CardsChat - Poker professional interviews from The World's #1 Poker Community: Recent Episodes
CardsChat
CardsChat is the friendliest Poker Podcast in town from The Worlds number 1 Poker Community. A weekly podcast by www.cardschat.com hosted by Robbie Strazynski. Interviewing the top poker professionals from around the world and taking questions from the CardsChat community.
On episode #129 of the Cardschat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Gareth James. He's a professional poker player, coach, author, and fellow podcaster. On this show we'll talk about his career as a player as well as his multiple other poker pursuits - in particular his latest book, The Final Table - as well as get to know him better in general.
On episode #128 of the Cardschat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Max Pescatori. Max is a successful longtime professional poker player with four World Series of Poker bracelets and two WSOP Circuit Rings in his trophy cabinet. Winning his bracelets in No Limit Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha, Razz and Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo, Max has been proficient in all forms of the game to the tune of almost $5 million in live tournament earnings alone. Not only that, but his last name translates as 'The Fisherman' in his native tongue and he’s also known by his nickname 'The Italian Pirate'. On today's show we'll get to know him a little better.
On episode #127 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Anish Patel. Anish is the author of poker's first ever graphic novel, a project he began working on 14 years ago, after watching the 2008 WSOP Main Event Final Table. The project eventually ended up being called The Final 9 and after boatloads of time, effort, and resources invested, has finally become a reality. On today's show, we'll get to know Anish a little better, learn about his passion project, and more about how driven this man is to have created such a unique piece of work.
On episode #126 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Maureen Bloechlinger, one of the poker industry's most active advocates for increasing women's involvement in the game. Based in Switzerland, she is perhaps best known for her running of two prominent Facebook groups: Globetrotting Poker and Globetrotting Poker Women - which combined boast close to 2,000 members. Maureen always has her finger on the pulse of where in the world Ladies events are being held, and spreading the word about them, and she’s of course an avid poker player herself. On this show, we get to know her a little better.
On episode #125 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming David "ODB" Baker. David is a longtime poker professional and mixed game specialist with close to $7 million in career tournament winnings. He won his first World Series of Poker bracelet in 2012 in the $2,500 8-Game Mix event before grabbing gold again in 2019 in the $1,500 Limit Hold'em event; plus he's also got a WPT title in his trophy case. On this show we'll learn more about his career as well as a little about his life away from the felt.
This edition of the CardsChat podcast revisits interviews with former WSOP World Champions Chris Moneymaker, Joe Cada, Ryan Riess, Martin Jacobson and Greg Raymer (plus Phil Hellmuth and Jamie Gold – audio version only). These players have reached the very top of the poker world, and share their experiences before, during and after their history-making victories in the WSOP Main Event. From the very start of their poker careers to their crowning moments – and the aftermath – their unique experiences have been brought together for this very special WSOP-themed episode.
On episode #124 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Leon Wheeler, the poker room manager at Resorts World Las Vegas. Leon's involvement in the poker industry stretches back over 30 years. He's had a front row seat to the poker boom and bust cycle in Las Vegas having worked with a number of top properties in the city over the years. As live poker booms once again, he's earned his way to now manage one of the top poker rooms in the city. On this episode, we'll hear how Leon slowly but surely rose through the industry ranks and get to know a little bit more about his life away from the felt.
On episode #123 of the Cardschat Podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming "Miami" John Cernuto. John holds a special place in poker lore, having racked up the most cashes in the history of live ranking tournament poker. Currently that tally is over 625 cashes according to the Hendon Mob. On today's show, we'll take a tour through his illustrious poker career, and we'll also get to learn about him and his life away from the felt.
On episode #122 of the Cardschat Podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Lexy Gavin-Mather. She's a poker player, vlogger, presenter, and coach whose added value to the game is as wide as her smile. A poker professional at the top of her game, Lexy is a truly positive person to have in the industry. With about 10,000 subscribers and 1 million views on her YouTube channel, we're big fans of hers too, and on this episode we get to know her a little better.
On episode #121 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Jon Friedberg. Jon’s is a name you might not recognize, but whose primary contribution to the poker world is certainly widely known. A longtime poker player with over $1 million in career tournament earnings, and a WSOPbracelet, Jon’s biggest claim to fame is that he founded PokerAtlas, the software behind cash game traffic and tournament information at poker roomsworldwide. On this show we’ll learn all about his career in poker and get to know him a little better.
On episode #120 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Ryan Kirk. He's less well known at the felt, but rather known in the poker world for his work behind the scenes as the Director of Poker Operations at Aria Las Vegas. Over the past few years, the poker room at Aria Casino & Resort in Las Vegas has continuously been spoken about as one of the best in the world. It's no surprise to anyone when they go there, and the experience is a magical one for players of all levels and in all formats. That's due in no small part to Ryan's efforts. On today's show, we'll get toknow him a little better.
On episode #119 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Chance Kornuth. He's a professional poker player who has won almost $12 million at the live felt in tournaments alone. A three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, a World Poker Tour Champions Club member and the co-founder of Chip Leader Coaching, we'll speak with Chance about his career to date and what's to come, as well as get to learn about his "away from the felt life".
On episode#118 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Tom Wheaton. One of the hardest-working, innovative entrepreneurs in our industry, Tom first debuted in poker as the founder and CEO of Faded Spade Playing Cards, making inroads into dozens of the top poker rooms across the United States. He subsequently carved out advisory and consultancy roles with some of poker's biggest operators plus he founded the Above the Felt Entertainment talent agency helping to promote poker's brightest stars. On this episode we'll get to know him a little bit better, as well as all about the new documentary he produced entitled Dreamers.
On episode #117 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Alex Livingston. Alex is a WSOP bracelet winner and past WSOP Main Event final table-ist from Canada. Cashing across a vast number of high-profile events over the past few years, he has become one of our favorite players to watch, especially on the mixed game scene. He's got over $6.7 million in career live tournament earnings, but a stellar resume notwithstanding, Alex is a man who is clearly still on the rise. On this episode, we'll get to know him a little better.
On episode #116 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming a truly multinational poker personality. This Canadian was raised in Poland and now often finds herself presenting and playing poker in the United States. With a notorious history of doing the right thing, she’s taken the poker world by storm in recent years and been at the forefront of some of the game’s biggest stories. But who is the woman herself? We're talking of course about Veronica Brill, and it’s time we get to know her a little better.
On episode #115 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Georgina James, a.k.a, GJ Reggie. She is a poker player, a gamer and a PokerStars ambassador. She is also a Twitch streamer par excellence, and while mostly an online player, she recently won her first 'Spadie' trophy as PokerStars ambassador in The Bahamas. With a magnetic personality, thousands of followers on social media channels and a prosperous poker career stretching ahead of her, we're excited to have her on the show to get to know her a little better.
On episode #114 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Kristin Brotherton, who was recognized with the Poker Power Rising Star award at the recent Women in Poker Hall of Fame gala. A full-time technologist and engineer with Google, Kristin is quickly beginning to make a name for herself in the poker world. We talk about her tournament results, special poker world experiences at the 2022 WPT World Championship festival and more as we get to know her a little better.
On episode #113 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Chris Robinson. Better known in the Cardschat community as CRStals, Chris is one of our most active forum members, as well as a moderator. He had the good fortune to win a Platinum Pass to play in the PokerStars Players Championship in the Bahamas, and on today’s show we get to learn all about his Platinum Pass winner's experience, what it was like to play at the PSPC, and all about his poker life and love for the Cardschat community.
On episode #112 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Frank Kassela. Frank is a 3-time WSOP bracelet winner, a former WSOP player of the year, and has $3.4 million in career live tournament earnings. While those numbers are impressive enough, poker isn't his primary gig, as he's a tremendously successful businessman and entrepreneur who has run multiple companies since his first one in his mid-twenties. And while he's one of the friendliest players you'll ever get to share a table with, he has another previous occupation that may just surprise you. On this episode, we get to know Frank a little better.
On episode #111 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Arlie Shaban. He's a cult hero to thousands of online poker fans, who follow his streams on Twitch regularly. Having been a Twitch streamer for half a decade now, this man has written the book on how to grow a loyal audience and how to entertain the masses with his gameplay and his extrovert personality. He also completed the infamous 'Twelve Labors of Arlie' in order to win himself a Platinum Pass at the PSPC in 2019. On this episode, we get to know him a little better.
Episode #110 of the CardsChat podcast features Jaman Burton, one of the most successful and creative vloggers in the poker world. He's had an incredible journey to become one of the most recognizable and influential players in the industry, but don't call him an 'influencer'. Make no mistake about it though, this man is a tremendous poker player, a dedicated dad, and a beloved figure among his many friends and fans. On this episode, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #109 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming AJ Rudolph. AJ is the program manager and Director of Education and Technology for Poker Power and the Vice President of the Women’s Poker Association. She’s also the recent winner of the Women in Poker Hall of Fame Bounty Tournament. On this show, we’re going to get to know her a little better.
On episode #108 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Raminder Singh. Though he refers to himself as the “True Poker Amateur”, he has put together an outstanding resume that includes almost $2 million in career tournament earnings with 75 titles and over 330 registered cashes on the Hendon Mob, also earning him the nickname “The Raminator”.
He’s also a dedicated family man and the CEO of a management consulting company, hence why he considers himself a recreational player. Well, if that’s the case, he is arguably the most successful recreational player in all of poker, and we’re thrilled to learn some more about Raminder and get to know him a little better.
On episode #107 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Ryan Beauregard. Ryan is the Executive Director of Poker at the Wynn Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ahead of the massive WPT World Championship festival, we thought it would be nice to talk to "the man in charge" as far as all things poker at the Wynn, and get to know him a little better.
On episode #106 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Adam Pliska. One of the most important and longest-tenured people in the poker industry, as the CEO of the World Poker Tour, Adam has basically seen it all. Yet after 20 years at the helm of the WPT he’s still growing the company by leaps and bounds, innovating, setting records, and just as passionate about his work as when he first began. On this episode, we’ll hear all about his journey over the last two decades with the World Poker Tour as well as learn more about him and his life away from the bright TV lights.
On episode #105 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Andrew Lichtenberger. Known more frequently by his nickname than his actual name, 'LuckyChewy', Andrew is the winner of a World Series of Poker bracelet, a WSOP Circuit event and over $14 million in live earnings. He shot to fame just a decade ago but has been playing for closer to two. In recent months, Andrew has been crushing the Super High Roller scene too, culminating in a third-place finish in the recent $300,000-entry Super High Roller Bowl in Las Vegas for a result worth over $1.1 million. We'll hear all about that and much more as we get to know him a little better.
On episode #104 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Angela Jordison. Winning a tournament is cool but how about just running deep or winning everything you play in? Angela's been on that kind of a heater recently, not just earning her biggest ever career score by a wide margin, but following it up with multiple back-to-back five-figure scores, essentially doubling her career earnings to almost $800,000 in the span of just a couple of months. A career of hard work and grinding is now bearing fruit like never before and today we're going to talk to her about it and get to know her a little better.
On episode #103 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Angelica Hael. Angelica has been working for over a decade at the World Poker Tour, where she is now the company’s Vice President of Global Tour Management. Known industry-wide for her dedication to advancing and promoting women’s participation in poker as well as for helping to grow the WPT into a truly global brand, on today’s show we’ll learn more about her passion for the game of poker, her life off the felt, her future poker industry goals, and of course plenty more about the World Poker Tour from her unique perspective as its 20th season is reaching a climax.
On episode #102 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming David Bach.
David graduated from the University of Georgia, his home state, with a degree in Psychology and has one of poker’s great nicknames: the ‘Gunslinger’. To date, has won 3 WSOP bracelets, all in mixed games, with his most notable one being the 2009 $50k H.O.R.S.E. event. Prior to becoming a poker player for a living, where he’s won over $4.3 million in live tournaments over his career, David was a professional bowler, so we’re going to hear all about that and much more as we get to know him a little better.
On episode #101 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Kevin Rabichow. Kevin is one of the premier coaches in the poker world. But to be a great coach, you obviously should be a great player as well, and he certainly is that. Once known primarily as an online heads-up specialist, he expanded his skills into high-stakes MTT play, which has boosted his combined live and online career winnings to over $5 million. We’re going to chat with him today about his successes on and off the felt, and about his new training course on Run It Once.
For our very special 100th episode of the Cardschat podcast, we have a legendary guest, Poker Hall of Famer Daniel Negreanu. Usually Robbie preps a bunch of questions and there’s then a short segment of questions from the Cardchat community. In this episode, it’s all about the community, who’ve come forth with dozens of questions that Robbie asks Daniel on their behalf.
On episode #99 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Xuan Liu. She is a professional poker player born in China and raised in Canada with over $2.7 million in total career tournament earnings, live and online combined. She is also the only woman to final table the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure main event, finishing 4th back in 2012. In recent years Xuan has added poker commentator and Poker Power instructor to her resume and on this show we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #98 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Andrew Yeh. Andrew is an absolute Mixed Game poker powerhouse. With over $1 million in career live tournament earnings, this past summer he had his greatest achievement to date, winning his first bracelet in the $10K HORSE event at the World Series of Poker. He’s got a few dozen tournament results dating back over a decade, but he makes his bread and butter in cash games, currently as a staple in the $80/160 game at Resorts World in Las Vegas. On this show, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #97 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Kathy Liebert. Kathy is a true legend of the game and one of the OG women in the poker world. She’s amassed over $6.6 million in live tournament earnings over her nearly 30-year career, which includes a WSOP bracelet, several WPT final tables, and she was the first woman ever to win a million dollars in a tournament at the now legendary PartyPoker Million in 2002. This past summer she was a first-time nominee for the Poker Hall of Fame, and she is a long-standing member of the Women in Poker Hall of Fame. On this episode, we get to know her a little better.
On episode #96 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Justin Saliba, one of the fastest rising young stars in poker. Having only primarily played tournaments for less than five years, he’s already amassed over $1 million in live tournament earnings, plus much more online, including a World Series of Poker bracelet in an online event in 2021. Not only a great player, but his skills and development have earned him a prominent spot on the roster of instructors at PokerCoaching.com. On this episode, we’ll get to know Justin a little better.
On episode #95 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Matt Stout. Matt is a professional poker player from Las Vegas with over $4 million in career winnings and 7 World Series of Poker Circuit rings. His professional success notwithstanding, Matt is better known for having started the Charity Series of Poker in 2014 and running it since then as a grassroots, volunteer-based organization. It has since become the premier national series of charity poker tournaments. On this episode, we get to know Matt a little better.
On episode #94 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Dr. Lara Eisenberg, winner of the 2021 WSOP Ladies Event. She is an MD, with a radiology practice in Maryland, an accomplished world record-holding skydiver, and she is currently writing a chapter for Lena Evans’ upcoming book Poker for Life on the impact of poker on the brain. On this episode, we’ll get to know Dr. Lara a little better.
On episode #93 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Ashley Frank, a.k.a. PokerFaceASH. Ashley is a popular poker vlogger from Scottsdale Arizona who enjoys both tournament and cash game action. Currently she has over 21,000 subscribers, which she’s amassed over 39 vlog episodes that she’s produced since starting out at the beginning of 2021. On this show, we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #92 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Tony Burns, Director of Poker Marketing for Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood Florida. Tony is originally from Fort Wayne Indiana but moved to Central Florida when he was six. After college, he had a variety of jobs and began dealing poker in a bar league for fun. In 2003 his dad took him to the WSOP in Las Vegas, which just happened to be the year that Chris Moneymaker won the Main Event. The rest, as they say, is history. On this episode, we’ll get to know Tony better.
On episode #91 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Lex Veldhuis. Hailing from Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, Lex is the most popular Twitch streamer in the poker world and a longtime member of the Poker Stars Team Pro Online. A multi-time Global Poker Award winner with over 300,000 followers on Twitch, on today’s show we’ll get to know Lex a little better.
On episode #90 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Ian Simpson. Ian’s been a professional poker player for close to a decade, now, and in that time beyond being able to make a living from the game he’s also made a name for himself as a successful content creator, namely on Twitch, where he’s amassed an audience of about 11,000 followers. He’s long been a beloved ambassador representing online poker brands, and most recently he signed a new deal to rep 888poker. On this episode, we’ll dive a little deeper into Ian’s career at the felt, learn more about his life away from the felt, and in general get to know him a little better.
On episode #89 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming for the first time ever, not one but TWO guests. Two peas in a pod, this pair of persistently prolific poker publishers have together had one heck of a significant impact on the poker world. On this episode we’ll be speaking to the co-owners of D&B Poker Publishing, Dan Addelman and Byron Jacobs, and we’ll get to know them a little better.
On episode #88 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Amanda Botfeld. She is the author of "A Girl's Guide to Poker", a Poker Power instructor, and author of numerous articles for such prestigious outlets as The Huffington Post and the Wall Street Journal as well as poker media outlets including Cardplayer Lifestyle, 888poker magazine, and right here at Cardschat. She’s also got poker playing chops, as last year, she and her father came in 3rd place in the WSOP Tag Team Tournament. On this episode we get to know her a little better.
On episode #87 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Phil Galfond. He is one of the most successful, respected, and well-liked people in poker. He’s played and crushed the highest-stakes No-Limit Hold ‘em and Pot-Limit Omaha games both live and online. He’s also been one of the game’s best coaches for over 15 years and has created one of the premier poker training sites on the market, which has also evolved into an online playing site that he’s hoping to re-launch in the US soon. All of this, and he has a lovely wife and three-year-old son as well. What else can we say, but it’s great to be Phil Galfond, and we’re glad to have him with us on this episode of the CardsChat podcast
On episode #86 of the CardsChat podcast, we flip the mic as our interviewee is Robbie Strazynski, our show’s host. Conducting the interview is Chris Wallace, a writer for CardsChat, who has known Robbie for almost a decade. Aside from hosting the CardsChat podcast, Robbie is the founder of Cardplayerlifestyle.com, a popular poker media website, and he’s been involved in poker media since 2009. On this show, Chris asks Robbie a bevy of questions about his professional and personal life, including how he got involved in the industry, his passion for mixed game poker, and also what his day-to-day life is like in Israel. Plus questions from our CardsChat forum members help us all get to know Robbie a little better.
On episode #85 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Ryan Feldman. Ryan is one of the true innovators and heavyweights in the poker streaming world, having worked for many years on Live at the Bike, and now quickly developing Hustler Casino Live into one of themajor players in streamed poker broadcasts. With constantly star-studded lineups including a recent stream that saw Phil Hellmuth and Tom Dwan join some of the biggest influencers from gaming and YouTube, Ryan has created must-see viewing for any poker fan. On this show, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #84 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Kevin Gerhart. Kevin is one of the best mixed game players in the world today, but believe it or not, it’s possible that you may not have heard about him. He has won not one – not two – not three – but FOUR WSOP bracelets in events as diverse as Razz, PLO, PLO8 and HORSE, and has over $1.2 million in career live tournament earnings. We’ve got Kevin, right here for you for a great conversation and on this show we get to know him a little better.
On episode #83 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Kyna England, a Poker Power instructor from Evanston, Illinois. Kyna won the Mid-Stakes Poker Tour Player of the Year title for 2021 and has close to $800,000 in lifetime tournament winnings. She was also nominated for the Global Poker Awards 2021 Breakout Player of the Year. On this show, we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #82 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Joe Cada. Joe is one of the most successful players in the history of the World Series of Poker, and one of a very exclusive group of players to not just win the Main Event, but to final table it more than once. He’s a 4-time bracelet winner who sits in 7th place on the WSOP’s all-time money list with over $13.6M in winnings. He’s also recently become an ambassador for WSOP.com, which just launched their online poker site. In this episode we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #81 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Benjamin “Spraggy” Spragg. A British poker player originally from Gloucestershire, England who is a popular Twitch streamer and a member of the Poker Stars Pro Team Online, Spraggy boasts over 135,000 subscribers and counting. He specializes in online MTTs and has made over $2 million in that format. To boot, over the past two years he has won two WCOOP titles. On this episode, we’ll get to know the man behind the stream a bit better.
On episode #80 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Terry King. With a perspective on the poker world that goes all the way back to the 1970s, Terry is a WSOP bracelet winner, and used to be engaged to none other than Poker Hall of Famer Chip Reese. She’s also a past nominee to the Women in Poker Hall of Fame, recognized for her career on the industry side of poker as a dealer, floorperson and tournament director. Most recently, she’s the beloved very active administrator of the Action Now Sports Poker Facebook group, which boasts close to 4,500 members, but this poker lady is “old school” at heart. On this show we learn about Terry’s life, as she treats up to some special stories from poker’s past.
On episode #79 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Ivonne Montealegre. One of the most energetic and enthusiastic people in the poker industry, Ivonne is best known as the founder of the Malta Poker Festival. She’s had a lengthy and distinguished career putting on live events that have just lit up the European poker scene. On this show, we gain some insight as to what it takes to plan these fantastic live poker events, as well as the special kind of person it takes to do all that planning.
On episode #78 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Patrik Antonius. A poker hall of fame nominee and the all-time leading tournament money winner in his home country of Finland, Patrik has played at the highest stakes for almost his entire career. He wasn’t just one of the superstars of the “poker boom” and the online days of ‘rail heaven’ but he’s making another run on the current season of High Stakes Poker, where he’s won and lost some of the biggest pots in that show’s history. A true legend of the game at just 41 years of age, today we’ll get to know Patrik Antonius a little better.
On episode #77 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming David Williams. A highly successful poker player originally from Arlington, Texas who now lives in Las Vegas, David has over $8.8 million in live tournament cashes across a range of poker variants. Most notably, he came in second place in the 2004 WSOP Main Event, runner up to Greg Raymer. He has also won other prestigious tournaments, including a World Poker Tour World Championship title, and a title at the 2009 WCOOP. Away from poker, David has competed on MasterChef, King of Vegas, and is an accomplished Magic the Gathering player. On today’s show, we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #76 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Brad Owen. Brad is a highly successful professional poker player originally from Santa Rosa, California who specializes in low to mid-stakes cash games. He has an extremely successful YouTube Channel that was one of the first in the industry and now boasts close to 600,000 subscribers. He is known for hosting large meet-up games along with Andrew Neeme for their legions of loyal fans. In January, he purchased an ownership stake in The Lodge, a 60-table poker room near Austin, Texas, along with Andrew Neeme and Doug Polk. On today’s show, we’ll be discussing Brad’s career in poker, his trajectory towards becoming an award-winning content creator, and where he sees himself headed as his poker path continues.
On episode #75 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming K.L. Cleeton. Poker is full of a lot of great success stories, but K.L.’s is one of the most unique and best of them all. He is one of the most brilliant, witty and beloved members of the poker community. This man’s story of poker success comes not just from his winnings at the tables or with his creation of a great poker training tool, but also from his ability to inspire and bring positivity to the poker world like few can. On this episode, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #74 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Daiva Byrne. She founded and has grown the group Fantastic Ladies in Poker (FLIP) into one of the most successful and influential communities focused on growing the game of poker among women. The group numbers over 5,400 members and continues to grow with many partnerships in the poker world. Besides being a tremendous champion for women in the game and a GG Poker ambassador, she’s also a champion on the felt as a successful professional poker player in her own right. It’s time to get to know the Baltic Blonde, Daiva Byrne, a little better.
On episode #73 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Allen Kessler. Allen is a prominent, veteran member of the poker community, who in recent years has become somewhat of a poker celebrity from his appearances in the Chainsaw Corner of Daniel Negreanu’s WSOP vlogs. But who is the man behind the character? Why does he obsess so much about tournament structures? Did you know that he’s got close to 400 tournament cashes and almost $4 million in career winnings? On this show we get to know him a little better.
On episode #72 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Johnnie “Vibes” Moreno. He’s a professional poker player, business owner, amateur DJ / Producer, clothing designer, marketer, content creator, copyrighter, and self-proclaimed “solopreneur”. Best known for his popular YouTube vlog, which he launched 4.5 years ago, on this show we talk to Johnnie about his life, poker playing career, and years as a YouTube content creator.
On episode #71 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Ryan Leng. Ryan has over $2.7 million in live tournament earnings in his career to go along with 3 World Series of Poker bracelets and 4 WSOP Circuit rings. Before he transitioned to live poker he started out as an online crusher, as he’s a former SuperNova Elite player. But what about the man behind that glorious beard? What makes him tick away from the felt? On today’s show, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #70 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Benny Glaser. Benny is one of the greatest mixed-game players in all of poker. In 2021, he won not only his 4th WSOP bracelet to add to his lead as the UK’s most decorated player in WSOP history, but he also won his 4th WCOOP and 6th SCOOP titles. He has been dominant in both the live and online realms for several years now, to the tune of over $3 million in live tournament earnings and over $1.4 million in online earnings. On this episode, we get to know Benny a little better.
On episode #69 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming the 2016 World Series of Poker Ladies Event winner Courtney Kennedy. A poker player and dealer from Detroit, Michigan, Courtney is someone whose involvement in the poker world is probably quite relatable to most of us. A recreational player whose love for the game is undeniable and who has found a little bit of special success playing, the type all of us dream of, it’s time to hear her story, and today, we’ll get to know Courtney a little better.
On episode #68 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Brian Hastings. Brian has ALREADY done it all in the poker world and he’s still just 33 years old! He was first a legendary figure from the online poker days of rail heaven, winning millions of dollars in the biggest games ever seen. He then transitioned to the live world where he’s earned over $4.3M in tournament winnings, plus 5 WSOP bracelets (the fifth coming just a few weeks ago). He is a long-time poker coach and also a family man and proud girl dad, and on this show we get to know him a little better.
On episode #67 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Danielle Andersen. Danielle undeniably has one of the most interesting stories in poker. She was one of the subjects of an outstanding documentary entitled “Bet, Raise, Fold”. That, however, was just the beginning of her story. She’s gone from an online crusher living in Minnesota, to having that taken away by Black Friday, to transitioning into a tremendous live cash game player now based in Las Vegas. This woman is now one of the more recognizable and successful faces of our game today, and she’s also a great wife and mother and a great friend to many. On this episode, we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #66 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Felipe Ramos. Felipe is an ambassador for GG Poker and also just one of the truly great ambassadors for the game of poker itself. He is one of the friendliest, kindest people you’ll find at or away from a poker table: always smiling, always willing to chat. He’s a great family man and basically a super good dude. Beyond all of that is the poker soul of an absolute crusher, as he has close to $3 million in live tournament earnings including a recent win at the Bellagio Cup for $115,000, plus a ton more online. On this show, we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #65 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Bill Perkins. Bill is an American hedge fund manager, film producer and high stakes poker player from Houston, Texas. In 2020 he published “Die with Zero” a book about making your money work for you. Many of us know Bill from seeing him on televised and streamed poker broadcasts, and from his high-profile social media presence, but today we get to dive a little deeper with the man himself and get to know him a little bit better.
On episode #64 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Jamie Gold. The 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion, since his landmark win – still the biggest ever for a Main Event – Jamie has focused primarily on philanthropy and using his celebrity to help promote and fundraise for charitable causes, often with poker as the vehicle. He’s also continued to be involved in a number of projects, which we hear some more about on this episode, as well as what he’s been up to during pandemic times.
On episode #63 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Gershon Distenfeld. Gershon has become known in the poker world over the last year for being one of the most generous and classiest guys in the game. That’s because not once, but TWICE he has donated every penny of his tournament winnings, first $125,000 after his 8th place finish in the 2020 WSOP Main Event, and now over $200,000 after winning a bracelet at the 2021 WSOP. His name is already one that’ll never be forgotten in poker circles, but what else do we know about the man beyond his charitable giving? On this episode, we find out more.
On episode #62 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Darren Elias. A highly successful professional poker player originally from Medford, New Jersey, Darren holds the record for the most World Poker Tour titles, at four. He has also cashed at the WSOP 23 times, won the WCOOP twice, and has over $3.8M in online earnings to go with over $9 million in live poker earnings. Darren is an ambassador for partypoker/BetMGM and a card carrying member of Tom Wheaton's Above the Felt Talent Agency. Plus, he’s currently hosting an online poker tournament series across Michigan, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey called the End Boss Poker series. On this episode, we get to know him better.
On episode #61 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Dr. Tricia Cardner, a former Psychology professor turned poker player and coach. Dr. Cardner has earned doctoral degrees in psychology and criminology, and is a licensed psychotherapist. She has been playing and studying poker for several years and offers both free and paid courses on the mental game of poker. She is co-author with Jonathan Little of the books Positive Poker and Peak Poker Performance, with Gareth James of Purposeful Practice for Poker, and a contributor to the book Excelling at No-Limit Hold ‘Em. Additionally, she is co-host of the “Poker on the Mind” podcast with Gareth James. On this show, we get to know Dr. Cardner better and learn how to improve our poker mindset.
On episode #60 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Ali Nejad. Ali is best known in the world of poker as one of the great broadcasters of the game, but he is so much more than that! He’s also a great poker player, though you wouldn’t know it by looking at his Hendon Mob page, because he is a cash game and mixed game specialist. Broadcasting and poker have taken him all around the world where he has experienced a wide array of extremely cool things. The man likes fast cars, private jets, and feeding pandas, and today we get to know him a little better.
On episode #59 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Nathan Gamble. Nathan is a 2-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner who hails from the great state of Texas. With a poker-iffic last name that rivals even the legendary “Moneymaker”, it can perhaps be said that this man’s destiny was to mix it up at the felt. A military veteran with close to half a million dollars in tournament earnings, he’s got a stellar reputation as a stand-up guy both at and away from the tables. On today’s show, we get to know Nathan a little better.
Photo credit: Katerina Lukina
On episode #58 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Gary Hager, the poker room manager at the brand-new Resorts World Las Vegas. Gary brings a long history in poker to Resorts World. He started as a professional poker player and then became a dealer before moving into managing poker rooms. He served as a tournament director at Wynn in Las Vegas and then became the room manager at Wynn Macau in 2011. Most recently, he served as director of poker at Encore Boston Harbor. On today’s show, we get to know Gary better, as well as have a special look at the newest poker room in Las Vegas.
On episode #57 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Jan Fisher. A Women in Poker Hall of Famer, Jan is a genuine legend. Whether it was starting out as a dealer in Las Vegas, her storied tenure working with the World Poker Tour, as a part-owner of the popular Card Player Cruises, or as co-founder of the TDA and the Poker Gives charity organization, Jan has always made her mark. She’s quite the poker PLAYER as well! Plus, whether she’s right or she ain’t right, her bubbly personality and one-of-a-kind sense of humor will always leave you in stitches. On today’s episode, we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #56 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Chris Wallace. Chris is an accomplished Hold ‘em and mixed games player, he’s an author, a coach, a columnist, and he’s even run his own poker tour. He’s a WSOP 10k HORSE champion who’s also made deep runs in the main event, with almost $1.2M in career tournament earnings. You may have heard the term ‘Short stack ninja’, but this man may actually be THE short stack ninja, because he literally wrote the book on it. On today’s show we get to know him a little better.
On episode #55 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Rob Yong. Rob can truly be described as “a man of the people”, which can be extremely rare in the poker world, especially from someone in his position. Along with being the owner of the Dusk Till Dawn cardroom in Nottingham, England, he is also a high stakes poker player, and one of the game’s great businessman ambassadors. He is always looking out for what is in the best interests of players no matter what level they are at, which is highlighted by one of his latest endeavors, namely creating an overarching Poker Association. On this episode, we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #54 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Matt Vaughan. One of our new ambassadors here at Cardschat, he’s a longtime member of the CardsChat community with over 7,000 posts in his 13+ years in the forums. He’s evolved from a recreational player with a 9-5 job, to a vlogger and content creator, to a professional live and online player and poker coach. He’s a successful cash game and tournament player with over $277,000 in live tournament earnings, and plenty more online. On this episode, we’ll get to know “Scourrge” a little better!
On episode #53 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Ashley Sleeth. One of the newest additions to CardsChat’s team of ambassadors, Ashley is a former dancer who has worked her way from knowing zero about the game of poker to amassing almost $300,000 in live tournament earnings, plus a bunch online, including a recent $85k score! And that’s after transitioning from being primarily a successful cash game player. She’s built a tremendous resume on her own, but she is also the fiancé of our recent guest Jesse Sylvia.. On today’s show we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #52 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Andrew Neeme. Andrew is a multi-time Global Poker Award winner and best known in our community as the godfather of poker vlogging. He regularly shares his cash game grinder lifestyle with over 160,000 subscribers via his YouTube channel as well as with the poker playing masses at meet-up games all over the United States and even internationally. From favorable flops to jaw-dropping drone shots, Andrew has earned his way into our hearts, and on this show we get to know him a little better.
On episode #51 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Matt Savage. Matt is a legend for his work in developing and growing tournament poker over his 25+ years in the industry. Since 2010 he has been the Executive Tour Director of the World Poker Tour. He is also a co-founder of the Tournament Directors Association (TDA), which has standardized tournament poker rules throughout the world. He has presided over thousands of tournaments worldwide, and is a lock for future induction into the Poker Hall of Fame. On this show, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #50 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Lupe Soto. Lupe is not only the founder of, but also a deserving member of the Women in Poker Hall of Fame. She is one of the game’s greatest advocates for women in poker, having founded the LIPS tour (Ladies International Poker Series) and the Women’s Poker Association. She has also founded, and is the CEO of, the Senior Poker Tour, which hosts events across the US for players 50 and over. She’s also a tremendous philanthropist whose involvement as President of Vegas Connected and Poker Gives has provided for those in need around the Las Vegas area. On this episode we get to know Lupe a little better.
On episode #49 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Dylan Linde. There aren’t many people out there that you can say “wrote the book” on something, but Dylan certainly has! He’s the author of Mastering Mixed Games, arguably THE most comprehensive strategy book currently available for mixed games. He’s not only an outstanding mixed game player, he’s also a wizard in the No Limit hold ‘em streets as well, having collected over $10M total in tournament earnings live and online. A shark at the tables, and someone who actually swam with real sharks as well, on this episode we get to know Dylan a little better.
On episode #48 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Faraz Jaka. Faraz originally made his name with a wild style of play which brought him quick success and one of the greatest nicknames in poker history. In the years since, he’s earned over $11 million in live and online tournament earnings, all while living a nomadic lifestyle. He has grown from those early days in poker to become a family man, an entrepreneur, and a poker legend who still crushes the game on a regular basis. On this show, we get to know Faraz a little better.
On episode #47 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Jesse Sylvia. He’s one of the most versatile and successful players in poker, whether it’s online, live, in cash games, tournaments, and now entrepreneurship, with his new app, Floptimal. Jesse is maybe best known for his runner-up finish to Greg Merson in the 2012 WSOP Main event for $5.3M, but since then he’s collected another $2.4M in cash, including a WPT title. But besides the on-felt accolades, he’s also known for being one of the nicest and most genuine people in the game. In this episode, we get to know him a little better.
On episode #46 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Jeff Platt. One of poker’s premier broadcasters and commentators, over the past few years since breaking into the industry, Jeff has quickly carved out quite the niche for himself as an integral part of numerous popular televised poker shows and live streams. From Twitch commentary to the PokerGO break desk to game show hosting and podcasting, Jeff is one of the hardest working people in our industry. On this show, we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #45 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Kevin Mathers. Kevin is likely the most widely appreciated person in poker. For over a decade he’s been poker’s oracle of information, the primary go-to individual for anything and everything going on in our industry across multiple social media platforms. A 2016 American Poker Award winner, day after day – year after year – the man lovingly referred to as Kevmath continues to bring tremendous value to the poker community for which we’re all so grateful. On this episode, we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #44 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Eric Danis. Eric is the President of the Global Poker Index and Hendon Mob. An absolute treasure trove of trivia as relates to everything about stats and numbers in the poker world, Eric leads the equivalent of poker’s Elias Sports Bureau. He also proudly presides over our industry’s annual awards ceremony, and is just one of the nicest and most pleasant people you’ll ever meet. Today we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode #43 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Greg Raymer. Greg is of course best known for winning the 2004 WSOP Main Event for $5M, but has since proven to be one of the most consistently successful players on the tournament circuit, with almost $3M in winnings since. He is one of the most successful players in the history of the Heartland Poker Tour, where in 2012 he won FOUR main events in the span of less than 5 months! He is also a successful cash game player, a proficient mixed game player, a published poker strategy author, and an overall great ambassador for the game of poker. On this show, we get to know the ‘Fossilman’ a little better.
On episode #42 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Lon McEachern. Lon is a beloved legend in our industry who is often referred to as“the voice of poker”. His work as the play-by-play man for the World Series of Poker has brought him into the conversation as a possible PokerHall of Famer, alongside his counterpart Norman Chad. His broadcasting journey to becoming the most well-known voice in poker has taken some amazing twists and turns, and he’s joined us to share some great stories from throughout his career.
On episode #41 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure
of welcoming Vanessa Kade. She made history back in March by
winning the biggest first prize in the history of the PokerStars
Sunday Million, when she defeated over 69,000 players to claim
a life-changing $1.5 million dollar win. Prior to that, she was
already a successful poker player and streamer, who was
signed as an ambassador for America’s Cardroom less than a
week before her huge win. In this episode, we’re going to
catch up with her, see what she’s been up to since then, hear
about her upcoming plans, and also a little about her career
prior to becoming a poker pro.
On episode #40 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Fedor Holz. Fedor first made his name as an online tournament crusher, and he now has $10.8 million in career earnings. He then moved more and more into the live realm and high roller scene and has since destroyed it to the tune of almost $33 million in earnings, currently good for 7th place on the all-time money list. Then, he entered another area of the poker world and dominated it too, the tournament playing “retired” businessman, and together with colleagues he created the Pokercode training community. All that and he’s still only 27 years old. On today’s show we get to know the impressive man behind all of those impressive numbers and poker feats.
On episode #39 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Linda Johnson. A Poker Hall of Famer and WPT Honors recipient, Linda has done it all in our beloved game. As a player, Linda has won bracelets, trophies, and everyone else’s chips in decades of cash games. On the industry side, she co-founded and was the studio announcer for the World Poker Tour, publisher of Card Player Magazine, co-founder of the TDA, and partner in Card Player Cruises. And to top it all off, the First Lady of Poker is just one of the kindest and most genuinely awesome people you’ll ever meet. On this show, we get to know her a little better.
On episode #38 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming the longtime Editor of PokerStrategy.com Barry Carter. Beyond the time he’s put in at his day job, Barry’s made quite the name for himself as co-author of four very well renown poker books, The Mental Game of Poker volumes 1 & 2 with Jared Tendler, and PKO Poker Strategy and Poker Satellite Strategy with Dara O’Kearney. On today’s show we’ll find out what drew Barry to a career in poker media, as well as find out a little bit more about his life outside of poker.
On episode #37 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Kristen Bicknell. Kristen has conquered both the online and live realms year after year. She has over $6.1M in online tournament earnings, not to mention copious amounts of cash earnings, dating back to her days as a multi-time Supernova Elite player. In the live realm, she is a 3-time WSOP bracelet winner with over $5.1M in tournament earnings. She has gone from being an “Ultimate grinder” to a 3-time reigning GPI Female Player of the Year, plus she’s a partypoker sponsored pro. On this episode, we learn what motivates her to keep climbing poker’s heights, what it’s like to have experienced such tremendous online and live poker success, and much more.
On episode #36 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Ari Engel. With over $7 million in all time live tournament winnings and countless millions more earned online, Ari’s achievements also include a WSOP bracelet as well as emerging victorious in the 2016 Aussie Millions Main Event. Plus, he’s also got 9 WSOP Circuit Rings and 2 American Poker Awards to his credit! On this episode, our conversation focus mostly on getting to know Ari off the felt, in particular his orthodox Jewish upbringing and lifestyle and how that influences him to this very day as a poker professional.
On episode #35 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Jared Tendler. Jared is one of the premier mental game coaches for not just poker, but he has worked with clients in the sports, esports, and corporate worlds as well. In the poker world, he has written two of the premier books about off-the-felt preparation with “The Mental Game of Poker volumes 1 and 2”. Plus he has recently expanded his written repertoire to the financial world with “The Mental Game of Trading”. On this show we gain a deeper understanding of his methodology, how it can be applied to poker, and well beyond.
On episode #34 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming 2017 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Scott Blumstein. Scott outlasted 7,221 entrants to take home $8.15M and the championship bracelet. While some poker players would take their newfound winnings and start playing more poker and higher stakes, Scott chose to focus on improving his life and living it to the fullest. On this episode we learn what Scott has been up to during the pandemic, how badly he misses live poker, and his approach to having the right mindset at and away from the felt.
On episode #33 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Ryan Laplante. Ryan is a man who has truly worked his way from the microstakes to crushing it at the highest levels of tournament poker both online and live, with career tournament earnings of over $2M in both realms. He is the proud owner of a WSOP bracelet that he won in 2016, and along with his successes on the felt, he’s also the founder of one of the best poker training sites out there, “Learn Pro Poker”. He is considered by many to be the hardest working man in poker, AND to top it all off he’s a CardsChat ambassador! On this episode, we learn about Ryan’s career as a player and coach.
On episode #32 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming one of poker’s newer personalities, Marle Cordeiro. After breaking onto the scene via Andrew Neeme’s vlog, Marle started a YouTube channel of her own that quickly grew in popularity. Since then, she’s rocketed to stardom in the poker world with playing appearances on Poker Go, Live at The Bike, and other poker streams. She’s been a host for the Triton Series, co-hosted The Rake podcast with Jamie Kerstetter, and beyond all that content production is a talented professional poker player and just a super cool person. On this show, we get to know her a little better.
On episode #31 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Tommy Angelo. Tommy has been involved in poker since the early 90s, not just as a player, but probably more so as a highly-regarded coach and author. He’s written several poker books, including the iconic ‘Elements of Poker’, along with a plethora of poker articles, and he’s also a long-time musician! On this episode, we learn about Tommy’s beginnings in poker, his methods of and approach to coaching, some of the words he’s coined that have become part of everyday poker lexicon, and much more!
On episode #30 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Chris Moorman. One of the absolute GOATs in poker, he is one of, if not THE most successful online tournament player of all-time, with over $16.6M in online tournament earnings and literally dozens of Pocket Fives Triple Crowns. Chris has also had huge success in the live realm with just under $6M in tournament earnings. He’s a WSOP bracelet winner, he’s a WPT champion, he’s written two books, is an 888poker sponsored pro, and he has no intention of slowing down anytime soon. On this episode, we’ll get to know him a little better.
On episode#29 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Matt Berkey. Matt is the founder and lead instructor of one of the most successful and innovative poker training sites in our industry, the Solve For Why Poker Training Academy. He is also hugely successful on the felt, with over $4.1M in career tournament winnings, and that’s for someone who proclaimed himselfDead Money in the biggest tournament he ever played, and will tell also you emphatically that he is primarily a cash game player!You’re guaranteed to enjoy listening to this interview featuring one of the more eloquent, nuanced, and deep thinkers of the game.
On episode #28 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming David Lappin. The professional poker player is a longtime ambassador for Unibet Poker, and the host of the award winning The Chip Race and The Lockdown podcasts, along with Dara O’Kearney. On this show, beyond the first class content he consistently puts out, we’ll be discussing David’s career in poker and life away from the game, plus hear his answers to some great questions from members of our community.
On episode #27 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Fintan Hand of Team PokerStars Online. Widely known by his online poker screen name EasyWithAces, Fintan is one of our game’s most popular Twitch streamers. He’s also a podcaster, and of course a professional poker player. On this show, we’ll be getting to know the man behind the screen name, discuss some of his biggest wins, rougher patches, his climb towards the top of the poker Twitch world, and more.
On episode #26 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Norman Chad. A beloved TV poker personality, Norman has been a mainstay of the World Series of Poker Main Event commentary team, along with Lon McEachern, since Chris Moneymaker’s big win back in 2003. His humor continues to entertain us after all these years and his commitment to comedic bits is only exceeded by his commitment to being one of the nicer guys in our industry. On this episode Norman talks about how different the past year has been for him, some of the new ways he’s explored his creative side, his love for mixed games, and much more.
On episode #25 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Evan Jarvis. Evan’s earned over $1 million in online and live tournaments and cash games. He’s a longtime poker coach, with great training material for both on and of the felt, and you can also find him regularly crushing it in the Twitch streets. He’s the man known as “Gripsed” and in this episode we learn about his holistic approach to poker coaching, what gives him fulfilment in his poker career, and much more!
On episode #24 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Eli Elezra. A 4x WSOP bracelet winner and WPT title winner, Eli is best known as a high stakes cash game player and TV poker personality over the last three decades. Away from the felt, Eli has led a legendary life growing up in Israel and serving in the IDF’s Golani Brigade, and has had incredible adventures on fishing boats and driving taxis in Alaska before moving to Las Vegas. On this episode, we’ll get to know Eli Elezra the family man, the businessman, and the poker legend a little better.
On episode #23 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Martin Jacobson. The 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion, Martin’s got over $17 million in live tournament earnings and several million in online tournament earnings. He’s far and away Sweden’s all-time leading tournament earner and he has an incredible 22 different flags on his Hendon Mob profile.
On this episode, we learn about Martin’s affinity for cooking, the importance he placed on physical and mental fitness, and what his new poker coaching venture is all about.
On episode #22 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Maria Ho. One of the most broadly talented people in all of poker, Maria currently sits 5th among women on the all-time tournament money list with over $4M in winnings. In a nod to her outstanding broadcasting skills, Maria took home the 2019 Global Poker Award for Broadcaster of the Year. And, of course she is a member of the Women in Poker Hall of Fame. In this episode we discuss what Maria has been up to during the pandemic, how she’s pivoted professionally to work from home, her hobbies away from the felt, and of course her career at the felt and in the broadcasting booth.
On episode #21 of the CardsChat podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming Kara Scott. A longtime veteran in poker broadcasting, presenting, and hosting, Kara has also represented numerous brands as an ambassador, and she’s currently with 888poker. What’s certain is that no matter what camera she’s in front of, patch she’s sporting, or microphone she holds, she’s always a wonderful representative for our game. During this show, we’ll get to know her a little better.
On episode #20 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Elliot Roe. Over the last few years, Elliot has become one of the most well-regarded mental game coaches in the poker industry. His work with some of the biggest names in the game has been an integral component of their success at the felt.
In this episode, we’ll learn what drew Elliot into the poker world, what projects he’s currently involved in, and gain some insight into what makes his coaching so appealing to and successful for the game’s top players.
On episode #19 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Unibet Poker ambassador Dara O’Kearney. With over $4 million in combined live and online poker winnings, Dara is also accomplished away from the felt, as co-host of the award-winning The Chip Race and The Lockdown podcasts. He’s also a prolific and popular poker strategy author, having penned Poker Satellite Strategy and PKO Poker Strategy alongside Barry Carter.
On episode #18 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Bernard Lee. A longtime veteran of the poker media corps, he has been hosting the Bernard Lee Poker Show for over 13.5 years. He’s also written regular poker columns for mainstream publications as the Boston Herald, ESPN.com, and most recently Metrowest Daily News. Bernard also has almost $2.4 million in career tournament earnings, which include 2 WSOP circuit rings and a memorable deep run to finish 13th in the 2005 WSOP Main Event. On this episode, we discuss Bernard’s career in poker as well as his life away from the game, getting to know him better beyond the felt.
On episode #17 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming veteran poker broadcaster and commentator David Tuchman. Longtime poker fans are of course familiar with David’s voice, and have certainly heard him on one broadcast or another over the years, but this show is all about learning what he’s like “beyond the mic”. How did he get into the game? How did he hone his craft? What are his favorite gigs? What does he love most about the game of poker? All that and plenty more interesting topics of conversation await you in this episode.
On episode #16 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming veteran comedian, poker commentator, and inventor of poker terminology; the “captain of the catchphrase” Joe Stapleton. Joe’s been a beloved and familiar face and voice to all of us in poker fandom for years, and he’s always a pleasure to speak with. We discuss some of his career highlights on stage, in the booth, and at the felt, and in general just get to know him a bit better.
On episode #15 of the CardsChat Podcast we have the pleasure of welcoming 2003 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Chris Moneymaker. One of the newest members of the Poker Hall of Fame and a longtime ambassador for PokerStars and, frankly, the game of poker itself, today we’ll catch up with Chris to see what these last few months have been like for him.
On this episode we have the pleasure of welcoming Kevin Martin. One of poker’s premiere Twitch streamers, the newly unretired Kevin is now a proud member of the GG Squad. We talk plenty about that and his experience representing multiple poker operators as a streamer over the years. We also discuss Kevin’s success at both the live and online felt, plus a bit of personal stuff to get to know him a little better.
On episode #13 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming 2013 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Ryan Riess. Ryan is also a WPT title winner and has close to $15 million in total career earnings. Since bursting onto the scene 7 years ago, Ryan can mostly be found on the high roller circuit, but he also spends plenty of time at home as the proud dad of three little girls. On this episode, we’ll get to learn more about Ryan’s career and life away from the felt.
On episode #12 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming CardsChat ambassador Collin Moshman. Collin is a best-selling poker strategy book author, video producer, backer, instructor, and of course professional poker player. On this episode, we’ll get to know Collin’s backstory, learn about his career playing and teaching poker, what he’s like away from the tables, and more.
On episode #11 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Tony Dunst. With close to $4 million in career tournament earnings, Tony has 2 World Series of Poker bracelets and a World Poker Tour Main Event title in his trophy case. Away from the felt, he’s best known as the co-lead commentator for the WPT. During our chat we discuss Tony’s love for online poker in particular, hear some great stories from his travels for the WPT, and learn what he appreciates most about both being as player as well as working in the poker industry.
On episode #10 of the CardsChat podcast, we have the pleasure of welcoming Jaime Staples. A veteran of the online poker streaming scene on Twitch, Jaime is proud to represent Team Online with partypoker. During our conversation, we learn what Jaime’s role with partypoker is all about and how it compares to the work he did for four years with PokerStars. We also learn some interesting behind-the-scenes info about Jaime’s excellent Twitch streams, Weekly Poker Showdown, and hear about Jaime’s aspirations and goals over the next half decade.
On episode #9 of the CardsChat podcast, we are joined by the voice of PokerStars James Hartigan. For years, James has entertained us with his stellar broadcasting work on the European Poker Tour, doing the Poker in the Ears podcast, live stream commentating, and comprising half of the legendary commentary tandem with Joe Stapleton. During our conversation, we discuss some of James’ career highlights, what he loves so much about poker, which poker variants besides Hold’em he’d like to see being broadcast more, and his day-to-day work routine when the cameras are off and he’s not actively commentating.
On episode #8 of the CardsChat podcast, we’re joined by Jonathan Little. Jonathan is a two-time World Poker Tour title winner and has over $7 million in live poker tournament earnings. He is an incredibly prolific author of over a dozen poker strategy books and is also the Founder of the Pokercoaching.com training site. Jonathan won the People’s Choice award for Poker Personality of the Year at the 2019 Global Poker Awards ceremony, and on this episode he shares plenty of tips about productivity, making a poker lifestyle work as a family man, and more.
On episode #7 of the CardsChat podcast, we’re joined by World Poker Tour anchor and Australian Poker Hall of Fame member Lynn Gilmartin. During our conversation, Lynn reflects on what it was like to host the Mike Sexton tribute as well as her other treasured memories with Mike. We also discussed how she’s handling the transition from doing in-person WPT work to at-home video production for digital consumption, heard great stories about her whirlwind Las Vegas wedding, some of the acting she’s been doing in Queensland, Australia, and more.
On episode #6 of the CardsChat podcast we welcome the award-winning, multi-time New York Times bestselling author Maria Konnikova. Maria has made big waves in the poker world with the release of her latest book The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win. Over the course of our conversation we discuss her meteoric rise to poker prominence, what she enjoys most about being a mainstream poker ambassador, what it’s been like to promote her newest book exclusively virtually as opposed to a traditional book tour, her day-to-day routine during the pandemic, and her latest pursuits on and off the felt.
On episode #5 of the CardsChat podcast we welcome Jennifer Shahade. Jennifer is a longtime PokerStars Mind Sports ambassador, a Global Poker Award winner, renowned author, 2-time U.S. Women’s Chess Champion and just a wonderful, friendly, and happy person. During our conversation we discuss her loves for both chess and poker, her thoughts on which of those two pursuits have been more successful at bringing more women into the game, her award-winning podcast The Grid, and more.
Image source: Cardplayerlifestyle.com
On episode #4 of the CardsChat podcast we had the pleasure of speaking with the one and only Phil Hellmuth. A Poker Hall of Famer, Phil has won a record 15 World Series of Poker bracelets and also holds the records for most WSOP cashes and final tables. He’s the author of multiple books, among them a New York Times bestseller Play Poker Like the Pros, his engaging autobiography Poker Brat and his latest #Positivity. Phil tells us a bit about his 2020 WSOP Online Summer Series grind from Mexico, the differences he feels in playing online vs. live, what he enjoys about entertaining poker fans, how he preps for his Silicon Valley home game, and much more.
On episode #3 of the CardsChat podcast we’re joined by poker pro Jamie Kerstetter. While she’s done well for herself at the tables, she’s made an even bigger splash on social media, and through podcast hosting and commentary gigs. Jamie explains why online poker comes more naturally to her than live poker, shares why she’s pursued Hold’em almost exclusively versus any mixed game play, and reveals her bucket list poker achievement and what gives her the most fulfillment at and away from the felt.
(Image: Poker Central)
On episode #2 of the CardsChat podcast, we’re joined by Sean McCormack, Director of Poker Operations at Aria Hotel Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Sean took a different path in poker, opting to climb the ladder on the industry side rather than at the felt. He discusses his decade-and-a-half long career in poker operations, his passion for all poker variants, and explains his role in having helped Aria become home to one of the leading poker rooms in the United States.
On this first ever episode of the CardsChat podcast, we’re joined by CardsChat ambassador Jeff Gross. He takes us through his journey from college grad to professional poker player and dishes on what it’s like to be an ambassador for partypoker and what his role now is with the company. Beyond that, he talks about his favorite hobbies, players to compete against, and the qualities that endear him to others and make him want to be someone’s PBF (professional best friend).