Q & A with Pius Heinz, Poker's Newest World Champion

It’s good to be the king of poker.
22-year-old German Pius Heinz has had a couple of weeks to settle in to his new role as World Champion (and defacto ambassador) of poker, and so far so good.
As he outlined in our news feature yesterday, Germany is showing signs of embracing the game of poker marked cards on a wider scale and Heinz hopes to be a big part of it.
Read on for the full transcript of our interview that includes the story behind the white hoodies, the Pius Heinz chant and his thoughts on the now infamous KJ hand between Ben Lamb and Martin Staszko.
PokerListings: It’s been a few weeks now, what’s changed for you since winning the 2011 Main Event?
Pius Heinz: It’s been a surreal experience since I won. Obviously a lot has changed for me.
I’ve had a lot of media attention over here in Germany. I’ve met a lot of cool, interesting people, a great deal of whom I’d only seen on TV before.
PL: What’s the reception been like from the German media?
PH: It’s been pretty good. I’m quite happy about it. You’re always going to have a few negative articles but most of it has been very positive.
The German media, in general, has been quite supportive. I’m really happy about that.
PL: What do you think your victory will do for German poker?
PH: I hope it helps grow the game in Germany. I want to do my part and be an ambassador for the game.
Poker is such a great, interesting game that has a unique psychological aspect to it. Hopefully I can relate that to the general public.
PL: How have your friends and family reacted?
PH: They’re all super happy and very proud of me. A lot of my friends and family came out to support me in Las Vegas and that made winning the title even better.
PL: If the money was the same would you have just taken second place and avoided dealing with the media and the various World Champion responsibilities?
PH: It’s a pretty big honor to be the WSOP champion. In 20 years when you have kids you can tell them you were the World Champion once.
Being the World Series of Poker Main Event champion is something no one can ever take away from you.
It’s like winning an Olympic gold medal or something like that. I’m really proud that I was able to achieve that and happy with how things turned out.
PL: Your white hoodie became one of your signatures at the table. Did you plan that all along?
PH: I just started wearing it at the poker table because it was comfortable. Once my Main Event started going well it became my good luck charm though.
PL: Did you know all your friends and fans would be wearing them at the Main Event final table?
PH: No, they surprised me with that. I thought it was really awesome. (laughs)
PL: Who helped you out most heading into the final table?
PH: I got coaching from Mike “Timex” McDonald so he definitely helped me out the most.
I’m also friends with a lot of high-stakes tournament players from Germany, Austria and the United States and we all help each other out and talk about various hands.
It’s really important if you want to grow as a player.
PL: It seemed like you didn’t check the live stream very much during the final table, did that affect your game?
PH: I actually checked the live stream quite a bit. Not every 15 seconds or anything but every time there was a big hand I would go talk to my friends.
It definitely helped. It gave me a lot of confidence because I watched the Day 1 coverage and felt that almost every big decision I made was the correct one.
PL: So I guess you’re happy ESPN decided to go with that coverage format?
PH: Yeah I was never against it. I mean it’s the same for everyone.
Everyone is seeing the same thing so no one has an unfair advantage. It’s also good for poker and anything that’s good for poker easy cards tricks is eventually good for the player.
PL: Your fans had a very memorable chant during the Main Event. Where on earth did that come from?
PH: It was a friend of mine from Scotland that came up with it. I don’t know how.
I guess he had a few beers and that made him really creative (laughs).
It’s from that song “Baby Give it Up” (by KC & the Sunshine Band). It just caught on. I thought it was really funny.
PL: What’s your average day been like over the last few weeks?
PH: Usually getting up in the morning, having some breakfast, doing some phone interviews. Later in the day I do TV interviews.
The TV interviews tend to take a whole day because there is quite a bit of preparation involved.
I spent last week in London and I’m in Cologne right now. I head back to my home in Vienna, Austria next week.
Later in the month I’m going to be on a German poker show, which is sort of our equivalent of High Stakes Poker although obviously the stakes are smaller.
It’s been a pretty busy schedule and whenever I get a day off I thoroughly enjoy it.
PL: Have you played much online poker recently?
PH: Honestly I haven’t played a single hand of online poker in over a month.
I’m really looking forward to playing again when I get the time. When EPT Prague is finished I’m going to go on a little vacation and I think I’ll schedule a little online poker in that time.
PL: Perhaps the most talked about hand at the Main Event final table was when Ben Lamb jammed with K-J three-handed. What were your thoughts on the hand?
PH: I don’t think either player played it that well. I definitely see where Ben was coming from though.
I think it’s usually fine but the fact that it was the first hand of three-handed changed things a bit. I tend to feel that players are not light on the first hand back.
Everyone is nervous and usually plays tighter. That’s not to say Martin (Staszko) is not capable of being light there but I would definitely tighten up a bit there.
I also would have preferred if Martin flatted with sevens there. I certainly would have played it differently.
PL: Outside of poker and considering you grew up in Cologne, Germany, are you a pretty big football fan?
PH: Yeah I’m definitely a fan of the Cologne soccer club. I used to go to the Stadium every home game for around three years.
I used to be a pretty big fan but I haven’t followed it as closely over the last few years as I’ve been quite busy. I’m still a fan though.
The NBA finals were actually much more important to me than the Champions League or something like that.
PL: Do you think Germany is a favorite in the Euro Cup this summer?
PH: I hope so. They’ve definitely been playing really well. I mean Spain is always really tough though. They are probably the best team in the world right now.
I think Germany and Spain are the big favorites for sure.
PL: Germany could potentially legalize online poker next year but you live in Austria. Do you feel legalized poker in Germany is still quite a ways from reality?
PH: I honestly don’t know. I’m not really an expert on the topic.
I really hope it’s legalized and I’m going to try and do my part to make that happen. I want to show the German people how beautiful the game of poker is.
PL: What did it mean for you to sign with PokerStars?
PH: It was a really big deal for me. I’m really happy to be a part of the team.
To me PokerStars is probably the best company in the industry. It’s always great when you can work with the best.
It’s an honor to be a part of a team that includes Sandra Naujoks, Jan Heitmann and Johannes Strassman.
PL: You’re known as an online grinder, did you have any money stuck on Full Tilt in the Black Friday ordeal?
PH: I did have a little but not near as much as some of my friends. I know people who have a lot of money stuck on there.
PL: Who are the best German players in the world right now?
PH: As far as tournaments go Benny Spindler is really, really good. Sebastian Ruthenberg and Tobias Reinkemeier are really good as well.
PL: What kind of tournament schedule do you think you’ll play in the upcoming year?
PH: I’m going to play quite a few EPTs starting with Prague next month. I’ll definitely play the PCA.
I’ll probably play around 10 the rest of this season. I’ll also be heading back to the Las Vegas for the 2012 WSOP, probably for the whole summer.
Looking forward to the mixed events at the WSOP.
PL: Thanks Pius, great to talk to you.

Trickett, Mercier, Negreanu Crush Aussie Millions Cash Game

The tournament may have ended early tonight but the real action was happening upstairs in Studio 3 where over $1 million in cash was laid out on the table of a high stakes cash game.
The game included Daniel Negreanu, Jason Mercier, Dan “jungleman12” Cates, Tom Dwan, Sam Trickett, Patrik Antonius and Gus Hansen plus Winfred Lu and Richard Young, two wealthy businessmen from China.
The game lasted for over five hours and we caught an epic three-way hand between Negreanu, Antonius and Mercier.
Antonius was all-in for about $80k, Negreanu for $148k and Mercier had both
marked cards players covered. This was all pre-flop and they ended up running the board three times.
Incredibly Negreanu tabled A♦ A♣ and the aces held up all three times.
Antonius whiffed with K♠ K♦ and Mercier outright mucked his hand.
Unfortunately for the TV crew the cameras weren’t rolling at the time and they missed the whole sequence.
“The cameras weren’t rolling?” asked Mercier. “Well, that’s a relief.”
Antonius merely shrugged and told the nearest floor manager, “I would like another $100k.”
Considering Negreanu’s bad fortune on High Stakes Poker he might want to consider never playing when the cameras are rolling juice cards.
A bit later on we talked to Mercier briefly while the game was still going on and he gave us his thoughts on the experience.
“This game is so sick,” he said. “I lost $100k in the first hour and now I’m up over $200k.”
When the game finally broke it was actually Sam Trickett who was the big winner. “Tricky” bought in for $200k and left with an astounding $648k.
Mercier left with about $160,000 in profit and Negreanu ended up approximately $160k.
Negreanu later Tweeted he now plans on playing the $250k later this week.
The rest of the players? Well let’s just say they can try and make it all back tomorrow.
Here’s a few photos we snapped:

Partial Reinforcement Part 2

Last week we examined the "partial reinforcement effect" (or PRE).

Editor's note: Make sure to check out part one of this blog to catch up if you haven't already done so.

The PRE is the finding that behavior that is rewarded on an irregular, unpredictable schedule becomes more likely than behavior that has been rewarded every time.

This may seem paradoxical, but the effect is very real, in poker and in the rest of life.

Try this: Imagine a game where you win a fixed amount every time you play infrared contactlenses particular hands - say you get $1 each time you hold big slick. OK?

Now imagine a game where you averaged a $1 win with A-K but on a wildly varying schedule. Sometimes you won a huge pot, sometimes you got felted and sometimes you just stole the blinds. This latter situation is far more desirable.

That's the PRE and I want to use it to take a look at a familiar character: the chaser, aka the calling station.

I'll start with three hands from a recent game. I had just gotten knocked out of a tournament and was not a happy puppy. When I am unhappy, I drop down in stakes, for I am not always playing my A-game.

I took a seat in a $1/$2 game along with the usual suspects. After a while a new player sat in the 10 seat. It quickly became clear that he was a gambler who had come to mix it up. Implied odds? "Don't need no freakin' odds!" Position? "Whassat?" Player styles? "Who gives a flyin' F!"

I was as card-dead here as in the tournament, so I just sat while calluses formed on my butt and tossed away J-6, T-2, 7-4 ... For an hour an a half I literally saw two flops, and those were BB free passes. Of course, I missed both.

I'm pointing this out not because I want sympathy, but because it's important in understanding "Mr. G" in Seat 10.

About one orbit later a woman open-raises to $8 UTG (which is pretty standard). Mr. G calls from the cut-off, as is his wont.

They see a T♠ 9♣ 3♣ flop. She bets $20. He calls. The turn is K♠. She bets $40. He calls, and the 2♠lands on the river.

She hesitates, stops, thinks, wrinkles her nose - all of which screams A-K to me - and bets her last $45. He calls and turns over 6♠ 3♠, smiling while raking in the pot.

Ten minutes later the somewhat passive fellow on my right opens for $7. Mr. G is the only caller. The flop is J-8-7 rainbow. The raiser bets $18. Mr. G calls. The turn is an offsuit two.

The raiser, who, remember, is a pretty passive player marked card tricks, shoves for his last $110. Mr. G. calls. Mr. Passive turns up A-J suited. Mr. G doesn't show. The river is a T. Mr. G, in case you need to be told, now flips over T-2.

Mr. Passive loses it. "You called the flop with a gut-shot? You called a hundred freakin' dollar bet with bottom pair? What the f'in' hell is wrong with you?" Mr. G just laughs. He is having a wonderful time.

My evening's dénouement comes some 15 minutes later. I still haven't played a hand, so when I see A-J suited in mid position, it looks like wired bullets. There were two early limpers so I make it $20 to go.

Mr. G calls, of course. The limpers muck. The flop is A-K-7 rainbow. I bet $50. He calls. The turn is some rag. I shove my last $90. He calls. The river is a K and, yup, he turns up K-3.

If I hadn't been so tired I'd have reloaded, 'cause unless he racks up, those chips weren't staying there. They're, as the saying goes, "just visiting." Instead I went home to write this column.

Mr. G's poker game is psychologically fascinating. It's clear he's a bozo, a chaser, a calling station. Bottom pair is like a pheromone to a moth. And there are a lot like him, especially at the lower limits.

Why do the Mr. Gs keep coming back to the tables? The PRE can help us answer that question.

Yes, the humongous reinforcements that arrive on nights like this are a factor, but, importantly, it isn't just the amount he wins when he's hitting cards, because anyone who plays like this will lose far more when he isn't.

It's the fickle and unpredictable nature of these magical nights that regularly entice a Mr. G back to the tables. Players like this never know when they're going to hit that three-outer but when they do (as we noted last week), dopamine floods the synaptic clefts in their limbic systems.

The impact on the brain is enormous, and overcomes the effects of the hammering they take on other nights.

But there's another, subtle element here: why did he play that last hand against me? I've been the very personification of nit, a veritable rock, mucking some 50 or 60 hands in a row. I raised; bet when an ace flopped and pushed on every street. How stupid can someone be?

Back to the PRE for insight: it turns out that when unlikely but wildly reinforcing things occur at irregular intervals the resulting cascade of dopamine creates a kind of mental fog that makes danger difficult to perceive. Big reinforcements like the first two suck-outs actually compromise thinking; obvious dangers tend not be appreciated.

Interesting, yes?

In passing, note that this analysis gives us additional insight into two topics we've discussed in the past, specifically the "I'm playing my rush" syndrome and the links between poker and economics.

The "rush" effect is due, at least in part, to the drop-off in thinking that follows a series of big wins. The unwise decision making that we've seen, to our collective pain, in the world of finance as well as at the poker tables is fueled in part by the erratic schedule with which reinforcements arrive in both domains.

Free Money! Run-Good Challenge Facebook Edition

The PokerListings Run-Good Challenge is back and this time we're inviting all our Facebook fans to get in on the action!
For those of you who haven't heard about the Run-Good Challenge (are you living under a rock!?) it's an online poker easy cards tricks freeroll tournament. If you like poker, and you like free money, this is the event for you.
In the past we've had poker pros and poker writers playing but for this edition it's only open to a very elite group of people, the PokerListings Facebook fans!
On February 21^st $1,500 will be up for grabs. If you want a piece of the cake all you have to do is go to our Facebook page and become a fan. Once you've done that go to our events page and sign up for the Run-Good Challenge.
On the day of the tournament we'll be sending out a private message with the tournament password to everyone who confirmed their attendance for the event.
The tournament will be held on Pokerstars but don't worry if you don't have an account. It's free to set up and it only takes a few minutes.
Go here and download the software. Then just follow the instructions on setting up an account and you're good to go!
All the prize pool info, as well as a few special bonuses and bounties, can be found on the event page so get over there and check it out.

Going Supernova - Courtney Gee Poker Update

Supernova progress is well on track for 2011. Ideally I will make it by mid December so that I take some time off before the holidays. A friend recently pointed out to me that it’s also good to take time off because games get tougher around this time juice cards.
Intuitively, it seems like games should get easier around the holidays because pros take time off for Christmas and recreational players have time off work and school. The problem is that I play on PokerStars, and the end of the year means the Supernova/Supernova Elite deadline, as well as the end of the Tournament Leaderboard race.
Games in December are gonna be filled with regs trying to get in as many games as possible anywhere they can because they need the VPPs.
I didn’t play as many games as I’d have liked to since I last blogged. Here were the numbers:

• # MTTs: 17 (-$1,145.00)
• # SnGs: 419 ($+1,561.49)
• Hours: 40
• Net result: +$416.00

Hey I made more than minimum wage this time!
As I talked about last time, I did end up getting sucked into playing a few high buy-in Sunday MTTs. This obviously hurt the bottom line quite a bit. The rest of the MTT losses are mostly from $35 180s. I just lump these into MTTs because the variance is so much higher than with the other SnGs I play.
The SnG results are pretty much as positive as I can expect for the volume I played. My average buy-in is $40 right now, and I can’t really expect to achieve an ROI greater than the 9% I have here trick cards. So I just need to increase my volume (easier said than done for me, unfortunately).
I’m going to be spending a portion of the next couple weeks playing in the BC Poker Championships, a series of tournaments taking place at River Rock in Richmond. I live around 30 minutes away from the casino, so it’s nice to have some worthwhile tournaments close by. I haven’t really played any live tournaments since WSOP.
They have a $550 event (which starts today), a $1,100, a $3,000, and a $5,000. My bankroll can support the first two no problem. I haven’t decided about the $3,000. I could just sell half my action if I’m worried about my bankroll, but I’m leaning toward staying home to play online instead. I’m skipping the $5,000 no matter what happens because I think it’s going to be a very tough field.
If you are also playing in the BCPC, good luck to you. I’ll try to update again soon with a summary of online poker in October. Thanks for reading!
Courtney Gee is on a quest to never work a 9-5 job again by playing poker professionally both online and live. Follow her progress on her blog right here at PokerListings.com.