Paul Phua and Wai Kin Yong: How To Beat Really Good Players?

I always perk up a bit when Paul Phua-related stuff pops into my inbox, the Macau high-stakes supremo offering a welcome change from stories about Doug Polk and Daniel Negreanu for one thing!

His ‘In conversation with…’ pieces are fast becoming a must-watch part of the vibrant poker podcast and video scene, and this week we see an Asian businessman introducing us to Malaysia’s newest young talent - Wai Kin Yong.

Super High Roller

Yong is one of the most successful of the new breed of Asian players, having scooped over $3million in the recent Triton series of high-rollers in the Philippine capital Manila, another favorite haunt of the nosebleed players who have sought out Macau’s infamous games.

Phua leads the fluffy-haired youngster through his early poker years and his transition from ‘winning money’ to ‘taking on the best’.

“The possibility of winning lots of money excites me,” says Yong, but he adds, “Now it’s more like a challenge to beat players that you think are really good. To be better and better.”

A Real Live Wire!

Yong’s overall story is a strange one, however, and it’s not because he looks like an ‘Asian Harry Potter'! Rather, he has never gone through the lengthy online apprenticeship which most players hone their games in! Instead, Yong is a lover of the big cash games, and that’s despite his obvious talent for the big tournament.

“I am more of an intuition guy because I don’t play online, so I don’t use any software, spreadsheets and those kinds of things. I think I am fine without it,” he tells Phua, who can relate to such an approach, coming to the game late himself from a hugely successful business career, though not one without its drama.

Phua is close friends with a who’s-who of the poker high rollers, with Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey featuring on his new PaulPhuaPoker site recently, and you can expect his ‘Player Profiles’ videos to become an integral part of his part-coaching/part-stars’ plans.

Playing with the Big Boys

Yong, for his part, is now regularly crossing swords with superstars of the game such as Daniel ‘Jungleman’ Cates, Bryn Kenney, John Juanda and Phua himself, but cites his mentor Mikael Thuritz as the biggest influence in his poker career.

“He improved my game a ton. Without him I would never be where I am now today, and I have to thank him for that!” says Yong, and with Phua there as a guiding hand as well, it’s almost a certainty that we’ll be hearing more about this young pro in the years to come.