Generation Next -- Jonas Molander

Swedish young gun Jonas Molander is 22-years-old and already a familiar face on the international circuit. He stepped into poker as he was turning 18 and since then hasn't looked back. Card Player spoke to him at the PokerStars.com European Poker Tour Prague where he final tabled in the side event.

Rebecca McAdam: When did you decide to play poker professionally?

Jonas Molander: It came naturally. I started playing when I had one year left in school, so the school was a bit so-so in the end, but after that it was just natural to keep on playing. Now I've started to study again, but it's been mostly poker for the last four years.

RM: How did your parents feel about it?

JM: They were a bit scared. My mom didn't like it so much. My brother thought it was cool and understood things, so that was fine.

RM: Did you play live much or was it all online until you were 21?

JM: No I always mixed it up. It's fun to get a bit of both. I actually started out live because me and my friends in school played small sit and go games. But of course when I played my first big event I was still really nervous.

RM: When you turned 21 how did you find playing in America?

JM: It was fun. Actually, I came to Vegas with no money at all, I had my card but I thought Ramzi [Jelassi] was bringing some live cash and he was coming one week after me ... So, I played one tournament the first day and I won it - my first tournament in Vegas ever, so it was good. I could afford to play more then.

RM: What kind of events do you normally play in, both online and live?

JM: When I play tournaments online they are often a bit smaller, as it's not easy to find big ones, but live - I play big events like EPT's and some small events in Stockholm. My first EPT was Dublin in season II, and since then I've been playing, not all of them, but most of them.

RM: Do you just play Texas hold'em?

JM: I can play Omaha too, but I prefer Texas.

RM: How did you start moving up the stakes?

JM: I was always careful with money, so it took a while to get up, but it just came naturally. You become a bit better and move up.

RM: What kind of stakes do you play now?

JM: Now I play 10/20 or 5/10 when I play cash games, and the tournaments are often $100 to €8k.

RM: How did your sponsorship with RedKings come about?

JM: I got the deal about a month ago or so [at time of writing] so it's really fun. I've been travelling with Ramzi for four years. We met at a Swedish club in Stockholm, and since then we just travelled around, so it's fun to have him with me.

RM: Do you help each other with your game?

JM: Yeah definitely and it's always good to have a friend with you. There are usually a lot of Swedes and a lot of friends on the trips, but if we go to somewhere like Asia, where we don't know a lot of people, it would still be fun.

RM: What about when you're on a final table together, are you still friends or what happens?

JM: I don't think we play harder against each other because I know Ramzi's good and he knows likewise, so we don't tangle too much, but a bit is always good.

RM: What other players would you respect?

JM: I think Johnny Lodden's really good, and ElkY [Bertrand Grospellier].

RM: Do you think Europeans are better than Americans then?

JM: Before they were but when they regulated online poker in the States, the American players that are left are so good, because they are like a closed community compared to Europeans. We can play everywhere and they can only play on PokerStars and FullTilt, but the players are so much better on these sites so they evolve a lot.

RM: What do you think the differences are between live and online for you?

JM: I think the standard is so much more random live, like in the 5k event you can sit with a really good player, and then at the second table they could be really bad. If you play some stakes on the Internet most of them are really good, or if they are low stakes, they are a bit worse, but it doesn't differ that much.

RM: Which do you prefer?

JM: I prefer cash games online but tournaments live.

RM: Why?

JM: Because it's more exciting to see the other hands in tournaments than it is in cash games.

RM: Do you prefer playing in Europe to America or is there no difference?

JM: We get taxed a lot if we play outside Europe, so I prefer Europe.

RM: What do you want to achieve in poker?

JM: I would be really happy if I could win an EPT, I've been close before, but I don't know, I take it as it comes.

RM: Has your game improved with all the EPT's?

JM: Yeah definitely, and a lot on the site as well.

RM: What's the most important thing you've learned so far?

JM: I've made a lot of new friends on the circuit, and have probably got to speak better English after a while. I guess I've learned a lot these past few years.