First, let me congratulate you on your fine finish at the Big One Final table tourney! Your accomplishment has guaranteed you a seat in the PSO LIVE TOUR Final event in Tunica in January.

NewJane: Tell us a little about yourself. Where you live, etc. Any interesting facts about your life would be appreciated!

Shuffleup: I was born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan, and moved to the Grand Rapids area on the west side of the state about the time I was beginning high school. I am a lead software developer for a local consulting firm. I am single and live in a little home near a lake. I enjoy poker, boating, music, backgammon, beach volleyball, and poker!!!! (Yes I meant to say poker twice)

NewJane: Share with us some of your poker background, such as how long you have played, games of choice, limits you like when you play live, other tourney successes. And anything else about your poker background that you want to share.

Shuffleup: I recently became interested in poker with the rest of the world about a year or so ago. I started by playing some online cash sites and did very well right from the start. I decided I would like to take a more cerebral approach to the game and hopefully learn a thing or two to improve. This, of course, led me to PokerSchoolOnline.

My Games of choice would have to be NL Texas Hold'em and Omaha (hi/lo or hi)

NewJane: How long have you been a member of PSO?

Shuffleup: I've been a member in good standing for about ten months now. (I think in good standing… can I get flunked if I haven't taken all of the tests yet?)

NewJane: Where is your favorite place to play poker, both live and tourney action?

Shuffleup: Hey NewJane, I live in Grand Rapids Michigan, there aren't very many opportunities for live tourneys around here. The only live games I play have been home games. Hopefully some of the closer casinos in the area will add some tournaments soon, though.

NewJane: What were some hands you remember from the tourney, both won and lost ?

Shuffleup: Hmmm, hard to pick. I guess if I had to pick an important hand I believe it would be my 6/9 hand. The big blind was at 800 and my stack was hovering around 11,000, I was on the button and there were no raises prior to me, so I limped in.

Flop was 7/2/6 - Bet was 1200. I noticed the bettor was a large stack and had been splashing a little, I got a piece of it, so I called.

Turn was 9 - Bet was 1200. I raise it up 2400 and the raise is called.

River was a 9 - Bet was all-in for 42k. I opted to call and doubled up. (Bettor had 10/7)

Now I liked this hand because:

1) I got a good chip boost and was the turning point in the tournament for me. Several good hands followed. 2) I made a good read involving player's patterns… something that I'm always trying to improve on.

NewJane: What did you feel was your strength / weakness in the tournament? I played a bit too conservative at the tournament. I need to get more money out there when I have a really good hand. On the flipside, I believe my strength was my patience to not overplay some of my weaker hands. I've been making a conscious effort to avoid that.

Shuffleup: If you could play one hand over, which one would it be and why? Actually, I really didn't hit any hands that stand out as being really upsetting. I guess the last hand would be the worst. I went all-in on K/Q diamonds when the chip stacks were pretty close and got called putting me up against A/J of diamonds. But to be totally honest, I knew there wasn't really a difference in the prize and was getting very hungry after the 3.5 hour marathon table.

NewJane: What are some of the differences you see live and online play?

Shuffleup: I haven't played live before. I thought we just talked about this, NewJane. Don't you listen? (smile). I'm just hoping that my tells aren't too severe in live play. I do know most of the women I date usually say they can't tell what I'm thinking … so I'm hoping this is a good sign.

NewJane: What are your feelings about what is going on with poker now, the incredible growth? Do you see it as a positive thing?

Shuffleup: I think poker's popularity has really just begun. I think it is a positive thing. Poker players love competition so I don't know any real player that will complain because there are too many games to play. The WSOP main event had over twice the entries from the prior year … The only negative, to me, is that it will take me a little longer to wipe 'em out once I get there. (joking)

NewJane: What new poker game are you anxious to learn?

Shuffleup: I would really love to learn how to play Omaha Hi/lo better. I've entered a few tournaments and there seems to be a lot of interesting strategy involved.

NewJane: What poker books might I find in your home library?

Shuffleup: You're making two assumption, NewJane; first that I have a library, and second that I own poker books. Okay, so you're right on both counts. You might find Sklanksy Tournament Poker, Hellmuth - Play Poker Like the Pros, Doyle Brunson's Super System (of course). Also, you MIGHT find No-Limit Texas Hold'em by Daugherty and McVoy .. and if you do let me know … because I can't find it.

NewJane: If there is anything I didn't ask you that you want to talk about, now is the time!

Shuffleup: I'd just like to thank the people at PokerSchoolOnline for holding the tournament and providing a nice alternative to the many money sites out there. I really enjoy the members … especially the PalTalk and Big-Slicks crew. Hi guys! I've found many friends who are very supportive. They're always there to listen to my rants when I hit a real bad beat or made my most recent stupid play! :)

Good luck to you at the playoffs, and I look forward to meeting you in January! When I do meet you, I think you and I need to talk seriously about the tests you need to finish J

Thanks...

NewJane