Capture the Flag: Where Top Cash-Game Pros Talk Strategy

Steve Sung cut his poker teeth in brick-and-mortar casinos in Southern California, but at that point in his life, he had his sights set on college, and he viewed the game as a hobby. Fast-forward six years and Sung, known on PokerStars as "MuGGyLiCiOuS" and on Full Tilt as "SteveSung," is one of the most threatening cash-game players around. This past July, Sung had one of the biggest cash-game wins in online poker history when he cleared $818,000 in only 24 hours. Earning more than $34,000 per hour, even if it's not every day, is certainly not bad for a college dropout.

Lizzy Harrison: When you walk into a poker room, how do you select the game to play?

Steve Sung: I choose the games I play based on the players who are in them. The reason that I play poker is to win money, and I want to maximize my profits when I play. If there are two juicy players in a game, I want to be in it, even if it is not my best game. The other side of this is that I might choose not to sit at a table, even if it's my best game, if it is full of tight players.

LH: What is your best game, and why are you so good at it?

SS: I actually have no idea what my best game is right now [laughing]. My favorite game, though, is triple-draw, because it is a lot of fun to be able to draw cards. I really like squeezing the cards.

LH: Do you have a least-favorite game?

SS: My least-favorite game is probably limit hold'em, because it is boring to get only two cards. Another game that I really don't like to play is stud, especially in a full game. I am actually a pretty good heads-up stud player, but I still think that it is a really boring game.

LH: What makes you a good heads-up stud player?

SS: I am very aggressive and I know when to make moves. When I have a good hand, I know how to get paid off. That is very important, especially when you are playing heads up.

LH: When you first started playing cash games, what games and stakes did you play?

SS: I first played $1-$5 spread-limit stud at the Morongo Casino in California.

LH: Were you a winning player?

SS: Absolutely not; I just lost money at first. When I first started, and I was a losing player, I saw a lot of hands because I was there only to have fun. Then I started losing so much money that I realized I had to do something about it. I talked to my friends, and they told me what they thought I should do, but I still lost. At that point, I realized that my friends also were bad players [laughing].

LH: What tweaks did you make to your game as you improved?

SS: Playing tight was the main thing, especially in ring games. I played way too many hands at the beginning.

LH: What stakes do you currently play on a day-to-day basis?

SS: I pretty much play the biggest games. I usually play $2,000-$4,000 H.O.R.S.E. and Omaha eight-or-better. I also play the
$1,000-$2,000 H.O.R.S.E. game and $200-$400 PLO [pot-limit Omaha]. This is all on Full Tilt. I would say that $1,000-$2,000 H.O.R.S.E. is definitely the game that I am most comfortable playing.

LH: Have you played bigger than that?

SS: I have played $3,000-$6,000 and $4,000-$8,000. That was in Bobby's Room at Bellagio.

LH: How did you do there?

SS: I won, but I realize that was only a couple of sessions.

LH: How should a player determine when he is ready to move up in stakes?

SS: It is all about bankroll management. If you have $100,000 in your bankroll, you do not want to sit down in a $4,000-$8,000 game with all of your money in one rack of chips. If you have $100,000, you should play $40-$80 or maybe $100-$200, but no bigger than that. You never want to put more than 5 percent of your bankroll down at one time.

LH: If you lose your first buy-in, do you usually put more money on the table?

SS: It really depends on the table and, ultimately, how you are feeling. If you are on tilt, you usually should leave. However, if you are on tilt and decide to stay, you could win your money back faster [laughing]. It does go both ways if you play fast [laughing].

LH: What is the most common mistake that you see inexperienced cash-game players making?

SS: They play too many hands, like I did at first. Another thing that I have noticed is that a lot of successful tournament players, especially those who are very aggressive, tend to try to make too many moves in cash games. In no-limit [hold'em] cash games, where everyone is deep-stacked, you can't try to win every pot. Players like that do not seem to realize that the blinds are not going up.

LH: What skills are more important in cash games than they are in tournaments?

SS: Cash games take more patience; you have to look at them as a grind. You can't win in a cash game if you don't have patience.

LH: Did you ever receive any advice that changed the way you played cash games?

SS: Never let your ego get the best of you. I don't remember who told me that; I might have made it up. It is good advice, though.

LH: Which poker players have most influenced your game?

SS: Danny Wong and I started off at the same time, and we really came up together. I knew him before we even played poker; we met when we were about 14 years old. I guess he influenced me, but we really don't talk about poker that much, as he has a different style. I listen to what everyone says and try to make it my own. I'm pretty stubborn, though, so even when I am listening, I might be telling the other person that he is wrong.

LH: What characteristics do great cash-game players share?

SS: They all have good money-management skills, and they don't steam very much. Also, most of them are patient, but not all of them.

LH: How do you avoid going on tilt?

SS: I am the wrong person to ask [laughing]! I try to get up and walk around. Also, I listen to slow music that can calm me down and clear my mind. You might want to ask someone else, though.

LH: Which cash-game players do you most respect, and why?

SS: I respect a lot of the online players, like OMGClayAiken [Phil Galfond] and David Benyamine; also, the players who are always playing in the "big game" in Bobby's Room, like Doyle Brunson and the others.