Heads Up With Matt Graham

A Big Hand for the World Series of Poker $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha World Championship Winner

Matt Graham, a 25-year-old poker pro, won his second World Series of Poker bracelet and $670,000 in the 2009 $10,000 pot-limit Omaha world championship event after overcoming a 13-1 chip disadvantage when heads up. To win his first bracelet in the 2008 $1,500 limit hold’em shootout event, he had to overcome an 8-1 chip disadvantage when heads up. Mainly a no-limit hold’em player, Graham had limited pot-limit Omaha experience, but he learned quickly on the way to his win.

Kristy Arnett: You said that a couple of people called your all-in bet with top two pair when you had top set. Is that one of the mistakes that beginning PLO [pot-limit Omaha] players make, overvaluing hands without redraws?

Matt Graham: Well, later on in the tournament, if you flop top two pair, you are probably getting it in unless it’s a coordinated board, because you aren’t very deep, but early on, it’s pretty ridiculous to get it in with two pair, I’m pretty sure.

KA: When you are playing in a PLO tournament and have a strong hand like top two pair, but you don’t have a redraw with it, is it ever right to just wait to see a safe card peel off?

MG: I think it depends on the stack sizes. There are awkward stack sizes with which you don’t want to raise and get called, or raise and get it in. It definitely depends on the player and his stack.

KA: You arrived at the final table as the chip leader, and I know that you won a big hand with two tables remaining. Can you tell me about that hand?
MG: Yes. I had about 450,000 and Matt Vengrin had 420,000. He limped in from under the gun …

KA: Well, first of all, is limping in a play that people should be making? The blinds are pretty big.

MG: It depends on stack sizes. Sometimes, with certain hands, players will limp in if their stack doesn’t allow them to raise and call a three-bet. If it is too much of their stack to call a three-bet, sometimes they might be better off limping. That way, they know they can call a raise and see a flop with a good drawing hand.

KA: So, is that what you put him on, a good drawing hand?

MG: Yeah, I did. So, I raised with A-A-2-2 single-suited, and he called, which was expected. The flop came 8-6-3 rainbow. I led out for 60 percent of the pot, expecting him to fold, but he potted. We counted it out because I wanted to see how much he had behind, since I’d essentially be calling all in. I wanted to see the price. I was getting a little worse than 2-to-1 to call. I really didn’t know what to do. He’d been playing really solid poker, and we’re pretty good friends. I expected him to have something good. My inexperience came into play here, because I really didn’t know what to do. I looked at my stack, and if I folded, I would have 280,000. I thought that would be too demoralizing, because I’d been up to 600,000 or 700,000 before that and had lost some pots. If I folded here with my 280,000, I didn’t know how well I was going to be able to play or what my chances were going to be to win the tournament or make the final table, so I decided to gamble. He had K-J-10-9. I was a huge favorite, which is always great to see.

KA: So, that pot gave you confidence going to the final table, right?

MG: Yep, and a lot of chips [laughing].