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Location:
London, UK
Total Winnings:
$167,059
Titles:
NONE
At the tender age of 23 Years old, James Sudworth is already a familiar face on the UK poker circuit. Initially favouring the $5/$10 cash game tables at PKR he never looked back, making hundreds of thousands of dollars as the site's player base grew. Since registering at PKR in 2006, James has become representative of a new breed of fearless young online pros who are successfully transferring their games to the live arena. To this day, he remains one of the most profitable cash game regulars, despite devoting less time to the grind due to the rigours of live poker. His most notable live poker accolade is his runner-up finish in the Brighton leg of the GUKPT in January 2009 for which he earned more than £40,000.
With frequently-changing hair colours and a one-of-a-kind fashion sense, James has never been far from the limelight and was one of the first group of players to sign for Team PKR Pro back in April 2009. Since then, James has left his mark on countless episodes of PKR TV, at PKR Live and further afield, spreading PKR cheer with a warm and occasionally controversial personality that has won him both fans and detractors (in unequal measure).
What made you start playing poker?
I first started playing a ‘poker variant’ called 3-card brag. For those who have not played it in their local pub, it is a 3 card game (Instead of the usual 5 cards) in which you can choose whether you look at your cards or not! A pretty fun game played for small amounts, and fortunately for me, my introduction to ‘real’ poker online. Ever since I first opened an online poker account I have been hooked, and thankfully have evolved to become very profitable, which is always nice!
When did you know you wanted to play poker full time and that you had the ability to do it?
I thought I had the ability after about 1 month of playing, but clearly this was more of a dream than actually ‘having’ the ability. In the summer of 2006, I started to become a consistent winner, and by Winter 2006 I knew that I could do it for a living, therefore finally took the plunge on New Years Day 2007 and have been doing it ever since.
How supportive are your friends and family of your career choice? (What sacrifices have you had to make that you wouldn’t have to make if you had a regular job)
Both my friends, family, work colleagues and everyone else I told, did not think my idea of becoming a ‘professional gambler’ would be a great idea and I am sure they were all worried that I was ‘hooked’ and would eventually lose all my money as ‘no one can beat the house’… After I actually gave up my job, moved to Vegas and started earning more money in a month than they did annually, they started to take me seriously and have been supportive ever since. The only really sacrifice I have had to make playing poker instead of doing a ‘normal job’, is having inconsistent money flow. Although over the period of a year I know I will make roughly ‘x’ amount of money, over a month or so I can easily be in a deficit, which can cause a lot of stress, especially when I spend money left right and centre!
Have you ever had a regular job? (What did they involve and if you had not been a poker player what would you have done?)
I used to be a bar manager and events co-ordinator at my local golf club, and lived above work as well. I loved doing it as I am a very social guy and there is nothing more social than being ‘the guy behind a bar’ when women are drunk 
! If I had to quit poker this second, I would have no problem going straight back into the ‘Bar Scene’.
Does playing poker feel like work or do you still enjoy the buzz?
I still love to play poker, but it is a different sort of enjoyment to the feeling i used to get. When I first started playing I could not wait to get on the computer or play a live game as I loved the feeling of winning and losing money. I still really enjoy poker, but I now enjoy the feeling of what poker can provide, instead of the actual game. Don’t get me wrong, i still love playing in a really fun game and with friends, but when I am on the daily grind online, it can get pretty mundane, but i still love playing (even when incredibly bored) because of the knowledge of what I am earning at that point, and what i can do with those profits… That keeps the buzz alive!
You discovered PKR fairly early on (2006) what attracted you to PKR in the first place and why have you stayed?
I was initially introduced to PKR by a good friend who was the ‘king of PKR’ at the time, as there were very few games (as the site was very new) and the few players who did play there were far from the best players I have played and extremely profitable! At the time my friend and I played there so regularly, that we were by far the highest rakers on the entire site. Because of this, I became friendly with the staff at PKR, and the relationship between PKR.com and myself has been close ever since. I am extremely Loyal to PKR, because of the unrivalled support, extremely sociable community and great value at the tables.
What is your character emote on PKR?
It has to be /cheer… A few years ago, they had a superb emote which would only work if two players with the same language and a neutral emotion setting, ‘checked’ one after the other. Instead of each player saying ‘check’, the first player would say ‘check’ and the second player would say ‘come on, let’s do this’… I want to start a petition to bring this legendary emote back again!
Do you feel most comfortable in cash games, SNGs or MTTs?
I definitely have more of an edge in cash games than I do in MTT’s, and I very rarely play SNG’s. During my first 2 years of playing, I went through a series of changes, from a really good MTT player, to a really good Cash Gamer, then vice versa and I could never be good at both at the same time. Now I have evolved a lot so that I can happily play both MTT’s and Cash Games at the same time but I have always preferred Cash games, and as such have probably put 80% of my effort into learning how to play better cash game strategy as opposed to 20% for MTT’s.
What is your favourite poker variation?( NLTHE, Omaha for example) and why?
I started playing Texas Holdem, whilst I was learning the game and loved it. I tried playing Omaha, and I did not feel the same buzz as I did with Holdem. At the time I felt it took more skill to play Holdem, and my results definitely proved I was a much better Holdem player. Nowadays there is a lot more money to be made playing Omaha, and I should really start learning how to excel at the game but currently I am still earning decent amounts at Holdem, so I say ‘why fix what ain’t broke’!
How has Poker changed in the UK since you started playing?
I think the standard of poker player in the UK (as well as the rest of the world) has increased dramatically. When I first started playing for a living I could join any game and know there would be a maximum of 2 others who were actually winning players, but nowadays you could sit at a table and be playing with 5 other decent solid players for days without a fish joining in the fun! Another dramatic change is that there has been an influx of young players proving their worth against some of the old school names of the game. The biggest winners nowadays have a complete disregard for money, and can evolve incredibly quickly with the game. In general this quality is something that the older players lack.
Apart from the World Series of Poker what event would you like to win and why?
What is exceptionally annoying is I have come so close, with no cigar in many live tournaments which means I am still chasing my elusive first major title which means I would be happy with any first place I can get my hands on at the moment! I think I would prefer to have my first major title in a shorthanded or Heads Up tournament, but unfortunately at the moment most short handed events are always ‘side events’ not main events.
With PKR players having continued success in live tournaments what impact at the WSOP do you think you will have?
Usually my impact at WSOP events can be seen by my habit of buying Jägermeister for all of my table mates. Last year I final table bubbled the $2,500 short handed side event, and cashed in a further 2 events, which meant I cashed 3 of my 5 tournaments I played. This year I want to do even better, and i am going to be playing a lot more tournaments, and hopefully cashing for even more this year. No doubt I will still be buying the Jäger’s though
How did you feel after last year’s event and did you learn anything that will improve your chances this year?
Last year’s Main Event was a disappointment for me. I was running over the first table I played at, but lost a couple of significant flips vs relative short/half stacks and also in both 3 bet pots preflop when I held high overpairs, I got cracked by a flopped set which was pretty horrible. In the end I got my last 40xBb’s allin on another flip and lost and went to the rail just before the end of day 1. I was still pleased with how I played, and the only thing I have learnt is that with the big stacks and long blind levels, I do not have to gamble as much as I usually do early on, and should sit back and risk my tournament life a lot less.
How do you train for a Major tournament like the World Series?
My training regime is pretty hardcore, and not for the fainthearted. I know some famous names run every morning and drink nothing but water and protein shakes to keep the mind alert. I prefer to opt for the ‘dog of hair’ routine, knocking back a couple of drinks before hitting the tables and then continuing a gradual flow. I am not advocating getting really drunk, but a couple of drinks can really help take the edge off the boredom and stops me playing too many hands. I also tend to let my gut tell me what to do rather than my brain, which works really well for me.
How much time do you spend analysing hand histories and potential leaks in your game?
I much prefer using my own mind to make decisions in certain situations, as I have been in every situation you could ever put me in hundreds of times. I always track my hands, and use poker Tracker to collate my database, and usually go through my general stats and leak bust once a month, but if I am running bad and/or losing I will be leak busting on a daily basis to find out why I am not winning and attempt to plug any leaks I find.
Do you use poker training websites?
I have subscriptions to Cardrunners, but rarely frequent the site. I have just started using Blufire Poker which although they do not have the same number of videos that Cardrunners offer, Bluefire Poker definitely concentrates on producing much higher quality videos, which can really help. Once again I tend to watch training videos when I am on a bad run, to get my confidence back up.
How did PKR approach you to be in their Pro Team?
I have always been very close to all of PKR, so when they had the Idea of Team PKR they told me pretty soon after that they wanted me in the team. It was a great feeling, and a big step forward in my career. I love every minute!
How does it feel to be in the PKR Hall of Fame so early in your poker career? Do you feel more pressure when you play?
I wouldn’t say I have any more pressure on me than being in Team PKR in general, but being put in the hall of fame is really cool. It cements my name in PKR’s history forever which is awesome, and now all I have to do is keep proving that it was the correct decision, which I intend to do!
Who are your poker role models?
I only really have respect for those players who I have played in person. It is easy to say ‘wow that guy has earned $2,000,000 in tournament earnings, he must be great’ just because you have seen him get lucky in a couple of tournaments, it is completely different for them to actually be a great player. Some of the best payers I know have had very few major results because of bad luck at the wrong time. I also respect players who actually have fun at the tables, and do not take things too seriously, or abuse other people. I really think Praz Bansi is one of the best tournament players in the world, and he is definitely going to be even more successful than he already is!
Have these changed as your game has changed?
I think the players I believed to be really good in the past, were those I had seen on TV, or those promoted very well. I think I just respected them for their name, rather than their games. As I have played more and more, and played against all of these players I once viewed as ‘mini celebrities’, I have changed my opinions of them. Some of them are still as good as I thought, but most of them are really not all that great. You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
Are there any up and coming players you think will be big names within the next couple of years?
There are quite a few guys who have not had the luck to bink huge live tournaments, when far worse players have. It is very hard to predict who is going to do really well for themselves, some players I thought were the best players i had ever played, have stopped playing as they have lost all their money by bad bankroll management, and there are some players who i have played who are/were awful who somehow have managed to win serious amounts of money consistently! I think PKR Pro ‘Beyne’ is going to become a huge name soon, as he has such a lively personality and people really underestimate his game.
More rakeback interviews coming soon!
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