Q: What was your experience like on the PartyPoker cruise?
Karina: My experience on the cruise was very positive. The field had a full range of players of every skill level, and it was nice to have the entire ship be poker players, because it helped keep the live games going around-the-clock. Matt Savage and Dave Lamb did an outstanding job of running the tournament, while Mike Sexton and Linda Johnson really made the effort to make everyone feel welcome. We will be going next year for sure.
Chip: My feelings about the cruise are mixed. It was very disappointing to have the chip lead after day one and not finish higher than I did (45th). But I did get to hang out all week with a bunch of great guys from the unknown poker hot spot Raleigh, North Carolina. These guys mean business, and if you don't recognize their names now, just wait. Jody, Little Joe, Chris Bell, and the eventual $1.5 million winner Maciek "The Kid" Gracz (who also won the championship event and $300,000 at the Taj Mahal in December) are a bunch of guys who love the game and are reaping the benefits. Good job, Kid!
Q: How did your families react (initially) to your choice of career, and has anything changed now that poker is "mainstream"?
Karina: My extended family has always thought I was crazy for taking off to Paris, or spending months at a time in places like Foxwoods, Connecticut, or Tunica, Mississippi. However, they now think it is very cool when they see me or Chip on TV. My cousin's fiance' has even taken up poker, and he cashed in his first brick-and-mortar casino tournament at the Four Queens. My parents, on the other hand, both have played poker for as long as I can remember, so the fact that I chose poker for a profession was not a big shock to them. Marrying a poker player, on the other hamd, did not go over quite as well, for some reason.
Chip: My family has always supported whatever I have chosen to do. Early in my poker career, my parents were ultrasupportive, both emotionally and financially, during the many rough patches in my poker development. Since poker has gone mainstream, the only change has been the response my dad gets when he tells someone that his son and daughter-in-law play professional poker. It has gone from "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that" to "Wow, have they ever met that Daniel guy from Canada?"
Q: What age do you believe is right to teach your children how to play poker?
Karina: Although it might be an impossible task, our plan is not to teach our daughter to play poker. I will enjoy spending time with her doing things away from the casinos. I personally cannot wait to teach her my true favorite hobby, shopping!
Chip: Although my feelings might change if we ever have a boy, I believe poker is not something that a growing girl needs to know about. The reasons are simple: (1) Poker might lead to strip poker in her teenage years, and I wouldn't want to have to kill the other participants. (2) Poker might lead to a poker boyfriend, and then a poker husband, and I would never wish that on someone I love. (3) My ego could not handle being the third-ranked player in my own home.
