SpadeClub Poker Winner -- Jim 'Darkalleyjim' CrawfordWinner of SpadeClub's Largest Weekly Event |
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SpadeClub’s $5,000 weekly event brought with it nearly 2,000 entrants. Besting the field and securing $1,000 for his first-place finish was Jim “Darkalleyjim” Crawford. Crawford and his wife are both retired and enjoy playing on SpadeClub because they are able to satisfy their poker cravings whenever they want and know exactly how much they are going to spend on playing each year, and the possibility of winning some real cash is always a plus.
Card Player sat down with Crawford to discuss his recent win on SpadeClub.com.
Card Player: First off, tell me a little bit about yourself.
Jim “Darkalleyjim” Crawford: I am a retired forester who spent 33 year with the U.S. Forest Service. We spent most of my working years living out in the woods and not anywhere near any poker centers! I have been married to the same wonderful high-school sweetheart for 48 years. She is also retired and likes to play poker, as well.
CP: How long have you played poker, and what got you interested in SpadeClub?
JC: Other than an occasional game with the guys on the ranger stations, I didn’t play any poker until about four years ago. We [Crawford and his wife] caught a few episodes of the World Poker Tour, and that got both of us interested. We bought a couple of books and started playing a little at a local casino and some online. We ended up subscribing to Card Player magazine, and the ads at the beginning of last year for SpadeClub sounded interesting, so we joined. We signed up with an annual membership and have renewed it again for this year. We really like SpadeClub, because we might win some cash, but we know in advance what our cost is for the year. We can play as much or as little as we like at any time. It is great.
CP: Do you have a story behind your screen name?
JC: A few years ago we took at trip to Dodge City, Kansas, and bought a book on the history of Dodge City. One chapter in the book was about the notorious gamblers who hung around town. They had all kinds of colorful names that I thought would make good poker site screen names. Since my name is Jim, I just thought “Darkalleyjim” was a good one for me.
CP: How did you get started playing poker, and what is one thing you wish you knew about poker earlier in your career?
JC: I just wish I had started playing at a much earlier age and learned about the game. With the guys on the ranger stations, I had no clue about how to play the game and didn’t learn a thing. Let’s face it, when you wait until retirement age to learn something new and then have to compete with really bright young minds, it is a tough way to go!
CP: What strategy did you have in mind going into the tournament? Is this the strategy that ultimately prevailed over the bright young minds of your competition?
JC: I guess my strategy is pretty much a standard one of trying to be conservative in the beginning and getting more aggressive as the blinds go up. You have to win enough early though, or out you go.
CP: Do you think your game is stronger preflop or post-flop?
JC: I think I play better preflop. I feel better about my decisions to play or not before the flop than I do a lot of times after the flop. I hate it when I throw my chips in pretty much knowing I am beat, but I do it anyhow at times. I just can’t help myself.
CP: What kinds of really big mistakes did you see people make in the event?
JC: I guess I would have to stick with the standards of playing too many hands and calling too many all-in bets. All-in races are fun, but it is better to make the bet than to call them, most of the time.
CP: The weekly event you won was the biggest to date in terms of the size of the field. Do you have any advice on how to take down tournaments with such a large field of players?
JC: I think I have to have good, solid play and not get crippled by dumb mistakes early on. More than that, though, it takes some incredible luck to win the races at the right times. I would have to attribute my win on the last part. I had the right hands at the right times and was lucky to win the races when they counted the most. For folks like me with average or less skills, it takes a lot of tries before the stars line up correctly to produce a win, especially with such huge fields.
CP: What was the hardest lesson you had to learn while playing poker?
JC: I guess the hardest lesson for me has been to realize how hard it is to win! I think one has to be patient and realize in every tournament there is only one winner. When I get booted out, I try to keep in mind that there are over 1,000 folks feeling as bad as I do! That is the nice thing about SpadeClub. You can just keep trying and not have to put up more cash to play!
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