WSOP Circuit King Ari Engel: Learning From Other Top Pros

Ari Engel has achieved what no other player has to date – 17 World Series of Poker Circuit rings. He also has two coveted WSOP bracelets and took home $1,120,000 and the main event crown at the 2016 Aussie Millions.

Engel has started 2024 on a blazing heater, capturing first place in five events. To date, Engel has more than $9 million in career live tournament earnings. Not bad for a guy who started out as one of the game’s best online crushers.

Card Player sat down with Ari to get the scoop on how one of the game’s most dedicated live tournament grinders stays on top.

Craig Tapscott: It must seem like a million years ago, but please share a little about how you were introduced to poker.

Ari Engel: I played poker in the religious high school I attended and then again during college. My first interaction with strategic thinking regarding poker was with (fellow WSOP bracelet winner) Andrew Brown, my roommate in college at NYU. He was not a very good student, but he was a phenomenal online poker player. I remember just watching him for hours at a time. Eventually, I played a bit online, jumping in at the penny stakes.

CT: When did you first notice your passion for competition?

AE: The first thing that comes to mind is the 7-year-old me playing ping pong with friends. I was crying, devastated about losing. I was a sore loser. I couldn’t handle it.

I’ve always been highly competitive, ever since I can remember. And, of course, as a tournament player, you will lose the vast majority of the time. That was tough to deal with at the beginning of my poker career. Truthfully, it’s still tough. Different people handle rejection or loss in many different ways. I bottle it up inside myself, which is not a healthy thing. I’ve gotten better, though, as the years go on.

CT: When did you start to play tournaments?

AE: I played a few now and again. I won a $5 tournament for about $700 on Party Poker. That was great. But I had no thoughts of going anywhere with poker beyond enjoying the game.

I then graduated college very quickly and could not find a job. I was a finance major, living in New York City, and I couldn’t get a job in my industry. I ended up taking a job for $500 a week. And rent is not cheap in NYC, as you know. The job had nothing to do with my specialties and didn’t use my brain.

CT: Were you still playing poker during this time?

AE: I was living in Brooklyn at the time, playing poker with my friends at NYU at a home game once a week. The players mentioned a website some were having success at called Bodog. A few days later, I deposited and started crushing the games. My first deposit was something like $100. But at the end of the first weekend, I made something like $10,000.

CT: That’s so wild. Did you quit your day job?

AE: I talked to my parents every day. They had cosigned my college loans, so I wasn’t about to quit the job. I needed their blessing. My job paid $500 a week, which was $26,000 a year. I just made $10,000 during a weekend, and the job wasn’t good. So I made the sales pitch to my parents to let me do this poker thing for six months and see how it goes.

CT: Clearly, it’s gone pretty well.

AE: I think I had one or two losing weeks the first year online, mainly playing cash games. Primarily no-limit, and a little bit of limit. I eventually started to mix in tournaments and decided I wanted to be very good at them. I was mixing the two for a while, and I felt like that wasn’t working as well as it could. I eventually moved almost exclusively to tournaments.

CT: Can you share your study practices at the time?

AE: At the beginning Andrew Brown was there to work with me and give me some instruction. At some stage it became more from my experience playing each day and learning along the way. But I was also active on forums like 2+2 and Pocket Fives.

CT: When did you begin to be interested in learning the mixed games?

AE: I always dabbled because of Andrew, who initially taught me some mixed games. I started with PLO and even PLO eight-or-better. I’ve been playing them as far back as I can remember. I would play the $200 H.O.R.S.E on Full Tilt every Sunday. I started to play some $1,500 buy-ins at the WSOP, and they become increasingly prevalent in my online play at the time. I was enjoying learning the games.

After I won the Aussie Millions main event, I flew into Los Angeles and participated in some events at the LA Poker Classic. I was not very good at a lot of the games, but my competition was not used to dealing with my relentless aggression. They just kind of assumed that I was playing normally. I definitely overperformed compared to my skills at the time. It made me much more excited to do well in games like stud, etc.

CT: What was the main stumbling block as you progressed in your skills?

AE: Patience. It’s never been quite my thing. [laughs]. Patience. It’s still a big thing that I still need to work on and deal with. I don’t love the slow, live, full-ring tournaments. That doesn’t cater to my style. I love playing heads-up PLO eight-or-better online, where we see 160 hands an hour, for instance.

But I started having a bit more patience for live events. When COVID hit, I began to play and learn more online through mixed games. I started playing online in low-stakes games. Instead of the traditional games, it was like a 25- or 30-game mix.

I was deciding between New Jersey, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. I didn’t think I was going to leave the country. I ended up deciding on Jersey. It was a huge move for me. I would sit all day and play mixed cash games, a lot of Omaha eight-or-better, and short-handed play. At night, I would play a no-limit tournament.

I hate to say it because it devastated the world, but it was a great time for me. I learned a lot.

CT: And then when things opened up, I assume live mixed games followed?

AE: Yes. I was moving up in stakes. I was helped by some great friends who are much better than me, such as Adam Friedman, Phillip Hui, and Nick Guagenti. They’ve become really good friends and have sharpened up my game. They’re super willing to give me tons of advice and I am very thankful for that. It’s been a game-changer for me.

CT: With 17 rings, you are currently the king of the WSOP Circuit.

AE: Well, if you played my kind of volume, you would get a whole bunch of results, too. People would occasionally start tweeting that I am the G.O.A.T. when I’m actually breaking even.

I remember being on a huge downswing, winning a ring for $12,000, and getting those comments. That’s very nice to hear, but I was in the middle of an $80,000 downswing. You’ve got to take the wins wherever you can.

But yeah, it’s always kind of funny. There’s this popular idea that I play way more tournaments than anyone else, so I’m going to win more tournaments and cash more tournaments. But you know, I’m doing fine. I’m not complaining.

CT: Who are your favorite players to watch?

AE: I love watching the super no-limit high rollers. They’re just amazing. When it comes to mixed games, it’s Phil Ivey for sure. He’s so good.

I also love playing with and watching (bracelet winner) Andrew Yeh. He’s not well known in the grand scheme of things, but he’s definitely known in the mixed world. He’s a role model as the consummate poker pro. He stays under the radar, and he’s an absolute crusher. He doesn’t care about the ego stuff. I’ve personally never seen him behave badly. He’s definitely a player I pay attention to.

CT: I can’t end this interview without asking about some travel hacks from the player who seems to be on the road more than anyone else. What wisdom do you have for our readers?

AE: I’m an excellent sleeper. But for people that might not be, it helps me to use an eye mask.

(laughs) My tip is to use autoslash.com. It’s by far the best site for looking up rental cars. Also, if you’re a responsible person, take advantage of credit cards and the deals and points you can earn. And if you’re smart, you will get the TSA precheck service.

I used to say go to a local grocery store before settling in a new city, but now there are so many delivery options to choose from. Don’t let yourself be stuck with whatever is at the hotel you end up in regarding food choices.

And don’t get stuck at the casino you’re playing without bringing some snacks. You don’t want to deal with the choices that are only available at the casino on breaks.
Find Engel on Twitter/X @AriEngelPoker. ♠