Interview Of Phil "The Unabomber" Laak
Jon Eaton
February 10th 2006
Q: Your final table this year at the WSOP was one of the most entertaining final tables I watched. How did you feel going up against Johnny Chan, knowing you were all that was left standing between him and bracelet ten?
A: I didn't really think about what it looked like from his point of view... to me it was win 150k or win 300k... that was all that I really thought bout. I know that sounds anti- climatic, and is even less exciting when I go deeper and realize that I was not really too focused on the cash.... maybe before we started i was thinking about how 300k would be twice the cash as 150k. But once the cards were in the air... I must admit I was just trying to fanagle all the chips over to my side. Play well and see if it might unfold, but alas, I was the butter and he was the torch.
Q: What part of your poker game causes you to be a self-proclaimed "dumb smart guy?"
A: The quote was that I am probably one of the dumbest smart guys or one of the smartest dumb guys in poker. Why did I say that? Maybe 'cause at times I dig these incredibly stupid holes and manage to cherry bomb off huge stacks. But on the flip side, my net worth has steadily increased month after month for many years now as a direct result of the decsions I have made at poker tables.
Q: The WPT Season 2 DVD had you and Antonio Esfandiari doing commentary tracks over a couple of episodes. How did that all come about, and what were your impressions of the results? Would you enjoy doing this again?
A: WPTt asked us if we were interested, and it was a no brainer. I was guessing that we would have fun doing it, and i was dead on. We had the option of stopping and going back to change any of the stuff we said, which we had maybe 2 false starts, and then I think we only stopped once... and it wasn't to go back and change anything... it was 'cause Antonio got hungry.
I had fun listening to the final bit. I think it went as well as it could have.
Q: A lot of your antics at the table might rub people the wrong way. A lot of players do such things intentionally to get under the skin of their opponents. What is your reason for being such a player? Is it just for the fun of it all?
A: Oddly enough, people are often surprised by how quiet I am while at the tables. It's just that once in a while the blood gets to popping and all of a sudden i am talking to myself or whoever will listen. Maybe getting up to stretch or pray for random cards. That is more of a by-product of just having fun and kinda not really paying attention to anything too much.
It might sound like a bit of a stretch, but I am actually rather sensitive to my environment and have more or less developed a pulse on when people (or person) want a more sedate gambling environment, which is all good with me (you can often find me at the Commerce Casino in the $20-40 no limit game, gambling very quietly, just playing the game, not even chatting!). But that is usually when I find myself sitting with one or more guys who would rather gamble without so much chatting.
In fact, in October of 2005 I was in England and I played in the William Hill Grand Prix. It was a 56-player invite-only tourney (6,000 pound entry, or about $11,000), nearly all European pros. Anyway... in England lots of games are played with no "moody"... which basically means a relatively tranquil table. It was televised so the rules allowed moody, but I still sensed a more quiet gamble energy (if that makes sense) and I more or less followedsuit. By the way, if I was the type of guy wanting validation I would add something to the effect of "when I won it... I blah blah blah... whatever, whatever, whatever..." but I am not one to tout my accolades so I won't mention that I won it... LOL.
In the end, I am just having fun. Luckily for me it is fun to think, so antics or no antics you can be sure that I am having fun if I am playing cards. Thinking is high on the list when it comes to my favorite things.
Q: Your favorite place to play is the Commerce Casino in LA. Do you have any places you particularly don't like to play, or other favorite locations?
A: I like to play at places that have good no limit side games. The type that run 24 hours a day, seven days a week. When a tourney comes to town the side games are played higher and the action is looser. The two best places for no limit side games tourney time are easily Las Vegas (Bellagio) and LA (Commerce).
Q: Your run at the WPT Invitational was extremely interesting to watch. You were on a roller coaster the whole way, and it wasn't evident you weregoing to win it all until the very last few pots. How did you fare during the early rounds? Did you have any idea the day before that you would lastall the way until the final table?
A: In that tourney I had chips after about an hour. I surfed them up and sometimes they tumbled. For the most part I was more or less steady. Never really taking too many hits to my stack till the end of day one. Then I sort of trickled down and as you see I arrived as the shortest stack. Once I arrived to the final table I was sort of like... "Well, from a math point of view there was equity but it wasn't thumping or anything." So I just sort of did the best with what the cards gave me, and managed to win some pots. And more importantly suck out on a few key pots where I was trailing, with the biggest suck out being the ace on the river (even though we were all in pre flop on that one).
Q: Let's imagine that there was a special WPT episode, just for table-talkers like yourself. Imagine the likes of people like Mike "The Mouth" Matusow and everyone else joining you at the final six. Who would be the best lineup to join you at the table, just for the entertainment value?
A: Ahhh... well, I love Mike, he is the nuts, so we start with him, me, and lets see... well, mike loves to play with Hellmuth, giving Mike good material to work with is important. So we have to have Hellmuth, and Hellmuth and Esfandiari have history, so you have to have Esfandiari. Then you want some one who is quiet and crazy, so that would be 'young man, young man' (asian guy named Peter something or nother), and then I would finish it off with Paul Phillips. He would be the guy with the highest IQ combined with the sharpest and most accurate wit. He never exagerrates with his story telling .... plays like a genius and is great fun.
Q: When you first started dating Jennifer Tilly, how good of a poker player was she? How long did it take for you to prepare her until she was solidenough to win the WSOP ladies' event?
A: Before we met, she played mostly kitchen poker. After we met, she started playing casino poker (no limit that is). She told me that she wanted to get better and what could she do to get better? I gave her Theory of Poker, she read it in a week or two and then wanted more. I just kept directing her to diff stuff that I thought would help her... books, televised poker and tivo. There is opportunity for learning there.
How long did it take me to prepare her? That doesnt seem to be the best wording.... i would say she did the preparation herself.
Thanks Phil, for taking the time to answer our questions!
