Name Mike Blackman

Age 24

Where are you from? NYC

Are you married? Children? Thankfully, no. 

What do you do for a living? Cop.

How long have you been playing Internet poker? About 8 months.  I got into it when I saw Chris Moneymaker win the 2003 WSOP, I guess a lot of people did.

What limits do you play? Online I mostly play .5/1 but recently began dabbling in 2/4 (heard 1/2 was tough so I skipped it altogether).  When I play live in AC I usually play 3/6 or 4/8.

What is your favorite site and why? Party Poker is the only place I play because I heard it was the place with the worst/most players.  So far I can't complain.

What has been your biggest poker thrill or achievement up to now?  Well, if you look at the limits I play and combine that with the fact that I've never won a multi-table tourny it should make sense that I've never really had a "thrilling" win thus far in my poker infancy.

 

That said I'd have to say the moment it really hit me that poker truly wasn't "gambling", that it was a casino game that could actually be beaten in the long run, AND it was fun to play to boot, that was pretty thrilling.  It still is.

What area of your game are you currently focusing on?  I'm still just trying to get my ABC game as strong as it can be down in the lower limits before I start playing games where you actually have to think and the opponents are capable of making unpredictable and powerful plays.  Right now I'm happy where I am with poker.  Being able to soundly beat 3 tables of .5/1 is good enough for me for now.  I'm not trying to get rich playing poker, its just a hobby. 

If you could go back in time and start all over again on the Internet, what would you do differently?  Get an affiliate, or at least know what an affiliate was and how they worked before I blindly put money onto a site.  That's it. 

What’s your favorite poker saying or phrase?  "Poker is just another one of God's ways of taking money from stupid people and giving it to smart people." -Somebody that isn't me

Who is your favorite poker player (if you have one)?  Negreanu because he seems like a decent guy and because he's damn good.

 

Hellmuth because love him or hate him he is extremely entertaining to watch.  The more he cries the more I enjoy it, but I'm always sad to see him get knocked out.

 

Ivey, just look at how intense he is.  He seems way more focused every second of every hand than anyone else.  He looks like he's got a Deep Blue caliber mind, making millions of calculations every second just behind his eyes which manage to never give anything away.

What are your other interests outside of poker? My first love is Golf.  If I can get my handicap below my BB's per 100 hands I can die a happy man.  No doubt about that.