Remember guests, to see all of the player pictures featured in this discussion thread, register for a free forum account:
http://www.apat.com/forum/index.php?action=register---
The Winner of the Irish Amateur Poker Championship was Jacques Kieft from Galway. He kindly took the time to answer a few questions for APAT members.Jacques, many congratulations! Can we start with you as a person? Tell us about yourself?Well, I am originally from Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands. Six years ago I moved to Galway to pursue a dancing career. After a small accident with my foot I was unable to continue this, but still stayed. Currently I run my own little Internet café in Salthill.
And what about your poker background?I started playing games when I was very young. So young in fact that I still shuffle cards sideways, because when I learned to shuffle my hands weren't big enough to hold a deck otherwise. Poker started much later; only about three years or so ago. At first it was just with three other friends playing spread-limit seven card stud. That was my introduction and since I have played many different variations of poker. That friendly game with friends has since turned into a weekly two-table Texas hold'em home tournament with dealer's choice cash game afterwards. Even though it is well organised with proper chips and such, all players play primarily for the craic and the stakes are small.
Because of my job, I've also been playing on-line a lot. Not counting the WSOP 2006 seat I won, I'm down a lot online. I've noticed that although it is the same game, the game play is very different. I rely mostly on my reads. Online I am deprived from all physical reads, which leaves just the mathematical reads. Live play is much better for me. I am up a lot live, even before winning the Irish amateur poker championship. Its more social and I don't get bored live at all. That last may be because I talk a lot. Since a few months I've been playing in a local casino on a regular basis. Before that I would be there only very sporadically. The tournaments went amazingly well for me, including winning their league. But for cash games I still need to learn a lot.
How did you find out about APAT?Through a post on boards.ie. I have been using this free Irish bulletin board for years now, constantly learning from others and thereby improving my own game.
So tell us about the first day of this tournament for you. You seemed to make slow progress at first?Actually, at the start I was getting great hands and within an hour I was up to over 17K. However, after that I started losing too many pots. I missed too many expensive flops with good starting hands etc. After yet another expensive adventure with a massive draw on the flop and folding to an all-in on the turn I was down to only 5K. I got lucky and doubled up soon after. Then I got moved to another table. That table was much better for me as I had more grip on it. I steadily accumulated chips and was up to 70K when I got moved again. Then the last level kicked in and on this table I was without reads and card dead. A bad combination, especially since there was a lot of pushing going on. Basically I got blinded, seeing only one flop in the last hour and a half.
You ended the day with around 50,000 chips, in the middle of the chip count of the last twenty players. What were your realistic expectations for the second day?I work a tournament in small steps. Once I made day two, my sole goal was to make it in the money (last 15). When that happened, and only then, I moved my goal to make it onto the final table (last 9) and so on. I learned to not set your mind too far ahead because that doesn't work. Well, not for me anyway. Realistically, with the 48½K I started with, I expected to go home with a £300 cheque. However, give me half a chance and I'll grab it. As long as you're in, you have a chance, no matter the odds. I think Brendan proved that beyond reasonable doubt.
Reaching the final, it seemed very delicately poised. You had riled a few feathers on the second day with your talking! Tell us about that, was it a deliberate strategy?Playing poker is fun to me, just like playing any other game. I could never sit at a table full with professionals, where everyone just plays and doesn't chit-chat at all. I wouldn't enjoy it and leave the table out of boredom. Talking is something I do a lot, maybe too much. I have yet to master to “keep my big mouth shut”. In addition to it being my nature, it also provides me with additional tells and sometimes even enables me to make my opponent do as I desire. That is a happy coincidence. However, I never intentionally try to cause any verbal harm to anyone.
Things really began to hot up for you four or five handed with QQ versus Brendan's 99 just before the break. That put you right into contention didn't it?That pot made me chip leader for the first time in the tournament. A great position to be in and looking favourable towards reaching medal positions. After leaving him crippled like that, I could never have guessed that I would end up going heads-up against Brendan.
Yet heads up you began with a 2 to 1 chip deficit to Brendan as he went on his card rush just before. Was there a plan you had in mind heads up? You seemed the more aggressive player?It was about my 24% to his 76% actually and I found Brendan to be the more aggressive player. I had to use all my skills to make him believe that I was very tight and therefore when I called or raised, I had him every time. That is why I showed so many hands early in the heads-up play. Especially limping with AK and checking it down worked like a charm. Sure this strategy cost me a few blinds, but after that I was relatively free to steal pots. I only bluffed into the bigger (raised) pots and he folded every time. He wasn't easily fooled though and I had to work hard to keep my image up, showing strong hands a lot after he folded.
The key hand Heads up saw you flop two pair with 10 9. By the time Brendan called your bet on the turn he had made his straight. This may be tricky to say but would you have called him there if he had raised you all-in?It depends on how he announced his all-in and what feeling it would have given me. After the turn there was a one-card-straight possible and also a flush. I was cursing myself for slow playing the flop and bet out quite worried about his holdings. If he had raised me I would have gone with whatever my feeling was. I reckon that it is more probable that I would have called and only folded if I had a strong read that he had me beat. All-in on a four-outer with one card to come is not a good idea in general. Mathematically speaking, with all the middle cards on the board and unraised pre-flop he could easily have two (lower) pair himself and/or some kind of mega draw.
And then the full house came on the river for you, and Brendan pushed. I saw you had a monster before he pushed, honest jacques! Was it tough to control your elation at that point?Once he announced all-in, I was ecstatic since I couldn't lose the hand, only tie if he had the same hand. It was a release of held-back adrenaline you could say. It's always nice to get re-raised all-in when holding the nuts. If you knew that I had a monster before that then I still need to work some more on my poker face.
And after that it was a case of closing the victory out?Not one bit. Brendan isn't an easy player to play against. He knows his stuff well and will make a comeback when given half a chance. He immediately changed his game strategy and I had to change my game too in order not to be bet out of too many pots. After a bit it was my 900K vs. his 600K and he tried to push me around. I choose my spot carefully but had to go with what hands I was dealt. I knew that I either had to take a coin flip or have him catch up. So I ended up taking him on with a pair, having a read on him for a decent ace. He had K Q instead, so he was playing looser and taking more risks than I thought. But in the end, I got lucky and won the coin flip to win the title.
So looking back, what are your thoughts on the competition?It was fantastic. Not just my personal result, but also the philosophy behind the APAT, the tournament structure, the dealers, the APAT staff and the players. There was an excellent atmosphere and everyone was friendly and in a good mood, winning or losing. I'm definitely going to the next one if possible.
And you are now playing in the EPT Season 4any idea where you would like to play?I really don't know. The EPT is something I know little about. Those big buy-in tournaments aren't my thing. I play mainly for fun and for the competitive element. I would never ever pay a four figure amount to buy-in. But I will take a free shot of-course. Most likely I'll go for something close and familiar like Dublin.
Thank you for your time.Jacques was speaking to APAT Media Director, Richard Prew.
