![]() Newsletter Signup
Stay informed with the
NEW Casino City Times newsletter! Articles in this Series
Best of John G. Brokopp
|
Gaming Guru
More poker talk with professional player Joel Casper18 April 2007
My interview with 27-year-old Chicago-based professional poker player Joel Casper continues today with more insight into what it takes to compete successfully: The Thrifty Gambler: How do you cope with the pressures of the game? Joel Casper: It helps to be emotionally stable because in this game there's going to be ups and downs. I'm not going to lie to you; I've had days where I've lost a lot of money. It comes with the territory. It takes a strong-willed person to come back from losing a couple of days in a row and be able to keep your head up and start winning again. Some people get really frustrated when they start to lose. It's a vicious circle. They start to play worse and when they play worse they're losing more. That's the kind of thing I try to avoid and I think I've done a pretty good job doing that. TG: When you're in town, where do you usually play? JC: I try to play in the No-Limit cash game at Resorts East Chicago two to three times a week, usually anywhere from eight to 16 hours. There are probably 20-30 regulars there. We're friends away from the table but in a game everybody's obviously trying to win. Every once in a while some unknown person will come along who doesn't know what they're doing and will lose a lot of money to the rest of the table, which is the best we regulars can hope for. TG: Do you ever watch poker on TV? JC: If I see poker is on TV, many times I'll record it. It's entertaining and kind of neat to see the top pros and how they play their hands. In this game you learn a lot from experience and reading articles and books, but if you pick up one little thing here and there off of what someone did on TV, it helps you develop your own style. I think televised poker has helped a lot of people tweak their games. TG: How important is it to a poker professional to win a gold bracelet at the World Series of Poker? JC: Winning a WSOP bracelet is like winning an Oscar, an Emmy or a Grammy. It's a great honor that not too many people can experience. There are a lot of people who have played for years and years in many WSOP tournaments who haven't won a bracelet. It's very difficult. These days some of the fields for the events are 500, 1000, 2000 players strong. I don't expect to win a bracelet. The best I can hope for is to go as far as I can and to make all the correct decisions. In order to win a bracelet you have to have everything go your way for an entire tournament. TG: Have you had success in past WSOP tournaments and will you be playing this year? JC: I played in three events last year and was able to cash in one of them. I'll be back this year, but I'm only about 50-50 for the main event. I have a good friend of mine who's getting married during the tournament, so I have to look at my schedule to see if I can do it. But I will definitely be out there to play in a handful of events. I'd really like to figure out a way to play in the main event to see if I can parlay my recent success into something even bigger. CASINO NEWS: Harrah's Total Rewards members can swipe their player's club cards now through April 30 at Horseshoe Casino Hammond to enter "Wheels Weekend in Hollywood" for the chance to win an all-inclusive three-day/two-night vacation for two in Hollywood, California, and an opportunity to be a contestant on the Wheel of Fortune TV show. Every Friday and Sunday now through April 29 at Argosy's Empress Casino & Hotel in Joliet, NOW players' club members are invited to participate in the "Snag a Jag" dream car giveaway promotion between 9 am and 10 pm. Play the interactive Feline Frenzy game for a chance to win cash, prizes or a 2007 Jaguar S-Type which will be given away in the grand prize drawing on May 5. Call 1-888-4EMPRESS for details. This article is provided by the Frank Scoblete Network. Melissa A. Kaplan is the network's managing editor. If you would like to use this article on your website, please contact Casino City Press, the exclusive web syndication outlet for the Frank Scoblete Network. To contact Frank, please e-mail him at fscobe@optonline.net. Articles in this Series
Best of John G. Brokopp
John G. Brokopp |
John G. Brokopp |