $200,000. I still haven't won a bracelet though in the World Series of Poker.
TheGamblingTimes.com would like to thank 'kidpoker' for sharing his story and his thoughts. If you would like to comment on this interview, please do so in this thread:
