What was life like before your poker success?
My dad has been involved in the horse racing industry throughout his life and is one the most successful bookmakers in Cape Town. I used to work for him quite a bit and whilst doing so started exploring different business ventures. I had a company called Kramer’s Fruit and Veg and then I also opened a casting agency called Sublime Castings. Let’s just say that both were a little less successful than poker.

Take us through an average day...
Well, I normally wake up around 10am and head to Café Neo in Sea Point with my laptop and hit the tables for a couple of hours. I then take a break and go meet some friends or go to meetings and then it is off to the gym. At around 4pm I am back online and will play for 3 hours before going to have dinner. Then comes my grinding session which is from 10pm to about 3am.

Poker Background

When did you start playing poker and what got you to start?
It was always a dream of my dad and me to go to Las Vegas together and whilst on holiday in the US about 3 years ago we went for 5 days. I walked into the casino and saw the poker tables and sat down to try the game and the rest as they say is history.

You are predominantly a cash game player and you are rated as one of the best cash game players in South Africa - Was focusing on cash games instead of maybe tournaments a personal choice?
I believe the fortune is in cash games and the fame in tournaments. Don’t get me wrong I really enjoy playing tournament poker but to be honest tournament poker is so unpredictable and full time players like me cannot rely on winning a tournament with a decent pay cheque to survive. Cash games are my bread and butter.

You have had some great tournament results over the last 6 months in both live and online poker, have you tried to maybe focus a little more on your tournament play?
Yeah the landmark for me was winning the SA Poker Open 2008 in February and then recently the two 2nd place finishes in the Piggs R1 Million tournaments has increased my confidence immensely  and allowed me to gain some belief in that area of my game. I don’t think I have changed my focus as such but rather tried to approach tournaments slightly differently.

What are some of the key attributes to becoming a successful player?
I would say the ability to control your bankroll, to study and be prepared to learn everything you can about the game. I also believe that understanding the deeper psychological aspects of your opponents is essential. AND of course the ability to control ‘tilt’, there is not a player in this world who does not get this feeling but what separates the true professionals from the rest is the ability to control it.

You say above that studying and learning everything you can is essential – what do you recommend would be a good start for aspiring professionals?
I have read a ton of books and there are not really one or two books I would recommend but rather the authors. Any books by Dan Harrington and David Sklansky I would say are essential. I then also read a lot of blogs and forums and spend a lot of time on Cardrunners. For aspiring professionals this area of your game is SO important.

Tell us about Team Triple Suited and how it came about?
About a year ago Ryan Brauer and Ryan Eber approached me to form a team of what we believed were the best players in South Africa at that time. We would essentially take shares in each other and each time we cashed in a tournament some of the money would be placed in a playing-fund which we would use to offset the high costs of international travel. In order to further our playing careers we need to get overseas and participate in large international tournaments and the costs to do so are astronomical and we believed forming the team would help solve this.

Is it great being part of a team with the likes of Brauer and Eber? Does it add some pressure on your to perform?
I am not going to lie, up until February when I won the Open I had not contributed a cent to the fund and the pressure was starting to build. After winning it was a huge relief but mostly it was a sense of achievement.

You 3 are pretty close friends, does this help when you travelling abroad as often as you do?
Travelling is extremely tiring and it is especially tough when you on your own. Travelling as a team makes the journey easier and in my opinion a lot more productive as you are able to discuss different aspects of the game or even just provide some motivation and companionship.

What do you think is your most memorable achievement?
Winning the SA Poker Open without a doubt, that tournament is becoming more and more popular and with over 60 international players and all of South Africa’s top poker talent in the field it definitely was an achievement and one that I am extremely proud of.

Lets talk briefly about the SA Poker Open, what were your thoughts going into the tournament?
As I said earlier the pressure was starting to mount coming into this tournament and I was not feeling too confident as I have had so many great starts but at the business end of previous tournaments I have let it slip. But things started to change for me mentally about 4 or 5 hours into play on Day 1; I had built a decent chip stack and all of a sudden I realised that I could win this. I don’t know what exactly set off that mental change but I hope it keeps coming back.


It was a long wait to determine the final table especially with 15 players left, take us through the final table and your thoughts going in?
To be honest I was just relieved to get to the final table, I had quite a few nervous scares from about 15 players left and I was pretty happy that the final table comes back the next day because it gave me time to clear my head and get myself mentally prepared. At the start I just tried to pick my spots, I was lying about 7th in chips with 8 players left but still felt so confident and really believed I was the best player at that table. I just kept telling myself to keep patient and as players were knocked out the self belief and confidence just soared. I definitely felt at this stage my 6 Max cash game experience would pull me through and I drew on that experience.

Final two and the only object between you and the title is one of South Africa’s best tournament players in Chris Convery what was running through your mind?
I have the ultimate respect for Chris, his results speak for themselves and I knew he wanted to win just as badly as I did. He was a slight chip leader going in but I just kept backing myself and with some help from the poker god’s I managed to reverse the chip lead and kept on going from there. Going into the final hand I was chip leader by some distance but I was still not satisfied till the title was mine.

Who has been your biggest influence in achieving your success?
I would say Prahlard Friedman who was an online high stakes cash game player on Bet365. I used  to sit in the internet café and watch this guy literally take hundreds of thousands off opponents. He was the one who proved to me that aggression in poker will always prevail.


What are your plans for the rest of the year?
The World Series in Las Vegas is a certainty and then it is back home in time for the Sun City tournament in September and the SA Poker Masters in October. Other than that I will take each day as it comes and keep enjoying life.