A Candid Interview With GnightMoon

Since it doesn't look like Cardplayer, Courtney Friel, or Norman Chad will be interviewing GnightMoon anytime soon, I decided to do so myself. Here is the transcript from a discussion we had recently while watching the Panthers choke one to the Seahawks.

Thomas Fuller: Is it true you lost a 77,000 chip pot that you were a 91.4% favorite to win in the 10k WPT event in Tunica this last week, when the average stack was 26,000?

GnightMoon: That’s false. The pot was only about 74,000.

TF: So you’ve been running pretty bad lately. Would you say this is the worst run of cards you’ve ever had?

GM: Hmm. That’s hard to say. It was pretty horrendous during the WSOP this past summer. I think this is worse though – it seems like I am playing better now but still losing. I’d say this has been more frustrating and less devastating.

TF: Is it particularly frustrating to be struggling when a lot of your friends, players you have mentored yourself, such as Paul Wasicka, Ben Greenberg, Jamal Malik, and Joel Patchell, are doing so well?

GM: Frustrating is the wrong word. Humbling would be more accurate. For a long time I felt like I was clearly the best player I knew, head and shoulders above anyone else. Now I really question that, and wonder if I might only be the 4th or 5th best. Sometimes I wonder if I was just lucky for a long period of time, and things are evening out now. I don’t know. Certainly two of the things that made me so good, my confidence and my bankroll, have diminished.

TF: So you’re not playing all that well these days.

GM: No. I think I’m playing very well. My online cash game has sprung a few leaks, but I think I recognize them and I should be better than ever when I get back to playing the online cash tables. My tournament game is better than ever, there’s no question about it. I’ve learned how to hold onto my chips, and I’ve learned how important patience is for my style. I’ve also really learned how to handle different players – and this applies to cash games too. What to do against a good aggressive player, what to do against a bad aggressive player, etc. What hands to play against which players, and how to play them – it’s all stuff that was in the back of my mind and now it’s in the front.

GM: I’ve also learned how to change gears. This is a topic people always talk about without really knowing what it means. What it really means is to understand how your table is playing, and how they perceive you to be playing. There is a time to play tight, there is a time to play aggressively, there is a time to play passively and play small pots, there is a time to play wild and raise and reraise, etc. I’m really starting to switch it up based on the table. At Bellagio during the first day I was playing so aggressively one of the players called me an “animal.” At Tunica the other day I was either the tightest or 2nd tightest player at the table. Both times the situation called for it.

TF: Would you say you are a “world-class” player?

GM: I’m getting there. I really am. I wouldn’t quite say world-class yet. But I’ve played with guys like Steve Dannenmann, Tex Barch, Amir Vahedi, Chip Jett. I’m not seeing anything from these guys that I don’t have. I think I’m on par with them. Maybe even better. The one thing I need to keep working on is fearlessness.

TF: So how much did you drop total for the Tunica trip?

GM: Well, let’s see. The flights cost a total of $598, the speeding ticket from on the way to the airport is gonna cost $130 plus a crapload in higher insurance-

TF: Wait a second. Speeding ticket? Isn’t there a Skyride park and ride less than 5 minutes from your house?

GM: Yes.
(Awkward pause; Moon looks off into space).

GM: Anyways, the hotel room was around $160, the tournament was $10,200, then the $2070 at the Grand, the $200 at the Grand, and a $5123 loss online Friday night playing in the Grand lobby. You tell me, what does that add up to?

TF: Let’s talk sports. Why did you throw the Broncos under the bus last week? How about loyalty?

GM: It’s simple. To me the Broncos lie below truth and sports. I value those two things more highly than I do the Broncos. The truth was the Steelers were a far superior team, and I recognized that.

TF: I hear you’re on a nice run with your football picks this year. Tell me about that.

GM: Well I’ve never made a sports bet for a lot of money in my life. Week 12 this year I decided to start picking every game and see how I did. I wound up 48-42-4, and 8-2 in the playoffs.

TF: Wow, pretty impressive. Are you ever going to bet for real?

GM: Maybe next season. If so I’ll probably wait till halfway into the season before betting. Oh, and I might bet ten thousand on the Super Bowl.

TF: Are you serious?

GM: If it’s Steelers -5 or better, I don’t think I can pass it up.

TF: Is it true you might be changing your screen name on Party Poker?

GM: Well, obviously I would never change it. But The Creator might.

TF: That’s right. I’m considering the following names, and would appreciate feedback as to which one’s the best:

TheCoroner
CarcassCleaner
CarcassEater
TheSiphoner
SiphonCity
DonkFestival
DonkFest06
Supersonic
APotIsAPot
LindaJFetish

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Today: +4171

Year to date: -4552