Devilfish wows Oxford Union

Dave ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott, ambassador for DevilfishPoker.com, last weekend addressed 200 eager poker enthusiasts at the world famous Oxford Union in the genteel English university city and proved every bit the ambassador for the game that his illustrious predecessors on the famous stage were in their respective fields.

Ulliott, who arrived at Oxford Union in his Hummer, entertained the crowd playing his guitar, sat in on 20p/40p pot-limit Omaha, and signed copies of his biography Swimming with the Devilfish.

He enjoyed a champagne and strawberry reception before addressing the crowd, telling tales of how he received his nickname, which players in the game he admired, and the hardest lay down he ever made, as well as some practical advice on how to deal with tilt, bankroll management, playing styles, continuation betting and bet sizing.

When asked how he spent his winnings Ulliott recalled an occasion where he’d mixed up a bag of rubbish with a bag in which he’d put aside $ 40,000 for safe keeping. “The bag of rubbish was securely put away in the safe, and I threw away the forty grand.”

He also gave the Union an unnerving example of his commitment to the game. “I was in a big game in Vegas once and there was an earthquake,” he explained. “I wouldn’t let anyone at my table leave. I just wanted to carry on playing.”

Joe Barnard, organiser of the event, said, “After six years of trying to get Dave to speak at the Union he finally agreed and he didn’t disappoint. The session has us all engrossed, and Dave is also clearly a master at playing a crowd. His manner is unique, enigmatic, and his dry humour put a smile on everyone’s face. Afterwards, he received a rapturous round of applause.

“On behalf of everyone in Oxford I would like to thank him for coming to play and speak with us. We’ll be rooting for him at the World Series!”

By speaking at the Union, Ulliott joined a preeminent group of individuals which includes some of the most important figures in modern political, economic, scientific, artistic, and sporting history.

Among the notable figures who have addressed the Union are Albert Einstein, Richard Nixon, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama, Kermit the Frog, Yasser Arafat, Ian Paisley, John Hume, Diego Maradonna, Charlton Heston, Leonard Nimoy, Peter O’Toole, W.B. Yeats, Henry Kissinger, Ronald Reagan, and Robert Kennedy.

The Oxford Union Society, founded in 1823, is a debating, educational, and social society. Founded on a platform of the freedom of speech, when religion and politics were off-limits within the University, it exists separately from Oxford University and Oxford University Student Union (OUSU). Former British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan called it “the last bastion of free speech in the Western world”.