It’s nine o’clock at night in Spokane, Washington, and it is extremely hard to calculate my pot odds with the sound of bowling pins toppling over in the background. I ask the dealer for a count of the bet, to which he laughs and simply shakes his head ‘no’ at me. While I have an odd affection for the $25 daily hosted by this bizarre casino/bowling alley hybrid, at the time all I could think about was fast-forwarding three weeks to the WSOP. Even though the fields will be tough and it will be my highest stakes yet, I know those dealers will kindly count the bet for me before I inevitably tank and fold.
Unless you have interacted with me through the occasional support email, allow me to make an introduction. My name is Paul, and I am one of the many staff members that work behind the scenes for Jonathan Little and PokerCoaching.com. When I am not working, you can find me grinding small stakes tournaments live and online wherever I happen to be in the U.S.
Taken during my WSOP internship in 2018. Jack Effel quickly escorted me away from the table.
As the manager and newest writer for the blog, I am incredibly excited for these next few weeks as I share with you all my experience playing in my first WSOP. While I am looking forward to sharing my adventures on the felt, I am just one of three colorful characters who will be mentioned in this series throughout the WSOP.
I’m fortunate to be joined by two fellow PokerCoaching.com staff members, Kieran and James, who will be travelling from the United Kingdom to make their own rookie debuts at the WSOP. As we live and play together throughout the summer, I’m looking forward to sharing our experiences in and out of the casinos we find ourselves playing in. With it being Kieran’s first trip to Las Vegas and James’ first trip ever to the United States, I’m thrilled to get to share their perspectives as they take in way more “firsts” than just the WSOP.
Introducing The WSOP Rookies
Kieran: Most Supportive Member Of PokerCoaching.com
When Kieran crouches, he is six feet and three inches
A year ago I emailed support@pokercoaching.com my resumé to see if I could land a job with the site. Having seen the benefits of studying the free material on the YouTube channel, I looked to take my game to the next level and pursue poker more seriously.
In all honesty, I would have been ecstatic to simply get a discounted, premium membership, but an English angel named Kieran passed my credentials along to our CFO, and a few months later I was a full-time staff member of PokerCoaching.com.
Obviously, I owe a lot to Kieran, who manages all of our support emails as well as coordinates our social media engagement on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
When he is not assisting website members, you can find all six feet, seven inches of Kieran grinding the micro/small stakes in his hometown of Bournemouth, England.
James: YouTube Video Editor And Spin & Go Specialist
Champion weight lifter and okay poker player
Joined by Kieran is his mate and fellow Brit James, who is also making the journey from Bournemouth to pursue poker glory.
James is our video editor and serves as the main manager of the PokerCoaching.com YouTube channel. Whenever you see the strategy content we put out to our 125,000 subscribers, James is the guy responsible for the captivating graphics and editing.
Another micro/small stakes grinder, when James isn’t scooping pots at Grosvenor Casino, you can find him running Spin & Go’s on PokerStars.
Of the three of us, James will be firing the most bullets in WSOP as well as spending the most time in the weight room toning his British biceps.
Experiencing The WSOP And Las Vegas
Being James and Kieran’s first time in Sin City, as the token American of the AirBNB I’m looking forward to showing them what the city has to offer away from the felt and home office. The Bellagio Fountains, Brad Garrett’s Comedy Club, the Caesars Palace buffet, our options are truly endless as they experience Las Vegas for the first time.
As we live together and fire bullets in the lower stakes WSOP events, we will also be playing in the other tournament series happening around the Strip. Away from the felt, we will be attending to our website duties supporting Jonathan and the rest of the coaches as they represent the company and add to their already impressive list of poker accomplishments.
While we are looking forward to seeing the coaches bring home a bracelet or two, the rookies are definitely ready to make some money themselves.
Becoming a crusher at the poker table starts with crushing the fundamentals. Click here to see if you have what it takes.
The WSOP Tournament Schedule
Grinding Low Stakes Poker Tournaments Along With WSOP
While us rookies will be entering small stakes WSOP events like the Colossus and Housewarming, we will also play the lower stakes and softer fields found outside of Paris and Bally’s. Residing near the historic Golden Nugget, we will be taking full advantage of the Grand Poker Series as well as the Summer Open at the Orleans.
My WSOP schedule, subject to change depending on outcomes in multi-day tournaments. Be sure to say hi if you see me!
The majority of the tournaments we will be playing may not be bracelet events, but as young, small stakes players they are the the proper stakes and fields for us to cut our teeth.
Between the three of us, James will be entering the most WSOP events (five total with multiple bullets to spare) with the first one being the Housewarming.
All three of us will be entering the Colossus at the end of June, a tournament I have always wanted to play since interning for the WSOP in 2018. While I’m definitely the most excited for The Housewarming and Colossus, I’m eager to play the deep stack event as the structure compliments my traditional tight-aggressive table presence.
A Summer Full Of Poker And Awesome People
I’m truly excited for the opportunity to catalog our WSOP experience and share it with our readers and subscribers. Regardless of my results at the poker tables this summer, I am truly thankful to not just play in the WSOP, but to experience it with the phenomenal people I work with at PokerCoaching.com. Four years ago I made the trip to Vegas to help with the WSOP Snapchat account, maybe this time around I’ll be on the other side of the camera. With that, I should probably go pack.
