Final-Table Takedown -- Keven Stammen

Keven “Stamdogg” Stammen, 24, is an online poker veteran who has been playing professionally since turning 18. He has cashed for more than $2 million in online tournaments. For the last three years, he has been traveling the live-tournament circuit.

Event 2009 World Series of Poker, event No. 13, $2,500 no-limit hold’em
Players in the Event: 1,008
First Prize: $506,786
Buy-in: $2,500
Finish: First

Hand No. 1
Stacks: Keven Stammen – 1,300,000 Gregg Merkow – 800,000
Blinds: 12,000-24,000
Antes: 3,000
Players at the Table: 9

Key Concepts: Player-dependent reads; taking advantage of the image that you’ve developed at the table.

Craig Tapscott: You came to the final table third in chips. What’s the plan?
Keven Stammen: If the table was playing soft and everyone was folding, I planned on doing a ton of raising. If the table was crazy and getting opened and three-bet every pot, I probably would just sit around and fold; that is, unless the player going crazy was awful, and then I may just go after him. If I made the final six, the plan was to start turning up the heat, because there were only a few players at the table who had played for big money before. I assumed that they would be playing somewhat scared.

Stammen raises to 61,000 with the 10♦ 10♥. Merkow calls from the hijack position.

Flop: 5 2 2 (pot: 185,000)

CT: Did you have a read on Merkow?

KS: The information I had on this guy was that he’s not afraid to put all of his chips in. I decided to lead my 10-10, because other than this guy having 5-5 here, there’s no chance that I’m beat. He is not the type of player who would flat [flat-call] with anything that beats 10-10 preflop.

Stammen bets 100,000.

CT: How did you think he would react to this bet?

KS: I hoped he would try putting on a move, or had a hand like I thought he did: 3-3 to 9-9. I had been playing a ton of pots, so he definitely didn’t have to believe that I had something.

Merkow raises to 300,000.

CT: The plan worked; so far, so good.

KS: Yes. And before he had pushed his chips out there, I announced, “I’m all in.” And he said, “Ahhhh … I gotta call.”

Stammen moves all in. Merkow calls and flips over the 7 7.

Turn: 10 (pot: 1,657,000)
River: 9 (pot: 1,657,000)
Stammen wins the pot of 1,657,000.

CT: Put yourself in Merkow’s shoes. Did he have to make this call after he decided to raise you and you instantly shoved? He’s not beating much more than a bluff.

KS: I had been playing pretty aggressively, but I don’t know if I had been playing so aggressively that I would be shoving with worse than 7-7 there.

Hand No. 2
Stacks: Keven Stammen – 2,100,000 Bahado Ahmadi – 2,500,000
Blinds: 15,000-30,000
Antes: 4,000
Players Remaining: 5

Key Concepts: Tuning in to a player’s emotional barometer; thin value-betting; bet-sizing.

KS: Ahmadi is a good young player. I hadn’t played with him much up to this point, but I know that he plays a bit online. I know some of the online guys he lived with, and they’re pretty good, so I assumed that he was a good player and probably wasn’t too scared. But when this hand came up, he was in the process of losing his chip stack. He had been up to around 3,400,000 an orbit or two before this hand happened. I could tell that he was definitely on tilt a little.

Ahmadi raises to 77,000 from under the gun. Stammen calls from the big blind with the 9 5.

CT: Share your thinking with us in this spot. A lot of novices would call you a donk or a madman for this call from the big blind, but you obviously had a method behind the madness.

KS: The main reason I defended here was that I knew he was somewhat on tilt. He had been losing lots of pots, and also had lost the chip lead. And the other reason was how deep-stacked we were at this point.

Flop: 9 5 3 (pot: 189,000)
Stammen checks.

KS: I decided to check to see what he would do, although I was 90 percent sure that he would bet almost every flop, because he’s a good player and would continuation-bet, as he should. I still thought he was on tilt and just wanted to scoop a pot to get back on the right track.

Ahmadi bets 110,000. Stammen calls.

KS: I just called because I wasn’t all that convinced that he had anything yet. If that was the case, he wouldn’t call a check-raise. So, I called, hoping that he would turn a pair — some sort of big ace or Broadway card. I’m check-calling the flop with the intention of check-raising the turn, as long as it isn’t a 3. I’m very aware that he’s capable of firing two bullets with air, also.

Turn: A (pot: 409,000)
Stammen checks. Ahmadi bets 175,000.

CT: Bingo!

KS: I thought this was very good, that he had an ace.

Stammen raises to 600,000. Ahmadi calls.

CT: Any other possibilities within his hand range after this call?

KS: Well, I didn’t think he would have a flush draw here, given that he’s a talented player — even though, once again, I knew that he was definitely on tilt. But I didn’t think he would snap-call with a flush draw and with no cognizance of the overall situation at a World Series final table with five people left.

River: 4 (pot: 1,609,000)

CT: Scare card?

KS: (Laughing) That river card was somewhat scary, as it brought the flush and four to a straight. But I didn’t think he had a deuce in his range after everything that had gone down the way that it had so far. So, I decided to lead really thin to get a call from a big ace. He knew that I was definitely capable of bluffing in this spot.

Stammen bets 600,000.

CT: Why that particular bet-sizing?

KS: By betting 600,000, the same amount that I check-raised on the turn, I might just entice a call out of him.

Ahmadi calls, and then mucks his hand when Stammen reveals his flopped two pair.
Stammen wins the pot of 2,809,000.

CT: That was crazy.

KS: He later told me that he had 10-10. If I had known that he was that strong, I guess I probably would have check-raised the flop. Oh well, I do enjoy playing hands as awkwardly as possible for fun.

CT: Your primary experience and success has been online. How did you approach this final table compared to some of the bigger online events you’ve won?

KS: I feel more comfortable playing live as opposed to online.

CT: Really. Winning more than $2 million online seems pretty damn comfortable.

KS: When I play live, I seem to pay more attention. And I’ve had experience in spots like this for big money in the past. I was prepared to get ninth as well as first, so that mindset probably can’t hurt.