DUBLIN BELLYBUSTERS

This time, this day, one year ago, I was taking my seat in the Full Tilt One Million Pound Challenge in London. It was a brief affair for me on the felt but it was nonetheless an enjoyable experience. I met Michael Craig in person, a fellow Bellybuster with whom I have kept in good contact. His story is one I would like to emulate and perhaps surpass over the next few years. A poker-lover and author, he has successfully transformed himself into far more than his title as 'friend' of Full Tilt. In 2008, he was the 143rd best online player (OPR). In the 2009 WSOP, he placed 2nd to Jeffrey Lissandro in the $3K Razz Event for $116K. I also met mobster Joe Beevers, a Bellybuster newbie at the time who has continued his accosiation with our wee gang. The eventual winner of the Event, Adam Noone has also joined our ranks.

In the past 365 days, I have penned 95 blogs; some long, some short (all hilariously funny!) but all of which I hope gave a flavour of what life as a small-time poker player is like. My aim was to write something which could be enjoyed by both poker afficionados and 'Joe the Plumber'. I hope that I have succeeded in this aim as I really want this blog to be read by as many people as possible.

It has been nice for me to read back some of the old blogs and see how far I've come as a player in the past twelve months. The leap has been significant and I can only hope that I will continue to improve. It has also been nice to read them back in the context of what was going on in the world at the time - financial crises, political landscape, WSOP, how Dr Fill Good's game deteriorated, etc.