WSOP Main Event Winner an Online Poker Player

Scott Blumstein surprised plenty of people by winning the World Series of Poker’s Main Event. It’s the richest tournament in the poker room and netted Blumstein a nice $8.1 million. Not bad for somebody who says they got their start playing poker online. While he wasn’t the only online player to do well, Blumstein was one of the few who could speak about it. Since he comes from New Jersey – where he can play legally online – he was more open than several others.

“Two weeks ago, I was just a New Jersey online grinder, and nothing’s really changed,” he told reporters. “The best way to get better at anything is through repetition and practice. “When you play online in New Jersey, it’s hard for any live pro to see even close to the amount of hands I’ve probably seen in the last two years.”

Those who were more coy with their answers were players who play online poker in games the government doesn’t consider legal. But those games also allow players to play opponents from all over the globe. That’s a definite advantage when playing against the best players in the world.

Blumstein isn’t the first WSOP winner to come from the virtual world. Chris Moneymaker was one of the first and one of the most well-known. It’s getting harder for the well-known pros to do well in the large tournaments. That’s because the new breed of players coming from the online world are good, solid players. They’ve played thousands of hands and have improved their games against good players. But their biggest advantage is a solid math foundation and understanding of the odds.

Blumstein said he watched plenty of poker on TV and would always ask players he felt were better than him for advice. But nothing has helped as much as playing online.