Paul Phua and Sam Trickett: Poker Tournament Strategy
This week’s Paul Phua Poker School offering sees Phua receiving a lesson in tournament play, with none other than Sam Trickett in the teacher’s seat!
As far as life stories go, they don’t come more colorful than Paul Phua’s, the billionaire businessman with a passion for poker rising through the ranks to become one of the most powerful men in Macau.
Wei Seng "Paul" Phua was born in Borneo, Malaysia back in 1964 and rose from poor beginnings through the construction industry and Kuala Lumpur backstreet gambling houses to running the world’s biggest bookmakers IBCBet.
It’s clear he moves in the highest circles, playing the nosebleed stakes in Macau along with Ivey, Dwan and a host of other big name pros – and Phua holds his own, a hard worker at the game he loves.
He had to work hard, as back in the mid-noughties he was just another rich whale, allegedly blowing millions along with business partner and fellow poker convert Richard Yong. According to English-Chinese bookmaker Tom Hall:
“Paul and Richard were the biggest whales in the world. They were losing $30 million to $100 million every year on baccarat. I said, 'Hey, you guys should try poker. You can play other players, instead of losing to the house'.”
In Brett Forrest’s incredibly detailed ESPN account of Phua’s dealings, he writes:
"They didn't know how to play. In Macau, there was no one to teach them. Phua and Yong gathered a small group of associates for regular games, these experienced gamblers teaching themselves this new game as they went along."
With 2011 and the Black Friday shockwaves which hit the poker world, the biggest pros were looking for new pastures – and Phua with Yong offered them untold riches and adventures in the Far East, not only leading to their own games improving but also offering business opportunities in the poker staking world.
Now, several years on, in tournament play, Paul Phua has over $4.5million in earnings – although every penny is from the Super High Rollers (from as far afield as London and Melbourne to Monte Carlo and Manila) taking down his first-ever tournament cash for £1million ($1,621,297) at London’s Aspers Casino in 2012 in the £100k buy-in event.
Whatever people might think of his business background and connections, his love for poker is evident, and the new Paul Phua Poker website and school is testament to his desire to explain the game at all levels to all players.
Video content interviews with Ivey, Dwan, Colman and others gives an insight into how the best players in the world think, while rules, strategy and general information fills out an increasingly popular hub for those interested in the game.
Phua is and will likely always remain one of the most interesting people ever to have graced the game of poker.
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This week’s Paul Phua Poker School offering sees Phua receiving a lesson in tournament play, with none other than Sam Trickett in the teacher’s seat!
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His relatively new website provides lots of information for poker players to improve their game and Paul Phua continues with that theme by sitting down with Phil Ivey.
If you’re desperate to find out just how to bluff an billionaire off a premium hand, watch Polk’s video and prepare to be impressed!
Paul Phua's recently launched website has a section on tips and strategy that is aimed at beginners. His latest post in that area centers on the topic of keeping your cool.
Big:A;ccording to the latest reports, the father-son duo of Paul and Darren Phua have requested that the court allow them to play poker in the casinos while awaiting trial in the case tying them
This week sees the 2nd part of Phua's chat with Dan Colman, a player ranked 3rd in lifetime tournament earnings and formerly an online beast at the highest levels.
Paul Phua gets tips on heads-up poker strategy from Dan “Jungleman” Cates in the latest of the Paul Phua Poker School video interviews with high-stakes pros.
With big names and a collosal buy in of €1,000,000 minimum, this is probably the highest stakes cash game ever televised (or streamed) anywhere ever.
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