Simon Watt

Simon Watt plays online at Full Tilt Poker

Simon Watt was working as a software developer in his native Auckland when he was introduced to poker and started playing live with friends. He was immediately hooked by the mix of strategy, psychology and gambling. Not long after, he began playing online following a suggestion from a friend.

When Simon started playing online he concentrated on playing small-stakes ring games, but didn’t achieve success until he improved his bankroll management. Even today, Simon continues to be a self-confessed "huge bankroll nit", and regularly gets hassled by friends for playing lower stakes than his poker status may otherwise suggest.

While learning the game, Simon spent a lot of time watching videos and recommends anyone looking to improve their game should do likewise. "Study, and study a lot," he says. "Just playing hands will only get you so far. If you want to become a good winning player you need to spend time reviewing your hands, watching training videos and discussing hands with players better than yourself. If you’re too lazy to put in time studying the game, don’t expect good results."

When playing online, Simon most enjoys playing short-handed No-Limit ring games due to their complexity and frequency of post-flop action. He is also a fan of No-Limit Hold’ em MTTs, as they provide a level of satisfaction that cash games can’t match. Whenever he is playing, Simon tries to take a philosophical view of the game by maintaining emotional control: "If you out play someone but they get lucky then you should feel good about the hand, not go on tilt as that could cost you money."

During one of these online sessions, Simon qualified for the Asia Pacific Poker Tour Main Event, which was coming to his hometown of Auckland, through a $22 rebuy satellite. The Main Event attracted a total of 263 entrants and, after four days of competition, Simon showed he could reproduce his form in person by taking down the first prize worth NZ$209,000 ($154,110).

At the 2010 WSOP, Simon was thrust into the limelight when he found himself at the centre of the most talked about final table of the 2010 series. Playing in the $1,500 No-Limit Hold ‘em Event, Simon fought his way through a monster field of 2,563 and found himself heads up against poker phenom and Team Full Tilt member, Tom 'durrrr' Dwan.

If the prospect of taking on one of poker’s biggest names wasn’t a big enough challenge for the New Zealander, the alleged side bets taken by his opponent on winning a bracelet made this one of the biggest heads-up contests in the history of poker. Watt started off with a 2.5-to-1 chip lead and in front of a raucous, standing-room only crowd took on Dwan into the early hours of Monday morning.

Eventually, durrrr would shove his remaining 1.65 million chips with Qd-6c to be instantly called by Watt with a pair of 9d-9c. The board ran 8c-Ac-As-Ad-Kh, to give Watt the first prize of $614,248 and give New Zealand its first ever WSOP bracelet.

Team Full Tilt’s Mike Matusow summed up the mood of those bettors who had a vested interest in the outcome, when he commented, "Thank you for saving us all millions of dollars! How does it feel to be every high-stakes gambler’s hero?"

Simon is a keen traveler, and big sports fan. He also enjoys the odd beer with friends and, after his success at the WSOP, he now has a big group of new friends who owe him at least a beer or two.

Simon Watt can be found playing online at Full Tilt Poker.