Jon "Skalie" Kalmar: In the Well

[TightEnd]

Jon 'Skalie' Kalmar is a professional poker player from Chorley in Lancashire, not 'Chorleyville' as numerous 2007 WSOP reports told us was his home after Jon’s form filling shenanigans in Vegas! Before discovering poker, Skalie was once the lead singer in a punk rock band and could be heard at blonde bash four, pre-competition, extolling the virtues of The Stiff Little Fingers to a frankly perplexed table of twenty some-things.

Before entering the 2007 WSOP main event, Skalie admitted to enduring a "terrible" run at that year's Series. He failed to cash in any of the preliminary tournaments. However everything changed the night before the Main Event began. Dejected, he tried to switch his airline ticket and return home early, but was told the cost to change his departure from Las Vegas back to England would be over $600. Instead, he decided to enter the last mega-satellite at the Rio just before the start of the Main Event. He ended up in the final 17 winning a $10,000 seat and proceeded to swap various percentages of himself with friends and long time associates with whom he had been staying on his trip.

The rest, of course, was history as Skalie went on to finish 5th in the Main Event for $1,255,069.

Last year Skalie took nearly $80,000 from a high finish in the Five Star World Classic WPT event.

Associated with and now sponsored by Ladbrokes Poker for many years, Jon has recently set up a blog www.skalie.org in which he describes himself as "Well basically a fat lazy bloke who found out playing poker was easier than working"

Be warned, Skalie tells me "I dont do mornings so don't expect early responses"

Notwithstanding that Skalie will be on this thread during the next week to answer your questions..... 

[kinboshi]

What's your favourite single?

[action man]

1) how many tournies do you reckon is a good sample size of whether a player is a long term winner?

2) Do you play Mtt on line, if so which site?

3) Were you bankrolled properly for the WSOP 08

4) you have  at    800/1600 (150)  and its folded round to you 9 handed, your stack 19k, the BB has 15k  Your opponent is a solid player. What is your play
    a) live in a gukpt
    b) online in a sunday major.


thanks for doing this.

[The Camel]

Did you throw that 5k chip in by accident or on purpose?

(Funnily enough, I was talking to someone who was on the table that day just recently about the hand, and he was convinced you did it as a "move" whereas I thought you made an honest mistake..)

[DaveShoelace]

What's the biggest animal you could kill with just your bare hands?

[GreekStein]

1) How has your life changed since becoming sponsored?

2) What's the weirdest thing you've ever seen at the table?

3) Most overrated player in England?

4) Most underrated player in England?

[Irishdenis]

How much did you and I drink in Turks and Caicos

Did devilfish really pay the girls wages

Can you sing better than I can dance

You have to go to bed with one of the following

The Camel, Dave Colclough or Barney Boatman.

Which one and why. ! ! !

[Colchester Kev]

Have you ever had a funny experience with a chair in a blackpool casino ?

[skalie]

What's your favourite single?

Remote Control by the clash, awsome lyrics. Down in the tube station at midnight would be up there as would rat trap, none of which sang by my favourite bands

[TheChipPrince]

What colour's your air-guitar Skalie?

[skalie]

1) how many tournies do you reckon is a good sample size of whether a player is a long term winner?

2) Do you play Mtt on line, if so which site?

3) Were you bankrolled properly for the WSOP 08

4) you have  at    800/1600 (150)  and its folded round to you 9 handed, your stack 19k, the BB has 15k  Your opponent is a solid player. What is your play
    a) live in a gukpt
    b) online in a sunday major.


thanks for doing this.

1) God knows, i know many a good player lose over a lot of events and indeed bad players winning over the same. Tournies are very difficult to make money at alone.
2) If i play online it is generally only ladbrokes, however if Im playing sunday nights i will throw away several hundred bucks chasing the big ones on tilt and stars
3) I had plenty more money to play during 2008, when i got there i struggled to motivate myself to go play the smaller events. Huge fields and small stacks just wasn't appealing
4)er you serious, of course i throw it away, that would never fit in my range or starting hands...................Naaaaahhhhh raise the bast 3 or 4 times
5)GUKPT,

[skalie]

Did you throw that 5k chip in by accident or on purpose?

(Funnily enough, I was talking to someone who was on the table that day just recently about the hand, and he was convinced you did it as a "move" whereas I thought you made an honest mistake..)

On my loved ones lives, it was an accident, as you know i was still quite new to the game.
Its the 1st and last time I ever wore sun glsses.

[skalie]

Did you throw that 5k chip in by accident or on purpose?

(Funnily enough, I was talking to someone who was on the table that day just recently about the hand, and he was convinced you did it as a "move" whereas I thought you made an honest mistake..)

On my loved ones lives, it was an accident, as you know i was still quite new to the game.
Its the 1st and last time I ever wore sun glsses.

I assume we are talking about Luton

[skalie]

What's the biggest animal you could kill with just your bare hands?

After a pint a Bengal Tiger or even an average size pola bear.

[TightEnd]

With the benefit of a couple of years reflection, how do you look back on the WSOP 2007 main event?

Any regrets that you couldn't get higher than 5th?

In the two years since, how much has that result changed your life?

Please tell us about your relationship with Ladbrokes? Presumably you could have been sponsored by all manner of sites post 2007 WSOP, yet you stuck with Ladbrokes. Why?

What are your thoughts about Player sponsorships in general, do they provide value for money for sites?