Capture the Flag: Steve Billirakis

Steve Billirakis became a known, feared player in the game long before turning 21, under the screen name “mrsmokey1” online. Shortly thereafter, he won a World Series of Poker event, making him the youngest bracelet winner in history. Since then, he’s continued making major live-tournament cashes, but his main source of income is dominating high-stakes cash games. These days, Billirakis can be found playing anything from $400-$800 mixed games to $100-$200 pot-limit Omaha or no-limit hold’em.

Kristy Arnett: You mentioned that when you first started playing cash games, you lost. Were you ever close to quitting?

Steve Billirakis: No, I was never close to quitting. I just had to start playing tighter. Whenever you make a mistake, or lose money, you need to sit there and think about the hand, and why you lost, and what you should have done differently. Also, watch the players who win in the game you are playing. I just tried to copycat what the winners were doing.

KA: What was the biggest thing you saw the winning players doing that you weren’t when you first started?

SB: They were raising and reraising and being aggressive in certain spots in which I would usually just call.

KA: What kind of buy-in rule would you suggest beginning cash-game players use when determining when they should move up in stakes?

SB: I think a good rule is having 50 buy-ins for a certain limit before moving up.

KA: Is that what you used?

SB: No, that’s not how I did it [laughing]. I took a lot of shots. Let’s say that I was playing $1-$2; in a really good week, I could make $5,000, but if I was having a good day and made like $2,000, I would close a couple of $1-$2 tables and jump into a $5-$10 game with that money. So, I would be playing one $5-$10 table and three $1-$2 tables, taking a shot at the next limit. I got to see how far behind I was and how good the players actually were in the higher limit. If I wasn’t winning in the $5-$10 game, I’d still be playing $1-$2 and making the money back. Then, if I did well at $5-$10, I would jump up again. Every time I had a good day, I would take a shot.

KA: What was the biggest difference you found between the $5-$10 and $1-$2 games?

SB: The game is a lot tighter. The players aren’t as weak. In $1-$2, you can play a super-aggressive maniac style and run over the game. In $5-$10, the players won’t take it. They will shove it right back in your face.

KA: What advice would you give a player who is about to move up in stakes?

SB: I would just play tight at first to get a really good feel for the game. Spot the one or two weak players at the table and go after them, and stay away from the good players. Mix it up, and play pots with the guys who are losing rather than with the guys who are killing the game. You don’t want to get in their way, especially if you are new. You are going to get less respect.

KA: You said to go after the one or two weak players at the table. Would you do that by isolating them with a raise preflop?

SB: Exactly; you want to get them heads up. A lot of times, weak players will limp in, so you want to raise behind them like four or five times the big blind to get everyone else out of the pot. You want to get it heads up with the weak player with a wider range than normal. Let’s say that you have J-10 and a weak player limps. If you have position on him, you’re going to raise, probably continuation-bet, and make him fold. But if “Durrrr” [Tom Dwan] is in the game, you don’t want to be playing J-10 against him, because he’s just going to three-barrel your face off, and you’ll never know where you’re at. Against a weak player, if you flop top pair and he is calling your bets, your hand is likely good and you don’t have to worry about him making a play at you. Against a good player, your hand might be good, but you have to worry about him check-raising the turn on a bluff. Aggressive players will check-raise you on a draw, putting you in tough spots, but a fish will just check-call you on the turn, and see if he hits his card. If he misses, he’ll just check-fold the river.

KA: Do you think that successful high-stakes cash-game players have a unique talent that separates them from other players, or do you think anyone can do it with enough hard work?

SB: I think anyone can do it with hard work. You have to keep playing, and eventually you’ll find out what works and what doesn’t work. You just have to maintain your focus enough not to go on tilt. Anyone can recognize and learn from their mistakes. As long as you do that, I think you can do it. It’s like basketball. If you shoot a million free throws, you’re going to become a good free-throw shooter. If you play a million hands, you’re going to see all of the situations, and eventually you’re going to know what to do in those situations.

KA: What roadblocks can cash-game players expect when moving up the ranks?

SB: I think you create your own roadblocks by moving up too fast. There doesn’t have to be any roadblocks if you just stick to the 50 buy-in rule, grind, and play tight-aggressive. You’re going to make money. You might not be satisfied with how fast you are making progress; for example, I was never satisfied with making just a little money at a time. It was boring to me, so I took shots, and ran into roadblocks because of it. It’s up to you whether you want to take chances or be a grinder. I’ve lost 20 percent of my roll [bankroll] in one day at least 10 different times.

KA: For beginning cash-game players, how important is table image?

SB: It’s really important. If you’re a beginner, you should always have a tight table image, because you don’t want people thinking you are crazy, and you don’t want people coming after you. If everyone folds every time you bet, you’re going to make money.

KA: What is the biggest mistake that you see beginning cash-game players making?

SB: Misplaying their stack sizes. With a smaller stack, they often call raises with small pairs, trying to hit a set. You shouldn’t be set-mining every single time, because, first of all, you hit a set only one out of every eight times, and the one time that you do, you’re just not going to get paid off by good players every time. So, they call with small pairs and fold if they miss, and it becomes obvious when they hit the flop. Even players with aces fold, so they’re not making money in the long run. They are calling and losing seven times out of eight, and the one time out of eight that they hit a set, they can’t make money and make up for it. Those are the guys who sit there and complain that they run so bad.

KA: What does it take to be a high-stakes cash-game winner?

SB: You have to be fearless to play big-stakes no-limit hold’em. Also, the best players make nearly no mistakes. They’ve seen every situation a ton of times, and they go with their reads and don’t second-guess themselves.