Black Belt Poker

Continued from Part Three…

Philling His Boots

There were a few disappointed faces when Doyle Brunson dropped out, the chance to see the Godfather of Poker take on the crème de la crème in a league format an exciting prospect that sadly vanished into thin air. Filling Doyle’s boots was thus a tough task for anyone, but if ever there was someone worthy of taking the spot, it was replacement Phil Laak. As he says himself, he hasn’t won tens of millions or snapped up a WSOP Main Event, but what he lacks in silverware, he more than makes up in passion, enthusiasm, and, most importantly for a viewing audience, entertainment. Yes, this is the guy that shocked us with his impromptu press-ups, hood-concealed face, and tendency to lurk behind the dealer as the river card was being dealt. This is the one and only Unabomber Phil Laak.

But although Phil is one of the most vibrant personalities on the circuit, those who know him will be fully aware of his talents at various stakes and against a range of players. As well as grinding and beating the L.A. cash games, he’s also made a multitude of appearances on High Stakes Poker, taking on some of the world’s greatest players. He’s also got some TV success under his belt with wins in the 2005 William Hill Grand Prix and, most recently, the 2009 PartyPoker.com World Open. In fact, out of all the players, Phil is perhaps one of the most equipped coming into the event.

But equipped or not, it takes some going to win both the opening two heats, but that’s exactly what Phil did, a feat that even a super user would have been proud of. Now with 32 points, he has already secured his seat in the final and only has to concern himself with collating additional points to beef up his final table stack even further. Luck? Yes, you have to be lucky to win the first two events, but don’t be fooled, poker is a game of deception, and Phil is a master of the art. Either way, I bet he’s glad he was home when Matchroom rang.

Snoopy: How did you get involved in the Premier League?

Phil Laak: I know guys like Warren Lush, Beiju Patel, and Eddie Hearn, and have always made an effort to go to London when the opportunity has come up. I've also had pretty good success with the William Hill Grand Prix and then the World Open last year. Opportunities in the US went from absolutely amazing to shrivelled when the legislation came in. It used to be limos, phone calls, and so on all the time, but that's no longer the case with just a few big televised shows such as High Stakes Poker, the NBC Heads-Up and a couple of others. I know it's intelligently legal in the UK, and I guess I have a partial following there, so they called me up and asked me if I wanted to play. I've never had the sardonic, wit of Roland [De Wolfe], or the blow-ups of Phil Hellmuth, but I think I have an energy. I'm not a genius, I don't have five million in tournament winnings, and I haven't won a huge tourney like Joe Cada, but I suppose I must have carved out something. Either way, I wanted that lockdown, so I insta-shipped the 100k across. It was like I was in a dream or something.

Snoopy: How do you feel you've played so far?

PL: I think I've played well enough. It's difficult to say really because it only takes one horrible hand to say that you didn't play well at all. I remember the kings, eights hand against Ian [Frazer]. It's not totally horrible, but I should have just folded. There was also the A-8 versus 9-9 against JC [Tran] which was one of those situations where I wouldn't have done what I did if I'd thought about it. It was a huge blunder on my part, but at the time I'd been playing tight and I thought he'd think I was a good, tight player and... well, I went to a place you're not meant to go, where you take on the only guy at the table who can felt you. Overall though, I think I played pretty well.

Snoopy: Are you the sort of guy who prepares and watches the other heats?

PL: Do you know what, I'm a hunger junkie and I love commentating if I have the chance because you're right there watching everything that happens. In fact, Jesse May should be the best player in the world from the amount of hands he will have seen. It's just the best practice ever. A lot of it is subconscious. I can't say, look at that muscle, that means this, I just learn a pattern, an energy or vibe and eventually all those patterns begin to settle in your head.

Snoopy: Did you have a plan heading in?

PL: I think you can play pretty tight at the start. You don't need to make too many fancy plays in these things, you have like four shots so can afford to wait. Look at that [Yevgeniy] Timoshenko hand. He raised to 6,000 with queens, I raised to 24,000 with aces, Giovanni [Safina] called, and so did Timoshenko. The flop was 5h-4h-3c and I checked because I thought Giovanni would think I could have anything and bet out and then if Timoshenko raised I could make a psychic fold. Giovanni bet 33,000, Timoshenko called, and I moved all in, which I regret now. When they only call I probably have them beat so a small raise is in order rather than an all-in to bring in those hands that might fold to the shove. If they have the nuts or a set, they are putting it in anyway, and since I am putting it in nearly all the time I should try to capture on the free roll where my small raises induce a hand like queens to moving all in. Now that I think about it, maybe I should have just bet the flop. The stack sizes are so important in these decisions.

Snoopy: What's your strategy now that you've secured a spot?

PL: If my new goal was to lose every hand, finish last in each heat and then be the first one out of the final, then I'd still get $114,000, but even though I've won two heats, there are still points available, and the more points I have, the more points I take into the final. So now it's a case of don't do anything fancy, just get some extra points and avoid dying. I'm on uber crawl forward.

Snoopy: Who do you think are your toughest opponents in the Premier League?

PL: If I had to answer in a vacuum with no cards dealt or points allocated, then Daniel Negreanu has a lot of shit going for him. One, he's the second biggest tournament winner with over 12 million, and two, the idea of points really suits him as he's good at analysing that sort of thing and plays these fantasy sports leagues in his spare time.

There's JC Tran too. He's super cool and never steams. Before I knew him I played him in a cash game in 2004 and after a while I realised that I just didn't have expected earn on him. It was a real rare day where I was unable to get a line on someone. I was so impressed that I offered to back him for some big tournaments, but he said that he'd already sorted out backing, which I later learned was bullshit. He had the perfect response when really he just didn't want backing because he didn't need it. This situation was really unusual as I hardly ever offer to back people, but he was so good. I don't loan money either, I just say no if someone asks. If they're a friend then they'll understand, but I'm not in the business of loaning money. I don't grow pineapples, I don't paint the side of buildings, there are a lot of businesses I'm not involved in and loaning money is one of them. If it's a good friend, and I'm 100 percent certain the money is safe, then maybe, but even then it's just a temporary movement of money.

Snoopy: What do you make of Luke Schwartz?

PL: I don't know a lot about him, just that he did well on the Euro sites then went on and started beating the high stakes heads-up cash players, and then another guy came along in Isildur. I do follow these things a bit and check out the High Stakes Database every now and then. I also read NVG on Two Plus Two, but I'm a more or a lurker really. It's really hard to keep up to date with all this stuff as threads can get so long and I don't have gossip time.

Me and Luke have been speaking a little this week. I met his girlfriend, she's a lovely girl. He's definitely got a good sense of humour because I made a joke about sandwiches and he was able to roll with the punches. I've been trying to give him a new nickname, 'Bubblegum'. It's my new mission. It's an even bigger challenge because so many people know him as FullFlush, but JC called it him once, so that meant I've already doubled the amount of people using it. That's a 100 percent increase! He doesn't mind either, I asked him about it and he said it was all good.

Snoopy: What do you think of the players turning over their hands instead of mucking?

PL: Hey, I suggested that. I love it. You can see the dynamics of the game and learn a lot. There's so much more information being flung your way. If there's a big fish in a cash game I'm playing and this rule comes into play, it's great for the good players as the fish has no learning curve and will still want to play as now they have the instant gratification of seeing hands. The pros have to show their hands, but now they have so much more information at their disposal. Here I just suggested it because I thought it would be more fun. I don't see myself particularly more or less qualified or getting a huge advantage over everyone else, but, statistically, if I had to bet, I guess I might have an edge as I've done it before.

Phil Laak has recently launched his own cardroom, unabomberpoker.com, and will be sharing his thoughts, observations, and experiences of this year's Premier League in his brand new blog on the site.

We also interviewed Phil back in October, 2009: Player Interview: Phil Laak

The Story so Far:

Heat 1…

1st  Phil Laak -- $32,000 (16 points)
2nd  JC Tran -- $22,000 (11 points)
3rd  Yevgeniy Timoshenko -- $16,000 (8 points)
4th  Vanessa Rousso -- $12,000 (6 points)
5th  Luke Schwartz -- $8,000 (4 points)
6th  Roland De Wolfe -- $6,000 (3 points)
7th  Ian Frazer -- $4,000 (2 points)
8th  Daniel Negreanu

Phil Laak: “That was so surreal – I felt like I was floating out there, it’s an awesome start to the tournament. JC is a genius at the poker table and was one of the players I was most wary of, along with Daniel Negreanu, who will love this points system with his math brain. Luke is a real tricky player to tackle, but I love the guy because he plays with his heart and he’s emotional.”

JC Tran: “I can’t complain with second. There’s pressure as the defending champion but I’m not going to underestimate anyone out there.”

Heat 2…

1st  Phil Laak -- $32,000 (16 points)
2nd  Roland De Wolfe -- $22,000 (11 points)
3rd  David Benyamine -- $16,000 (8 points)
4th  JC Tran -- $12,000 (6 points)
5th  Giovanni Safina -- $8,000 (4 points)
6th  Phil Hellmuth -- $6,000 (3 points)
7th  Tony G -- $4,000 (2 points)
8th  Yevgeniy Timoshenko

Phil Laak: “We should really check these decks because some of these things just should not happen. You cannot make this stuff up but I’m not complaining, I’m in a great position already and I’m determined to make this strong start count.”

Roland De Wolfe: “I just tried to hang in there and get heads-up but it’s not a good day all-in-all with that deuce – points and prize money considered.”

Phil Hellmuth: “JC Tran outplayed me today, well done, sir. But I am going to mess JC up big time next match! JC wants war, I'll give him war.”

Heat 3…

1st  David Benyamine -- $32,000 (16 points)
2nd  Giovanni Safina -- $22,000 (11 points)
3rd  Yevgeniy Timoshenko -- $16,000 (8 points)
4th  Ian Frazer -- $12,000 (6 points)
5th  Daniel Negreanu -- $8,000 (4 points)
6th  Phil Hellmuth -- $6,000 (3 points)
7th  Vanessa Rousso -- $4,000 (2 points)
8th  Roland De Wolfe

David Benyamine: “When you force yourself off your sick bed it makes winning more satisfying – and getting lucky when you are sick makes you feel a bit better! I’m playing well but you always look good when you are making the right decisions at the right times and at the moment, that’s how it is going for me.”

Giovanni Safina: “This is a dream, it is completely unbelievable. Just to be sat at the table with the likes of Daniel Negreanu and David Benyamine is enough and without a couple of bad beats I would have won! I have only played two heats but I have seen my style of play changing. I am typically a tight aggressive player but the more exposure I get to these world class pros the more aggressive my game is becoming. I am definitely becoming more relaxed in their company – the language barrier is difficult but I am becoming more focused by the day.”

Current League Standings:

1st  Phil Laak – 32 points ($64,000), played 2
2nd  David Benyamine – 24 points ($48,000), played 2
3rd  JC Tran – 17 points ($34,000), played 2
4th  Yevgeniy Timoshenko 16 points ($32,000), played 3
5th  Giovanni Safina – 15 points ($30,000), played 2
6th  Roland De Wolfe – 14 points ($28,000), played 3
=7th  Vanessa Rousso – 8 points ($16,000), played 2
=7th  Ian Frazer -- 8 points ($16,000), played 2
9th  Phil Hellmuth –6 points ($12,000), played 2
=10th  Luke Schwartz – 4 points ($8,000), played 1
=10th  Daniel Negreanu – 4 points ($8,000), played 2
12th Tony G – 2 points ($4,000), played 1

images courtesy of Mickey May and Matchroom Poker (first image courtesy of Anne Laymond)

Also check out thread on Two Plus Two.

Read Part Five...

Premier League Review – Part One: Breaking the Mold
Premier League Review – Part Two: Party Politics
Premier League Review – Part Three: Telly Addicts