4 Minutes Read
A number of our Indian warriors have impressively impacted ACOP this year. PokerGuru decided to talk to some of them and bring their experiences for our readers.
We start off with Jaideep Sajwan (cover image), one of the young aspiring poker players, who won a dream entry to an ACOP side event with an additional $500 for expenses, on the basis of an online qualifier. He went on to cash HK$4,800 from his 13th place finish in a side event and has a lot to share from the experience.
Jaideep has been playing for the past 3 years at PokerStars and shifted from SNGs to tournaments and then to PLO and NL cash games.
In this interview, Jaideep shares how he got lucky in a free roll, his anxiety to collect enough money for the trip and his experience in Macau. The young “Fish” as he self-effacingly calls himself had a chance to meet Scott Davies, who won WSOP APAC MAIN Event and describes the man’s down to earth attitude. Jaideep also gives a good account of the economics of travelling and staying in Macau for future aspirants.
Clearly, a man of humor, Jaideep also shares a hilarious moments at ACOP with “a pair” of fellow players. We leave you to discover the double entendres, as well as the situations faced by an upcoming player at an international tournament, for yourself!
Hi Jaideep, thanks for sparing some time to talk to us. So tell us, how did you win the ACOP 2014 package?
To be honest it’s a real pleasure to be called on, although still doesn’t understand why you guys would want a fish’s tale: D
Getting back to poker, I won the ACOP side event pack in a twitter freeroll organized by PokerStars. I had sold a Sunday pack in the Indian poker community and while I was playing cash before that, a friend of mine linked me to this and I was like why not. Didn’t even know what I had actually won after shipping it. #fish
How did it feel after winning the package? Were you excited to make the trip or nervous?
Like I said, my MTT session had started by the time the freeroll ended and even after winning it I had no clue what I had won. Some people PM`ed me saying it’s the ME seat, some said side event. I posted on the Indian PPA page after winning it and 10 mins in I got to know it was a side event seat with some side cash for convenience charges. Until a week after winning it, I had no intention of going. Macau is a pretty expensive place to go to and for just one tourney seemed too -EV. It wasn’t until after I godmoded some online and live cash games that I gave it a thought. Still going for one event did`nt seem too practical so I sold a package for a few other side events. I was glad to find investors for my pack although a bit disappointed for not keeping up to their trust.
I would have to say I was too excited to make the trip as I always wanted to visit Macau & Vegas and having one of them removed from the list sure is good.
How did you prepare for the series?
Nothing for this series in particular I would say. I have a RIO subscription and do watch their videos regularly. Previously I was backed by a staking group and had coaches and training material at disposal.
Although from the time I was playing 1$ 45-man, SABY (infusion_leo) has always been there, helping me along the way. Although some fishes just can’t ever improve so let’s leave the preparing part at that.
Tell us about your experience at ACOP 2014 and Macau. Any interesting stories or experiences?
Macau was awesome; COD (City of Dreams) the place where PokerStars was organizing the ACOP was by far the biggest live poker establishment I had seen to date. I luckily found a 2+2’er wanting to split a hotel room.
ACOP was pretty much a stop for all the biggest names in poker. Ivey, Coleman, Timex and other wizards were all there trying to fish in Asian territory. The tournament scene was pretty good with higher BI tourneys being followed by the same variant lower BI tourney the next day so pretty much there was something for anyone and everyone. The Russians were pretty much using the HK $10/20 poker pro tables (Digital NLH tables) as ATM’s for lunch money since every tourist wanted to try those. The Super High roller featured the who’s who of poker.
Personally for me ACOP was not the best I could have hoped for. The lower BI structures were a bit flawed with not having antes in some tourneys and some rather weird level jumps.
Interesting stories and experience wise I got much more than a handful. I spent most of my time playing poker during the trip but I also made it a point to explore Macau. I mostly hung out with my roommate but I did get to meet up with the Indian contingent there. I didn’t get to meet with Intervention as probably on the day he must have come to play the Main Event, I was playing cash in Venetian as I was not playing the Main. The other days I was in COD he was nowhere to be seen alongside the Indian contingent. Maybe “ismoketoomuch” 😛 .
One of the rather interesting parts of the series was meeting Scott Davies. I was playing cash after I busted out from a tourney when a Brit who had been on my table comes along with a friend of his and says to him you got to meet this Indian buddy of mine. Of course the Brit is 6-7 shots down and had been drinking on the tourney table too, so pretty much everyone is his “chuddy-buddy”. He tells me this is Scott Davies, it takes me a moment and then I remember from his 2+2 staking thread that he was the guy who won the WSOP APAC MAIN recently for $800K. Leave the $ amount aside the guy was totally down to earth. Pretty much seemed like I was the one who had won the 800k while he was talking to me. No I just won 3 quarter of a million $ ego in sight. I was actually thinking he would say hi and just move along but instead he had a decent long chat with all of us there. Asked what all I played and was more then an open ear to what I was saying. Although he is not a huge name in poker but his nature did earn him a few new supporters there. #classyguy
Also degenned at the bigger cash games in Venetian with literally my entire Macau bankroll on the table to run it up into the ME buy-in, not that I was planning on playing the Main Event even if I made the buy-in.
You cashed in the HK$2,000 Deepstack event. Tell us about your strategy during the event – initial, middle and end stages. Are you disappointed with your 13th place finish?
Ya that was the first tournament I played after I came to Macau. Although the name was deepstack, the tournament was fast paced. Initially I got decent hands and picked up a few pots here and there. There were quite a few fun players on the table and getting value from hands wasn’t much of an issue, while bluffing seemed relatively tough. The “tells” were pretty much too hard to miss.
I clearly remember a hand I had kings in MP and UTG raised. The guy in the hijack seat was slightly short and just as the UTG guy raised he was already getting ready to put his chips in. So I simply flatted and surely he went allin. The initial opener folded and I snapped obviously. It was another thing that he showed ACES. #fail
End stages of the tourney were pretty short stacked. Average stack was 15BB and somewhere around 17 people were to be paid. My roommate was amongst the top stacks and sitting to my left on the table. Well he 4-bets puts it in with AK and obviously gets a caller with A7 and busts, GG to him. 😀 #funfield
The hand I busted was a bit weird with a 15BB limping UTG getting another limper. Shoved JJ in MP and SB snap puts his stack in. I had like 12BB. Like I said before, the average stacks were pretty short and everyone was playing rather tight. I would have thought the caller had much better but he showed KQo and won so I ended up in 13th position there. It was a bit disappointing but was only the start of series for me so I was hopeful for the events to come.
What were the other events you played in Macau?
I played primarily the smaller BI events alongside the HK$8,800 spadie event I had sattied into. Some more NLH events, one PLO event and a few sats rounded up my schedule.
What were the key highlights of your trip?
Well didn’t have much of a trip with any poker highlights but there was this one funny incident on the table which I guess I can label as a highlight of my Macau trip.
It was the 6-max event and we were in the mid levels. I was seated to the right of a local female regular. Her attire seemed all too airy and cut if you know what I am saying. I doubt if that gives here any advantage on the poker table, OH WAIT IT DOES. So without going into too much detail, I opened on the button, she 3-bets me from the SB. We both were deep stacked and I called. Flop was A high and there sure was disgrunt for that A there. I flopped a flush draw, she c-bet I called. Turn is a blank and she checks and I take the spot to bet here after she showed some weakness to my still drawing hand. She takes her time but still calls. The river is a brick card and action is checked to me. Not following poker guidelines of not bluffing the fairer sex I still go ahead and bet around 50% of pot. To this she starts saying “you lucky” and “the Ace”. She keeps going back to her hand to which I ask her “how big is your pair”. To be honest I had no intention on inciting it but the guy seated on her left explodes into a loud laugh. I didn’t get it for a sec, oh ya then I got it obviously. Well at least kudos for her to be still maintaining her composure and still playing the hand while the rest of the table was literally falling up and down. Then she says “no your pair good”. I have never heard anyone laugh as hard as the Irish guy to my right. Pretty much blew my ear out. On top he shouts looking at the girl “No your pair is ALWAYS good”. We are playing a hand here that has pretty much become a commotion site with people from other tables coming to see what’s happening. She folds showing KINGS and quietly mucked. Too much had already happened in the hand for both of us to show the needless bluff. Pretty much I was flat faced after what had happened and the game settled down. Oh ya I did ask her out for drinks later, if drinks meant the free red bulls they were dispensing out at COD and ask her out meant apologizing for the commotion I accidentally caused. Well you can’t be sure if it was an accident though.:P
Any advice to first-time visitors to Macau?
Well this one has to be long one. Get your money there and ready already with people you are swapping online $ for cash in hand. You don’t want to go around asking random people for huge swaps. Well I will leave it to you to think who might have done that. I was lucky to have the Indian community coming to my rescue on that or else I would have been in a tough spot. Carrying and getting money in and out of India is always an issue.
Split hotel, taxi rides as every penny matters in Macau. You preferably want to have food services included in your hotel reservation. You don’t want to spend a fortune on only breakfast and still not being able to recognize 70% of the food being offered. For vegetarians welcome to HELL.
Use shuttles provided by hotel for travelling to North Island. They have one every 15-20 min. Try using the GPS feature, which is available on almost all mobiles these days.
If you are getting in and out from Hong Kong to Macau, keep some time gap. I missed my first event because my flight got delayed and then the ferry needs an extra hour to unload your luggage so you cannot simply board the next ferry available to Macau until your baggage comes.
Wifi is present almost everywhere so make good use of it.
Well this one might be MOST important. Book your return ferry ticket a day in advance. You can ask your hotel to do it for you. I had a 9 pm flight from HK airport. I took the hotel shuttle to the ferry terminal at 3 and was there by 3.30. Normally ferry takes an hour to get to HK airport. To my shock I was told all ferries are full till 6.30 and the only other mode is SKY SHUTTLE for HK$4K that might have been the most baller and broke exit at the same time lol. But well that’s a story for another time.
Thank you Jaideep for sharing your experiences with us and we wish you all the best both on and off the felt!