Ryan Tepen: Bar Poker Player Runs Good To Win Championship

In the world of poker, most young players get their start with online poker, playing millions of hands and running myriad simulations. However, this Missouri native was introduced to poker in an atypical fashion: bar poker.

Often winning the nightly event’s top prize of $20 in drinks, Tepen felt that he was a solid poker player. However, after the University of Missouri graduate met three-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Dutch Boyd, his brother, and the rest of “The Crew” at a charity function, Tepen realized just how much he needed to improve to become a really good player. Over the years, he was mentored by other poker pros including Bryan Devonshire and Jake Bazeley, constantly improving his game years after year.

After working hard on his game for almost a decade, Tepen capped off the most successful year of his poker career last month by capturing the inaugural RunGood Cup Championship. Besting 403 entries, the former University of Missouri football player (he was a long snapper) earned $54,687 by winning the event, which was held at Harrah’s New Orleans. Over the past few years, Tepen has also captured two WSOP Circuit rings, the first in 2014 at Horseshoe Council Bluffs, the second in 2015 in St. Louis at Lumiere Place, as well as a runner-up finish at the 2013 Hollywood Poker Open in Las Vegas. During these years, he has earned over half of a million dollars.

Shortly after his recent RunGood Cup victory, I sat down with Tepen to discuss his unique career path.

Bernard Lee: Congratulations on capturing the inaugural RunGood Cup Championship event. How do you feel after winning the title?

Ryan Tepen: I feel fantastic. I really thought I was playing really well coming into the event. I had just finished fourth at Heartland Poker Tour (HPT) in St. Charles. I also had four cashes in my prior ten events. I was really happy with my game. I also have run really good in the RunGood main events, final tabling four of the last five.

Bernard Lee: You started playing poker in college. Did you get started playing online?

Ryan Tepen: No. It is actually an interesting story. At University of Missouri, we had a free poker bar league with the winner getting a $20 bar tab. Being broke in college, who could pass up on that? So, this is how I got into playing poker. I would play four to five nights a week, using my brother’s ID to get into the bars.

Bernard Lee: Did you understand the game right away?

Ryan Tepen: No. At the beginning, it took me a little while to fold J-3 offsuit. But then, I started having some success. However, I was still not as good as I thought I was.

Bernard Lee: How did you initially improve your game?

Ryan Tepen: In November of 2005, I met Dutch Boyd, his brother Bobby, and The Crew at a charity poker event. After talking with them, we eventually became friends. They invited me to watch them play poker online and it was quite amazing. I remember being shocked when Dutch folded K-J under-the-gun.

He taught me about preflop starting requirements and how important position was in no-limit hold’em. He basically took me from a cocky beginner to a lower level intermediate.

Bernard Lee: Did you have immediate success after working with Dutch and his friends?

Ryan Tepen: Locally, it started out great. I played at the Ameristar Casino in St. Charles and finished in third place or better in five out of my first eight tournaments. I built up my bankroll from $200 into $4,000.

Then, I decided to fly to Las Vegas to play in my first WSOP bracelet event. I played in a $1,000 bracelet event and other smaller events in Vegas, but things did not work out as well as I had hoped. I realized that there were a lot of lessons still to be learned. I had not figure out even 1/100th of the game yet. I knew I had a lot more to learn. It was a very humbling experience.

Bernard Lee: What did you do to learn more about the game?

Ryan Tepen: Dutch suggested that I start reading some poker books. Fortunately, I had some friends that own some books. The first poker book that I read was Sklansky on Seven Card Stud High. Immediately, I jumped into the $0.25/$0.50 game online and found success. Suddenly I realized that these guys know what they were talking about. Next I read, Harrington on Hold’em, Theory of Poker and Hi-Lo Split Poker (by Ray Zee).

It is amazing how much knowledge you can accumulate through reading. This is when I started getting better in poker around 2008.

Bernard Lee: You started to have moderate amount of success in 2011. But from 2008 to 2011, you only had a few tournament cashes. What were you doing during those few years?

Ryan Tepen: After moving to Vegas in 2007, I lived there only five months and went broke. I decided to return to Missouri and got a job which I worked at on and off for the next three years. I really learned the meaning of a dollar, which I did not understand while playing poker.

Bernard Lee: What made you make the decision to go full-time in 2011?

Ryan Tepen: I have been really blessed as my time as a poker player, meeting a lot of people along the way. In 2007, I met Bryan (Devo) Devonshire through Dutch and, in 2010, Devo decided to stake me. He also coached me and reviewed my online hand history. I began to learn more and more working with him. He taught me so much about bet sizing and leveraging your stack versus your opponents’ stack.

Bernard Lee: You had a solid starts to both 2011 and 2012, but the second half of each year you had a downswing. Is there any reason for this pattern?

Ryan Tepen: Each year, I felt on top of the world during the first half of the year. Things were going great. I was playing well and cashing consistently. However, all I can say is that the WSOP during both summers were, once again, humbling experiences. I played in a lot of events and bricked during 2011. The next summer, while I had $20,000 in cashes, I bought in for $60,000. The math is pretty simple. I didn’t come out on the positive end.

Bernard Lee: Over the past few years, you have had some nice success winning two rings, a six-figure score at a Hollywood Poker Open event and your recent RunGood Cup victory. What can attribute your recent success to?

Ryan Tepen: I have definitely had the help and support of my friends, such as John Monnette, Justin Gardenhire, Bryan Campanello, Chris Conrad, and, most recently, Jacob Bazeley (“Baze”). Over the past year, Baze has supported and staked me.

Bernard Lee: What has Jacob taught you that has helped improved your game?

Ryan Tepen: Baze taught me the valuable lesson that should be right in front of everyone. The game of no-limit tournaments is not about who can outplay their opponent by four- or five-betting light.

The game is about whoever makes the least amount of mistakes has the best opportunity of winning the tournament. If you allow your opponents to make mistakes, they will eventually make them and you can capitalize. That lesson has stuck in my head and I started thinking about all the tournaments I have played, remembering all of the mistakes that I made.

Bernard Lee: After this solid score at the RunGood Cup, what are your plans for 2016?

Ryan Tepen: I’m going to stick with what has gotten me here. I’m going to play in the Midwest WSOP Circuit events, HPTs, and of course, the RunGood events.

Bernard Lee: You have been fortunate to get such great advice over the years from your friends. Are there any pieces of advice you would give to other poker players hoping to play on the tour?

Ryan Tepen: You have to be disciplined in these no-limit tournaments and remain patient. Sometimes there is no reason to play a marginal situation. In the past, I would have called, but now I play more optimally, waiting for a much better situation later on.

Also, if you are in a bad state of mind and not cashing, time away can really help your game. Although you have to shake off a little rust, the break allows you to think about the game more clearly. Also, if you truly love the game, you will be eager and ready to get back into it. ♠

Bernard Lee is a poker columnist for ESPN.com, author of “The Final Table, Volume I and II” and radio host of “The Bernard Lee Poker Show,” which can be found on RoundersRadio.com or iTunes. Lee has over $2 million in career earnings, winning six titles. Lee is a team member of RunGoodGear.com, Team Pro for Blue Shark Optics and also spokesperson for specialty travel company, Blaycation. Follow Bernard Lee on Twitter or Instagram: @BernardLeePoker or visit him at www.BernardLeePoker.com