Mike McDonald plays online at Full Tilt Poker

Canadian player Mike “Timex” McDonald started playing poker while studying math at the University of Waterloo. He began with micro-stakes Limit Hold ‘em and low buy-in tournaments online. Once he’d built his bankroll, he entered the live tournament circuit. In 2008, Mike decided to play professionally.

Mike placed 2nd in the 2008 Aussie Millions AUD $1K Poker Championship for over $75K. He became the youngest person to win a European Poker Tour (EPT) event when he took down the 2008 €7,700 German Open for $1.3 million. In 2009, he placed 5th in the 2009 EPT €5K No-Limit Hold 'em event at the German Open in Dortmund, banking over $249K. He continued his EPT success in early 2010, with a 3rd place finish at the EPT €5K No-Limit Hold 'em Main Event in Deauville, taking home a purse worth over $417K.

In his first year of turning pro, Mike joined CardRunners as an instructor. He credits his success to extensive practice and dedication, averaging around 500 hours of online poker and 500 hours of live poker a year. Although the strongest aspect of his game is tournament No-Limit Hold ‘em, Mike aims to be skilled in all poker variations.

Mike says that to achieve results in poker “the right balance of patience and aggression is important. Players who are too patient tend to let their chip stack dwindle. Players who are too aggressive often pick their spots poorly and try too hard to bluff people off of hands they aren't folding.”
 
He advises new players to “constantly think about your options, don't get too caught up in what is the ‘standard’ thing to do, but at the same time realize that math and expected value should be the main things that dictate your play.”

Outside of poker, Mike is an avid sportsman. He plays volleyball and is a marathon runner.