Due to a huge result in the WPT, the ‘Devilfish’ came 2nd in the UK Player of the Year 2008
DAVE ‘DEVILFISH’ ULLIOTT
TOTAL POINTS 1,220
FINAL TABLES 2
HIGHLIGHT 3RD PLACE IN THE $ 15K DOYLE BRUNS ON FIVE DIAMOND WORLD POKER CLASSIC
Thanks to another great WPT performance, Dave ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott has proved that he is still a force to be reckoned with on the world poker scene. We tracked the ‘Fish down at the PartyPoker Premier League III to get his thoughts on the events of the past 12 months.
On the face of it, Dave Ulliott seems to have no right to be anywhere near the top ten, nevermind second place in our rankings. A quick glance on the Hendon Mob reveals that 2008 has been one of the Devilfish’s quietest years ever on the circuit, with just over $ 108k in winnings and one final table back in March at the Vienna Spring Poker Festival. The World Series in particular proved to be a big disappointment. ‘I played quite a few events but the only real chance I had was in the $ 5,000 mixed hold’em – but only if my Aces had beaten Kings,’ he says. ‘An A-K had folded too so he only had one out! I would have been chip leader at the end of day one.’
Indeed, when we broke the news to the ‘Fish – backstage at the PartyPoker Premier League III – he was genuinely surprised. ‘I’ve had a lot of stuff on with the website, Devilfishpoker.com; my father ’s been in hospital for a long time. It hasn’t been a great year for me in the poker world.’
However, Devilfish’s high standing is well deserved due to the impressive third place at the $ 15k WPT Doyle Brunson Classic, which took place on 12 December 2007, thereby just nipping into the start of our rankings ‘year ’. The $ 674k cash prize was the most lucrative result of Ulliott’s long career, eclipsing even his WPT Tunica victory in 2003. Although it may not carry as much gravitas as that win, Ulliott is clearly proud of his performance. The 664-field was as tough as they come and included such luminaries as Daniel Negreanu, Gus Hansen and Erick Lindgren. ‘Overall I was really happy,’ he says. ‘I played really solid poker.’
A FISH OUT OF WATER
The story of Ulliott’s progress through the tournament is as entertaining (and candid) as you’d expect from the most outspoken man in UK poker. ‘I was a bit unlucky in that I had the same flu that Chip Reese died of,’ he says in his unmistakable Hull drawl. ‘First couple of days I played I was really ill. And as I started to recover, I started to go out and party. So I was ill or drunk most of the time I was playing. At the end of the third day, I had something like the same number of chips as I had on the first day. At that point, Phil Ivey had one-point-something million. I just stuck at it and ground my way through. There were a lot of occasions when I could have gone broke. I played 10-J suited, it was a multi-way pot and the flop came 10-5-5. For the chips I had, I was supposed to go broke. Daniel [Negreanu] had two Queens and I managed to throw the hand away.
Going into three-handed play with a 5/1 chip deficit to chip leader (and eventual winner) Eugene Katchalov, Ulliott tried to force the action, putting all his chips in with A-10, but he was looked up by Katchalov with A-J. Ulliott has no regrets about that play but can’t help but think that he could have been the only Brit in history to win two WPT titles. ‘The old man [Ted Kearly] who finished second got a lot of money in with the worst hand against the chip leader. If he gets knocked out I’m heads-up, and who knows what might have happened?’
BIG SWINGS
Despite experiencing a dry spell on the tournament circuit thereafter, Ulliott’s moneymaking abilities haven’t diminished over the last 12 months. Two shallow cashes at the WSOP hide the fact that he actually had a nightmare Series – ‘I was stuck almost a million dollars’ – but he managed to make it all back and more with a good run at the Big Game. ‘It wasn’t the usual Big Game where they play $ 600/$ 1200 limit. It was half hold’em, half Omaha $ 500/$ 1000. Durrr, Sammy Farha and Bobby Baldwin were all playing. I like to play in the big Omaha game because I’ve usually got a big edge on everybody. If it’s a big enough game, then I play my best.’ Ulliott finished over $ 200k up for the trip, most of which seemed to come from Farha’s deep pockets. ‘He’s very aggressive,’ explains Ulliott. ‘He lost quite a few million in the game that I was in. He rocks and rolls too much and his hand selection isn’t all it should be.’
As the highest-earning English poker player of all time (with over $ 5m), Ulliott acknowledges he is mellower and more relaxed than he’s ever been, but he says that he is still ambitious to do well.
‘I may have more money in the bank but I still hate to lose. It’s built inside me. It’s still hard for me to swallow when somebody gets his money in against you with the worst hand.’ Ulliott points to the ‘young guys’ as being particularly guilty of this manoeuvre. ‘Most of these guys, these young kids, win these tournaments making a lot of wrong decisions that turn out right. They get their money in and they get lucky. A lot of the young guys who win these no-limit tournaments do the wrong things. I’ve still got an edge over them.’
Looking forward to 2009, Ulliott says his main priority is to build the ‘Devilfish’ brand – that’s the reason why you often see him in televised shootout events such as the Premier League. ‘I get to wear my logo – there’s no way I would stump up £75k without that. I could put £75k in the World Series and win millions.’
HOW WE WORKED OUT DEVILFISH’S POINTS
12 DEC 2007 – $1 5K DOYLE BRUNSON FIVE DIAMOND WORLD POKER CLASSIC, 664 RUNNERS
3rd = 768 points
11TH MARCH 2008 €3,000 EUROPEAN CHALLENGE, VIENNA SPRING POKER FESTIVAL, 172 ENTRIES
8th = 45 points
TOTAL NUMBER OF POINTS
768+45 = 813 points
MULTIPLIER FOR 2 FINAL TABLES 1.5
813 x 1.5 = 1220 points
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