#485 - My Pro Chat During FTOPS Event #15 - Part III of IV

Question From xArtShellx:  whats the most you ever won/lost in a night?
Michael Craig: The most I’ve won was $48k - I finished 3rd in the Sunday Brawl and won the Sunday HORSE in Feb. Most I’ve lost has been my Main Event buy-in, 3 times.

Question From alsr1:  Would you have any advice for a new tourny player
Michael Craig: Read The Full Tilt Poker Strategy Guide - Tournament Edition. Seriously, it has a lot of good advice for a starting tournament player.

Question From dodger0325:  got disconnected did you reply to my ?
Michael Craig: Michael Craig: I’d say yes BUT that’s because I’ve played 100 times as many hands online as live. So I’d say there are 100 times as many suckouts.

Question From LBfox:  what do you do with weeks of bad beats?
Michael Craig: Giving or getting? Online, I read hand histories. Remind myself when I was the one giving them, or that my best performances were accompanied by some amount of luck. And to make sure it’s really bad beats and not playing mistakes - or maybe it’s both.

Question From Asians Bluff:  Have you ever been in a situation when say the pot is 5000 and the player in front (it’s 2 or 3 way action) bets very small, say 1000… or even less…what does this mean generally? i usually raise them thinking they are on a draw/marginalhan
Michael Craig: Yes … or it could mean the opposite.

Question From Johnthomason:  On-full-tilt-you-got-a-loss-off-over-7K-how-come-a-”pro”-lose-so-much-instead-of-winning?
Michael Craig: Better check the stats on officialpokerrankings.com. I’ve grossed $250k this year and am ahead $80k or more. Not bragging, but I’m a winning player online, and it’s publicly available information.

Question From MustanqGT: 
Michael craig lost in the ftops, it must have been rigged, do you agree?
Michael Craig: Can you believe the injustice? 33 beating by A8? I swear, I suffer a bad beat half the time I’m in that situation.

Question From certifiedgame:  how do you become a online pro
Michael Craig: Win enough money to make it your principal source of income?

Question From kernelheader:  How do you feel about the recent influx of celebrity players?  I’ve watched Jennifer Tilly play and I have to say she has skill, but what is the general consensus on the subject?
Michael Craig: She was great in Let It Ride, the best gambling movie ever made. Hey, everybody is equal in poker. You got the money, you sit down and play.

Question From LParreira:  With all the sponsors at the WSOP do you think it makes sense having the same rake as in a normal tournament?
Michael Craig: I don’t know what rake is “reasonable” but their rake is smaller than at Bellagio/Venetian tournaments going on at the same time.

Question From xArtShellx:  how long does a regular live NLHE tourney last?
Michael Craig: Depends on the tournament. WSOP events go 3 days, noon to 2 AM, 2 PM to final table (or final 18), then down to a winner. But the $300 daily tournament at the Wynn is 6 or 7 hours.

Question From newyork2:  How did you do in the wsop this year?
Michael Craig: 26th in the $5k Mixed Hold ‘Em, lots of “good performance, tough break”s out of the money. I ended up underwater about $35k but after winning my M.E. seat online and cleaning up in the satellite room, I was minus about $5k overall.

Question From ThePayoffWizard:  Whats your take on all the online scams recently?
Michael Craig: I don’t really follow them. I feel like there’s no benefit to my writing about it in the blog. If I say bad things about the sites, it would sound like Full Tilt is trying to take advantage of a competitor’s misfortune. If I defend them, it would sound like I’m trying to keep the heat off online poker.

Question From I Stay High:    with a 1200 dollar roll what buy in sits/mtts should i be playing??
Michael Craig: Ferguson says don’t have more than 5% of your bankroll on the table in a SnG or more than 2% in an MTT.

Question From kernelheader:  Do you think wearing headphones during play helps or hurts a player’s ability to read their opponent?
Michael Craig: Only if you have the sound up too high or are rockin’ with the tunes too much.

Question From EatShootNLeave:  do you think you have a better relationship with your fanbase than some of the bigger poker celebrities?
Michael Craig: I know I NEED to have a better relationship. I don’t give my “fans” - if I have any based on my play - as much to fanaticize about as Matusow or Ivey or Lindgren.

Question From coombesy12:  hi mate can u tell me the best way to play aces
Michael Craig: The same way you’d play any other hand preflop. But remember that the hand loses its value when there are more players in the pot, and when it gets later in the hand. Be respectful of stack sizes too. I’d rather have 7-7 in the first level of the WSOP
Michael Craig: M.E. than A-A.

Question From Anywayz_2:  shall I start a petition to get the name of the turbo hundo changed toe michale craigs candy land ( or whatever it was)
Michael Craig: Nah, that failed. But you can start that for the Sunday night HORSE, which I’ve won twice and finished runner-up. But I’ve finished 2 from the money the last 2 weeks, so pick a better time.

Question From newyork2:  Early in a torney should play real tight?
Michael Craig: Not automatically. But keep in mind that the benefits of aggressive play are smaller than later, when the blinds are a bigger % of the stacks and there are antes.

Question From XstoXicX:  The last 3 tournaments I have became the bubble boy at my local casino. how do i overcome? any suggestions?
Michael Craig: I’d have to know about the types of hands to advise if you’re playing the bubble properly. But it’s possible you’re getting tight too early if you usually find yourself short-stacked around then.

Question From EatShootNLeave:  what do you think about a player like jamie gold, who wins the 06 main event and then never wins a mainstream tournament again. does this mean that he is particularly lucky to have won?
Michael Craig: I don’t think he’s played that many tournaments since winning the Main Event, certainly not enough to conclude whether he’s a good player.

Question From Asians Bluff:  It seems as tho whenever I had AA in NLHE (I raise pre), I get the scariest flops, like 345, or KJQ, or 776. What can you suggest?
Michael Craig: With one opponent, position, and a deep stack? Bet the flop, check the turn, call the river. But it depends on stacks, blinds/antes, opponents, etc.

Question From cecilturtle0716:  What is the best hand you have ever played?
Michael Craig: Hopefully the next one.

Question From juarnes:  how are you
Michael Craig: I had $1000 of dental work done today, the anesthetic is wearing off, and I already busted out of the FTOPS event I hosted. I’m actually doing GREAT. I’m hanging around with family, chatting with friends here online, and playing the HORSE.

Question From russell198424:  how do you prepare for a big tourtament
Michael Craig: I go to the bathroom about 5 times in the hour before. But I’m probably a lot older than you.

Question From berkwin:  hey, how much money have you made in your lifetime playing poker?
Michael Craig: Not enough, which is why I keep playing. I don’t play many cash games and my tournament record is available on the Hendon Mob database and officialpokerrankings.com

Question From xArtShellx:  what do you mean you cleaned up in the satelitte room?
Michael Craig: Check the archives for my blogs during the Series, but I won about $20k in entry chips (net) in satellites.

Question From kernelheader:  Thanks for answering all of our questions, Mr. Craig!
Michael Craig: It’s 7:23 PM (local time) right now. I’ll stick around until 8 PM. And you can always read my stuff in The Full Tilt Poker Blog or just find me when I’m playing a tournament.

Question From ja2005:  I keep getting my aces cracked everytime I go all in..is that just how it works online or should I start slow playing them??
Michael Craig: I have to assume you’re exaggerating.

Question From Bricktop0585:  I always seem to make the money in PLO and PLO8 tournaments but I bust out soon after.  Any advice on this stage of a MTT for Omaha?
Michael Craig: I’ve played fewer tournaments of those types than any others so it’s especially hard for me to generalize there.

Question From dypunks:  any advice for a guy switching from playing live to playing online?
Michael Craig: Keep an eye on your bankroll. You play a lot more hands per hour, you play a lot more tournaments. It’s easy to go through the money a lot faster than live.

Question From grantleach:  any tips for a guy switching from live poker to online?
Michael Craig: get your signals straight with dypunks

Question From Lewellyn Evans:  You’d rather have 7-7 for Implied Odds?
Michael Craig: Exactly. Even if my statement (I’d rather have 77 than AA ….) isn’t completely right, it’s my shorthand for remembering the overwhelming importance of protecting your deep stack against implied odds.

Question From Philly QB:  What do you think is the best asset to have in tournament poker
Michael Craig: Michael Craig’s brain.