Throwawaybignutsfive is one of the most enigmatic figures in online poker.
He's won more than $5 million playing low-stakes!
The British poker pro built his online roll by playing the tiniest Sit-and-Go's, shelling out $2, $3 and sometimes even a dollar at a time. His user name has become legendary as he's climbed the ranks to become one of the top .
But despite his prodigious winning ways Throwawaybignutsfive shuns the spotlight. We finally managed to coax him out of the shadows for this exclusive interview.
throwawaybignutsfive: Be aggressive, really aggressive. Even more aggressive than you think you should be.
I will give you a few examples:
- Open shove with 72o UTG in a tournament with blinds at 60/120. This play will win you money long term.
- Raise button raises to 3mm in a 1,50 mm raise pot with K4. You are 85% to win the pot right there. Even if the BB calls and the flop comes Q98, you are still 65% to win the pot. This play will win you money long term.
- Move up. If you are comfortable and making money in a game, move up! The better players you are facing the less skilled you look, so don’t be afraid of that.
PokerListings: Hi throwaway. Can you tell us a bit about your background?
throwawaybignutsfive: Sure. I'm 25 years old and have a degree from a reasonably good UK university.
I played a lot of poker at uni and was quite successful but never took it too seriously. After I finished I spent a year traveling and playing before coming home and getting a 'real job.'
I worked for a year and played poker in my spare time. Then, earlier this year, I decided to quit and punt it full time.
I bankroll myself; no backers or anything like that.
PP: You've made more than $5 million playing online poker. Of that how much would you say is profit?
TBNF: A lot. I've been playing for six years now and pretty much full-time for four.
In that time I've managed to throw away some obvious profits along the way but I would say comfortably over $2 million.
PP: How is someone with your level of skill and experience supposed to lose money?
TBNF: Too much confidence in my own ability. Trying overly complicated things that I don't fully understand.
Also bad banking and money management. I tend to have a lot of slightly underfunded projects that I spread my money thinly across.
Finally, I am just plain lazy when it come to shopping around for the best deals.
PP: You're famous for playing very low-stake SNGs. Don't you ever get bored?**
TBNF: Not really, as I find even the lowest-level games full of exploitable opportunities.
Most of the people playing these games are quite inexperienced and make lots of easy mistakes. They also seem to be more likely to get involved in tilt sessions compared to higher stakes players.
It makes for very fun and profitable games, at least from my point of view.
"I find even the lowest-level games full of exploitable opportunities."
PP: Exploiting the extremes of a strategy seems to be a big part of your game. Like opening for 8BBs or more UTG in these $2 tournaments.**
New Live Casinos to Try Out in 2023 - YoYo Casino Takes the Lead!TBNF: Yes, I find that most of my opponents are far too tight and fail to adjust to my play.
They will sit there and wait for premium hands and then get angry when they don't receive aces.
Open shoving GJ, 7J, 56s etc. is a play that drives a lot of people crazy. For some reason people just will not look up the basic math behind the play.
When people get upset and stop thinking logically and start reacting emotionally, that is when I make my money.
PP: There are a lot of pros who talk about "confidence" and "respect" when discussing how to defend against players like you. What do you make of that?**
TBNF: I think it is all complete and utter crap. If you limp along on the sidelines waiting to see what 'good' players do and why, you will NEVER be a good player yourself.
online casino providersThinking for yourself is perhaps the most important skill you can learn. Just because polaris does something does not mean you have to. Find out whether the play is +EV or -EV and do what is right for you.
PP: The idea of balancing your range is another thing that seems extremely important to a lot of high-stakes players. You rarely seem balanced, intentionally. Why is that?**
TBNF: Balancing your range can be a very powerful tool at the higher stakes but in these tiny games, where everyone is relatively inexperienced, it doesn't matter anywhere near as much.
Yes, sometimes I will open shove with 72o, but I sure as hell won't be doing it with AA, KK, QQ and AK. Does that matter? No, because nobody is looking for that in these games.
People are looking for it because they know how high the EV of an 8BB push with 72o is. If they remove that play then yes, you should be balanced.
But guess what? Removing that play from your range will show such a small decrease in EV that it isn't even worth considering.
Find out which plays are +EV and which aren't and ignore all of these distractions.
PP: Do you ever get upset when someone checks back your K-4 offsuit on the river?**
TBNF: Nope. Everyone is playing to maximize their winnings, not to make them look good to their peers.
If making your oppoents look stupid at the cost of $2 sng earnings is important to you, then you probably have bigger problems that need addressing.
PP: Are the players really that different nowadays compared to a few years ago?**
Free Green Machine Slots to Play Online (and One Real One!)TBNF: Not really, although the good ones are definitely better. But the bad news is that the bad players haven't gotten any better.
There are still plenty of fish out there and, anecdotally at least, the number of new ones seems much the same. So overall I don't see much change.
PP: Have you tried moving up in stake? It would seem like a relatively small adjustment in strategy could make you millions more.**
TBNF: Believe me, I have tried many times. The problem is that the games do not scale up.
Sure, you might only be playing with 10 big blinds rather than two but the level of opposition improves dramatically. Also, variations and bad luck start to become a larger factor.
Moving from $2 tournaments to $22 tournaments is not just a case of multiplying your expected value by 11. But sticking to the games I understand, I have had great success.
PP: Do you think your results would hold up if you had to play nose-to-nose with people instead of sitting in your underwear?
TBNF: Absolutely. Poker is poker. People make the same types of mistakes whether they are sitting alone at their computer or seated at a live table.
Away from the tables, throwawaybignutsfive is an adventure seeker. He's been skydiving nine times, bungee jumped out of a helicopter and went base jumping in New Zealand (which he doesn't recommend).
PP: Live poker then?**
TBNF: I have played very little live poker but I would certainly be interested in playing some mid- or even lower-stakes tournaments.
Some of the -- I mean, who wouldn't want to play for that kind of money?!
PP: What about Six Plus Holdem?, which the Swedes have introduced to absolutely destroy all the old timers?**
TBNF: Ha, yeah I have heard it is ridiculous. I am actually going to Norway next week. Who knows, I may just have to seek out some Anaconda action ...
PP: Okay, here is one for our German readers: How do you beat Banko?**
TBNF: Haha, well I have played it once or twice and had modest success. My advice would be similar to tournaments. Be very aggressive early on.
Most Germans seem to be quite tight, especially pre-flop, possibly due to their experience playing Banko. This makes the pots small and allows you to squeeze occasionally and make a lot of money.
Later on, when Banko sets in, don't get dragged down! That is the time to pack in to find better odds elsewhere.
PP: Any tips for our beginners out there?**
TBNF: Read a book. Watch replay poker. And above all think, think, think.
Never accept any advice at face value. Try to find out whether what you are being told is true and whether it is right for you.
Oh, and be AGGRESSIVE!
