NewJane: First, let me congratulate you on your fine finish in the PSO Live Tour event at the WSOP, where you finished 100 out of a field of 831 players, just 19 spots from the money. You are now qualified for the PSO Live Tour Final Event in January, 2005.Tell us a little about yourself. Where you live, etc. Any interesting facts about your life would be appreciated!

ROCKDOC: My name is Ken Bryce. I am a 48 y/o native Texan. I live in Rockwall (a suburb of Dallas) with my lovely wife, Carol, and 3 great children: Justin, Travis (tbird25), and Ashley. I started a career as a research chemist/ chemical engineer at Dow chemical. After 3 years of that stuff (sheer boredom punctuated by episodes of utter dullness), I went to medical school, residency, and fellowship. I am now the senior partner of one of the busiest surgical groups in Dallas. I have always been a fan of electric guitar (play a little bit myself), and believe that every surgical procedure can be paired with a musical offering (much like food and wine pairings) to heighten the enjoyment of the surgical experience (for me, of course - the patient is asleep). Pink Floyd goes best with a colostomy, Stevie Ray Vaughn for a gallbladder. A hernia? Clapton, of course. A smooth Led Zep for a bypass. Early on I got the nickname, Rock Doc, and it has kind of stuck.

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.

ROCKDOC: Last year I took the family to Vegas. One morning while my wife was getting ready for the day, I wandered down to the casino to play a little blackjack. I couldn't find an empty $5 table and started back upstairs when I walked by the poker room. They were getting ready to start a $25 buy-in hold-em tourney and I thought "what the heck," and played. While we were waiting to start, one of the guys explained the rules and told me to play any pair and any two cards with a blackjack value of 20 or 21. As soon as the tourney started, I knew that I had found a new pastime. I had a blast, and got very lucky, placing 4th out of 30. Before leaving Vegas, I bought Sklansky's book and Jones' book and started to read them.

Unfortunately there is no place to play tourneys in Dallas (legally, anyway), and none of my buds were interested soooo…. I was forced to go back to Vegas and play again. I arrived in Vegas on Wed. afternoon and left Sunday morning. While there I played in 10 tourney (most were 30 player/2 hr affairs). I busted out of the first one in 15 minutes and in 30 minutes in the second. It took a while, but I finally got the hang of it. Made the final table on the 6th and 7th. At the 8th tourney (Binion's NLH - 100 entrants) I made the final and placed 6. I moneyed in the last 2 as well.

Bought some more books (Cloutier's, Ciaffone's, and Warren's) and headed back to Big-D. While in Vegas I heard a couple of guys discussing web sites, and PSO came up. It sounded like a great concept, so I joined. Over time some of my bud's got interested in playing as well. Now we have a poker night every other week or so where 20 - 25 of us get together for NLH tourneys.

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

ROCKDOC: I joined in November 2003.

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

ROCKDOC: I sat down and did not recognize anyone at my table. However, at the table to my left is Mel Judah and Ted Forrest. To my right is Vince Burgio. Two tables over is Johnny Chan. Suddenly there are TV lights and hub-bub two tables the other way - I look and it is Moneymaker, complete with signature sunglasses and a masseuse.

We start with a $1500 stack and $25/$25 blinds. 60-minute levels. For the first level I am going to play very tight (AA and KK only), get my B&M tourney legs under me, not do anything stupid, and try to see how everyone else is playing. At 30 hands an hour I think at the very worse I will be down $150 blind money if I never play a hand. Well we start with 9 players and on the third hand the guy to my right busts out (AA over KK), which leaves us 8 handed. Everyone is playing pretty tight and the hands go pretty quickly. I play a couple of hands from the blinds, winning and losing a small pot. However, after 60 minutes I look at my stack and I'm down $300!!! Wow, where did it go!? I sat there and lost 20% of my stack without even trying!!! So much for the "bide one's time" strategy. Time to play!

I get AKs just a few hands later and raise from MP. The button and BB (2X my stack) calls. Flop comes Q22 and BB goes all in. I fold. I win a couple of small pots, betting in late position on ragged flops, but lose a third of my stack with JJ. Board shows JcAcQh4c. River is Td and player who has me covered goes all in. With a possible straight and possible flush out, I reluctantly fold. He flashes Kc. Now I am down to $700 and in my minds eye I see every other PSO'er playing today with stacks so big they can't see over them. I don't want to be the first PSO'er eliminated, so I decide to become a rock. I get no group one hands for the next hour, but win a 2K pot with a set of 4's from the BB.

They break our table, and I take my whopping $800 (didn't need a rack) to my new table. I don't recognize any faces, but I will find out later that the guy across from me is John Womack (who ultimately finishes in 10th place). To my immediate right is Kent Washington (who will place 3rd). Now this is a serious table. Every hand, it seems, is getting raised pre-flop. I get AA and raise to 3X BB and everyone folds. Same with KK. I'm thinking that I must have tells pouring off me, cause whenever I get in the pot, everyone is getting out. Then it dawns on me - duh- I'm a rock and they know it. So a little bit later I get AQs in LP and call a MP limper. Both blinds stay in, and I double my stack with two pair when a Q hits the flop and an A hits the river.

Then Debonair comes over to the table and tells me I am the last PSO'er in. I can't believe it, as Pspitalnic has 10X my number of chips, but takes a bad beat when his KK loses to JJ. YEAAAAA! I'm going to Tunica! Call the wife, call the kids, and call my nurse. Then I look down and see AKs. Short stack across the table goes all in and I call. He has 88 and BANG, he flops a set and I lose half my stack. I play a bunch of small hands, then the table gets moved en bloc upstairs.

Once upstairs I steal a few blinds, go all in with a set of tens, and bluff a busted flush. I'm up to $5000, but still a short stack. Then Mr. Washington gives a clinic on pushing with a big stack. It seems like he raises every hand. And doggone it, when someone calls him, he always has a hand! I'm not getting any cards. Every time I thought about calling he raises. Every hand I play I lose. Now with only $1,500 left I'm looking for a hand on which to make a stand to try to double up. But all I'm getting is 62o, 74o, etc.

The blinds are now $150/$300 with a $50 ante. I look down and see that all I have left is a $500 chip and I'm the big blind. A MP calls, and the button raises all in. I look down and see T9 offsuit, and decide to strike fear in the rest of the table by pushing my 1 red and 2 green chips all in. The MP folds, and the button shows KK. As the flop comes I hear a familiar British voice and out of the corner of my eye I see Mark filming what I am sure is my exit from the game at 149-player left. But I draw a straight on the turn! I'm up to a whopping $1,700! I take a breath and realize for the first time that a bad beat is in the eye of the beholder.

I look at the next hand and find KK. I push all in and 2 players don't believe me. Now I'm up to $5,750. I then look down at AA and push in again. Now I'm at $12,500. I flop a set of 6's and I'm over $15,000 at the dinner break.

We start up after dinner and almost immediately they bust our table. I now set down at a table with Kathy Liebert and Joe Awata (who will place 2nd). Well I am tired of typing and I know you are tired of reading, so suffice it to say that I lose more hands than I win. The blinds are $300/$600 but will be $400/$800 when they get to me and I have $3,000 left. I look at AKo and push all in. Awata calls from the big blind and turns over T9s. My stomach drops as two 9's come on the flop and I am out. I stand up and look at the clock. The "Players" number clicks from 100 to 99. I busted 19 spots short of the money.

NewJane: What did you feel was your strength / weakness in the tournament?

ROCKDOC: No strengths, just glaring weaknesses.

NewJane: If you could play one hand over, which one would it be and why?

ROCKDOC: Can I play the whole tournament over? Please!!!???

NewJane: What are some of the differences you noticed between live casino play and poker online?

ROCKDOC: Casino play seemed much slower. However it is much more emotive than Internet play. Also there are no phones, beepers, journals, or nurses to distract you.

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

ROCKDOC: I think the growth is phenomenal. It would be a very positive thing for me if a poker room pops up a little closer to Dallas.

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

ROCKDOC: I am still trying to learn hold'em. If I ever get it down, then I would like to tackle Omaha.

NewJane: Anything I didn't ask you that you want to say now is the time!

ROCKDOC: It was a pleasure to meet all the PSO'ers at the WSOP. Debonair, thank you for listening to a 5-minute rant during one of the breaks. Mark, it was a pleasure to meet the Dean of Poker School. Thanks for the advice and words of encouragement. I have learned so much from the lessons, the forum, and playing at PSO. Hope to see a bunch of ya'll in Tunica in January.

NewJane: ROCKDOC, thanks for taking the time to visit with me, and good luck in Tunica in January!!