Chris Lindh has been one of the most active players here on Day 7, and as a result his stack has oscillated throughout the first five hours of the day. During the break, we briefly spoke with Lindh about his tournament experience, the big swings he’s been dealing with, and his mental game.
PokerNews: You’ve cashed in a handful of events each year traveling the circuits. Is your background mainly in tournaments or cash games?
Lindh: In the beginning I was almost exclusively playing tournaments but then I switched over to cash-games about a year and a half ago. I think it’s important to excel in both aspects of the game to become a well-rounded player.
Why did you make the transition from Bear Sterns to playing poker professionally?
I was laid off from Bear Sterns so I looked to poker as a supplement. I was always playing poker anyway so it made sense. Plus I was given a nice severance package so I took that and used it as my starting bankroll. It’s been some good times and I’m fully happy with how things are working out.
This is your fourth WSOP Main Event but your first cash. What changes did you make that are helping with a successful this year?
I think just being around better players and discussing hands has helped me a lot since I’ve started. I’ve really surrounded myself with a knowledgeable group of players who have all seen success at one point in their careers, so it’s beneficial to a person like me who still has room for growth. I had a little bit of coaching for online poker but I haven’t had any for live tournaments or cash. I think you can really apply what you learn by playing online to live because online you are able to take more risks, play more hands, and pick up on things faster than you would just playing live.
You lost a big hand against Ryan Riess. Did the decline in your chip count affect you mentally at all? If so, how did you recover?
It didn’t really affect me at all. I still opened like 60 percent of hands after that hit and chipped right back up. You can’t play scared in this tournament. With so few players left, it is important to take shots and build your stack so you can have plenty to work with if you make it to the final table. Plus, losing is part of variance. It is how you handle it after that matters.
If you make it to the final nine, will you continue playing poker?
Continuing to play poker isn’t a question for me. I will definitely continue to play because I think I still have a lot left to accomplish. I’m already scheduled to play in the WSOP Europe so that will be next on my calendar. I think I am also looking into the $10 million guarantee tournament in Florida. I have absolutely no plans to stop.
Hand #121: Michiel Brummelhuis raised to 425,000 in the cutoff and Fabian Ortiz called on the button. The flop came down and Brummelhuis bet 475,000, enough to get Ortiz to fold.
Hand #122: Fabian Ortiz raised to 400,000 on the button and Jay Farber three-bet to 900,000 from the big blind. Ortiz called and the dealer fanned a flop of . Farber continued for 650,000, receiving a fold from Ortiz.
Hand #123: JC Tran raised to 425,000 under the gun and took down the pot.
Hand #124: Jay Farber raised to 430,000 on the button, Mark Newhouse called in the small blind, and the flop fell . Both checked to see the turn where Newhouse check-called 250,000 from Farber, landing the river. Both checked, Farber showed , and Newhouse mucked.
Hand #125: Mark Newhouse raised to 400,000 on the button, JC Tran called from the small blind, and Michiel Brummelhuis called from the big blind. They checked to the turn of a board where Tran checked to Brummelhuis who bet 575,000. Newhouse folded, Tran called, and the river completed the board. Both checked and Tran took it down for two pair with a king kicker.
Hand #86: Chris Lindh had the button. Carlos Mortensen raised to 400,000 from under the gun, and everyone folded.
Hand #87: Ryan Riess had the button. Marc McLaughlin raised to 400,000. Everyone folded, and he won the pot.
Hand #88: Sergio Castelluccio had the button. He raised to 400,000, and Carlos Mortensen called from the small blind. Alexander Livingston reraised all in for 4.32 million from the big blind, and everyone folded.
Hand #89: Carlos Mortensen had the button. Chris Lindh raised to 400,000 and won the blinds and antes.
Hand #90: Alexander Livingston had the button. Carlos Mortensen raised to 400,000 from the cutoff seat, and everyone folded.
Hand #91: Marc McLaughlin had the button, and Sergio Castelluccio opened to 400,000 from second position. After everyone gave it up, he scooped the blinds and antes.
Hand #92: Bruno Kawauti had the button. Marc McLaughlin raised to 400,000 from the cutoff seat, and Ryan Riess called out of the big blind to see the flop come down . Riess checked, and McLaughlin bet 600,000. Riess folded, and McLaughlin won the pot.
Hand #130: James Alexander got a walk in the big blind.
Hand #131: Amir Lehavot raised to 400,000 from middle position, and James Alexander called from the big blind. The flop was an action inducer; Alexander checked, Lehavot bet 500,000, and Alexander check-raised all in. Lehavot snap-called for 5,915,000 total and was at risk.
Alexander:
Lehavot:
With his set, Lehavot needed to fade a club to double up, but the sweat ended when he made quads with the on the turn. The meaningless fell on the river, and Alexander is now barely hanging on with less than 2 million.
Hand #126: Mark Newhouse raised to 400,000 from the cutoff seat, winning the blinds and antes.
Hand #127: Jay Farber raised to 430,000 from under the gun, winning the blinds and antes. He tabled a pair of aces.
Hand #128: Sylvain Loosli completed from the small blind, Anton Morgenstern checked his big blind, and both players checked on a flop of . The two knuckled when the turned, Loosli checked a third time when the completed the board, and Morgenstern fired out 350,000. Loosli folded.
Hand #129: Mark Newhouse min-raised to 400,000 from under the gun, Loosli three-bet to 900,000 on the button, and the Frenchman took down the pot.
Hand #130: Fabian Ortiz raised to 425,000 from the hijack seat, Loosli three-bet to 850,000 on his direct left, and the action folded back to Ortiz, who folded as well.
Hand #131: Ortiz limped in from early position, Morgenstern raised to 575,000 in the cutoff, and the action folded back to Ortiz, who called, leaving just 1.62 million behind. The flop fell , Ortiz checked, Mortenstern moved all in, and Ortiz called.
Morgenstern:
Ortiz:
The turn and river came , respectively, and Ortiz doubled.
Hand #132: Fabian Ortiz raised to 400,000 from under the gun and Anton Morgenstern three-bet all in from the hijack for 2.495 million. Action folded back to Ortiz who called immediately.
Ortiz:
Morgenstern:
The flop came down , giving Morgenstern chop outs with a five and a backdoor diamond draw. However, the start-of-day chip leader found no help from the turn or river, ending his Main Event with a 20th-place finish.
Hand #93: Chris Lindh opened for 400,000 from the button and Sergio Castelluccio called from the big blind. Both checked the flop and turn. The river brought the and a bet of 600,000 from Castelluccio, and Lindh folded.
Hand #94: Alexander Livingston raised to 400,000 from under the gun and got one caller in Carlos Mortensen sitting to his right in the big blind. The flop came . Mortensen checked, Livingston bet 525,000, and Mortensen folded.
Hand #95: Chris Lindh open-raised all in for just over 4 million from the hijack seat, and won the blinds and antes.
Hand #96: Castelluccio raised to 400,000 from the hijack seat and Marc McLaughlin called from the big blind. The flop came and McLaughlin knocked the felt the check. Castelluccio sat for a moment, then tapped the felt as well. The turn brought the , and this time Castelluccio bet 450,000 and McLaughlin folded.
Hand #97: Lindh raised to 550,000 from middle position and won the blinds and antes.