High stakes cash game player Anthony Rivera bought into the inaugural $10,000 World Championship mixed event without so much as a second thought. A regular in some of the bigger mixed games at the Bellagio and Commerce casinos, Rivera was confident in his ability to play all of the games well, especially against the best in the world.
More than a third of the field was a former bracelet winner, yet 22-year-old Rivera bested them all to take down his first title along with a nearly $500,000 first-place prize.
Rivera took some time out to talk with Card Player just a few moments after securing his victory.
Question: Was this event a spur of the moment decision for you?
Anthony Rivera: No, not really. I looked over the schedule and decided that I wasn’t going to miss this one. I play a lot of the mixed games at Bellagio and Commerce, so it seemed like a logical choice.
Q: Which game do you think you played the best?
AR: I play them all really well. The no-limit and pot-limit games I don’t play that much, but I play a lot of mixed games. I don’t think I play any one game particularly better than the rest. I’d like to think I can play them all.
Q: Were you intimidated at all by the star-studded final table line ups?
AR: Not really. I’ve played with a lot of them in cash games before so I was pretty comfortable. Before the final table, I was really intimated by David Oppenheim. He’s a great player and he got really unlucky. He’s a really nice guy, but to tell you the truth, I was glad to see him go.
Q: Who was your toughest opponent at the final table?
AR: Well, I’ve played a lot with Matthew Glantz when I was in Atlantic City. He was definitely the one I was least looking to tangle with. We really avoided each other the entire time. He stayed out of my way, and I stayed out of his.
Q: How does it feel to win an event like this, in its inaugural year?
AR: Well, I was really excited after hearing about it. It seemed almost natural for me to play and I really didn’t need any preparation for it. The structure was great and [Harrah’s] did a great job with it.
Q: How does this win change things for you?
AR: Well, I’m now un-stuck for the month. I guess I’m going to go buy-in to some more events.
