Foul-mouthed and in your face, Dave ‘Devilfish’ Ulliott has chewed up the UK poker scene
Getting the man they call ‘Devilfish’ to badmouth his rivals is not something you would imagine being difficult. But as we meet on a dreary September afternoon, his mood is somewhat rosy, sprinkled even with a touch of affection. The Matusow outburst has been a rare exception as we discuss the merits of the game’s table tyrants: ‘It’s a bad situation to be in. People are just having a go so they can get their name out there. Being good at the chat is not about shouting as loud as you can. I like to be funny; but I don’t like to rant and rave.’
Ranting and raving is perhaps something we could afford Ulliott at this moment in time. Twelve months ago, the ’Fish was in the middle of his driest run of tournament results since playing an instrumental role in starting the poker TV boom in the late 1990s. Some within the game were asking whether his time was up, while others claimed, in no uncertain terms, that it had been for a while. So with the ’Fish on the way to his most successful year yet in 2007 – with just short of $600,000 already in the bank – I’m left puzzled as he slips back into neutral. There’s no bragging; there’s no animosity directed at his detractors – just a sense of composed contentment.
‘I’ve played in fewer tournaments this year than any other,’ he says. ‘I just can’t be bothered playing in too many. There are other things I want to do than sweat my life away at the poker table. I like to go out and party. Poker is not the be-all-and- end-all for me now. If I go somewhere for a tournament, I’ll always have a better chance of cracking it in the first week. After that, the vodka kicks in and you don’t get a lot of sleep.’
Ulliott’s reputation in the poker world has always been about more than just numbers. Anyone who knows anything about the UK poker scene will know he heads the money list on home shores, with around $4.5 million in tournament winnings. You’ll know he has won both a WSOP bracelet and a WPT event. You’ll know he won the first ever series of Late Night Poker in 1999, and you’ll know he sits second only to 2002 main event runner-up Julian Gardner as the leading Brit at the WSOP (he has 23 cashes) – a record better than Daniel Negreanu’s.
But you’ll also know the character that is ‘Devilfish’. He likes a chat, loves a drink, wants to be known as a bit of a tough guy. He’s one of poker’s old school. So just how relevant is the ’Fish in today’s more gentrified field of poker superstars?
‘I’ll always fit into the poker world and would like to think I have done something special to the game.’ And of his rise back towards the top ranks? ‘You have to keep your name up there, don’t you. The criticism I got probably spurred me on. There are times when you need a bit of a kick up the backside. But I’m still not as motivated now as I used to be…’
PLAY IT AGAIN…
Looking around ‘Fortress Devilfish’, it’s easy to see the lifestyle poker has brought him. Framed pictures of celebrities are scattered everywhere – from legendary crime boss ‘Mad’ Frankie Frazer to Hollywood A-lister Ben Affleck. On the wall of his lounge hangs a huge plasma screen, while in the corner sits a piano and saxophone. Two electric guitars rest either side of the fireplace. He asks me if I like the guitars, I tell him I do. I ask him if he plays much, he bangs out a couple of blues numbers to prove he does – eye-balling me as I fidget nervously in a moment of deep awkwardness. It’s here where I begin to understand that there may be too many distractions in this man’s life to make playing cards the number one priority.
Taking our seats, the phone rings and he takes the call. Someone gets called a prick – I’m not sure if it’s the caller or me – before he hangs up and we get back to the chat…
Dave, 2007 has been a fantastic year for you in terms of results. So why are you not playing as much poker as before?
Devilfish: There are a lot more things to do than spend time playing poker. But poker will always be there. That’s the great thing about poker, wherever you are in the world you can play poker and win money. If you play pool, you can walk into a pool hall and win. It’s the same with poker.
There were some comments made last year in our magazine by Dave Colclough, who said you and he were the two most overrated players in the UK. How do you feel about that now?
D: Not long after he said that, I went and banged out two tournaments in America. It pissed me off, but it also spurred me on. So Dave actually did me a favour there, and we’re okay now, back pals. It was just a little thing and it’s in the past. I’ve nothing against him – good luck to him.
Anything in particular that has changed in your game?
D: Not particularly. There are some tournaments that I really have a good go at, you know. At the World Series this year I finished third in the Omaha tournament, and I really gave it a good shot. I went out to win that and I was unlucky to lose. I’ll take my chances in a coin-flip situation but I still want to win. People don’t want to know who won tournaments last year.
You are third in our UK player rankings at the moment. Roland de Wolfe is first…
D: Roland is a nice kid. He’s very modest, but he only really plays no- limit hold’em, whereas I play all the poker games out there – and I have the results to back it up. [De Wolfe came 11th in this year’s WSOPE pot- limit Omaha event – Ed.] I’ve won a World Series bracelet in pot-limit Omaha and more Omaha events than most people in the world, and Roland knows that. But I like the kid because he admits that he gets a lot of luck. He said to me at the World Series this year that he only needed another cash to finish as top European. But I told him that didn’t alter the fact I have won more tournaments – it’s just because of the prize money today. It’s not a fair indication of how good a player you are. You can win one event and go to the top of the tree, but it doesn’t make you the best player.
People are still intrigued by you as a character…
D: Well, poker is massive now. People still come up to me and tell me they started playing because they saw me on TV. I try and make the game fun.
But are the characters going out of the game?
D: I don’t like all this celebrity poker. You wouldn’t go and watch a game of football between two teams that have only played the game twice, would you? The standard is awful. I just find the whole thing terrible to watch. Even the big tournaments, like the World Series, you’ll get nobodies on the final table. They’re all sat around wearing sunglasses and saying nothing. Poker can be very boring, but the numbers are good for the prize money, I guess.
But the numbers at some tournaments are ridiculous…
D: Anything that puts money in the game is good. Of course it makes it much more difficult to win, but if there are three starting days in a tournament and 9,000 people playing, you shouldn’t look at it as having to beat 9,000; you should be looking at it as having to beat 3,000. In that respect it is not so hard. You get a lot of money in there and you only have a third of the field to beat.
Anything you would like to see change in the poker world?
D: I want more Omaha tournaments with rebuys – you need rebuys in an Omaha tournament. I also want more pot-limit hold’em tournaments because pot-limit is more skilful than no-limit; anyone who plays the game will tell you that. You’ll get better final tables because the more skilled players will go through. All these no- limit hold’em tournaments are hard. Recently I went down to London to play in the EPT. Now for me to go down to London for one no-limit hold’em tournament is tough, as I know how much of a lottery it can be.
So do you think there’s too much no-limit hold’em…?
D: The girl who won the WSOPE main event [Annette Obrestad], I’ve heard she is a very good player, but you are not going to get an 18-year old winning a seven-card stud event. For me, the only time the skill comes into no-limit hold’em is when you get a lot of chips. You get a lot of chips and you don’t need to find cards. But getting the chips is very tough, because you have to win your races and you have to win the coin-flips.
You mentioned the EPT London – what happened there?
D: I got up from 10,000 to 30,000, but I lost a couple of hands about half an hour before the end of the first day, when I should have kept quiet. Then Moneymaker moved all-in when I had about 15,000 in chips left. I’m looking at the clock thinking, ‘Do I really want to come back in two days time with 15,000 or do I want to gamble?’ I just thought bollocks to it, stuck the money in and he rolled over two Aces, knocking me out of the tournament with two minutes to go.
Does that go back to what you were saying about not being as motivated these days?
D: When the money was tighter a few years ago, I would have thrown my hand away. But I don’t like the idea of hanging around. If I was playing the next day, I may have mucked the cards. But I don’t want to be hanging round in London for a day to come back with 15,000. I didn’t have a hotel room either, so I just went clubbing and got straight on the train back to Hull.
There must be added pressure on you in tournaments as well. I saw a guy at the World Series giving you the verbals and wanting to have a go.
D: Everybody wants to knock me out. They want a story for their kids. If they knock me out, they have a story. It’s the same with Phil Hellmuth; a lot of people like to take him on, but it’s a bit different with Hellmuth because he will actually fold quite a few hands – whereas with me they know they will get a bit of a war. I actually try to dodge aggressive players. Lunatics will take you on and they are tough to play against. I play against the tight players. I’m assuming the smart players try to do the same with me, as I’m pretty aggressive.
Do you have to change your game much? By that I mean you are facing players who have seen you play on TV and know how you play in particular scenarios.
D: I do change my game depending on what type of player I am playing. Some players you need to bet into when you have a good hand and others will bet for you. People see how you play; they see you bet and raise with marginal hands and they assume you always have nothing, so they are always taking you on. But it’s very hard to get a good hand in no-limit hold’em – most of the time you are running without the ball. Unless you are Phil Hellmuth of course, then you just pick up Aces every hand.
How would you define what makes a great player?
D: Well you need to be able to adjust, tone it down against aggressive players and turn it up against tight players. There are too many players out there who don’t adjust; they need to play marginal hands when necessary. The really great players can always adjust. One fixed game of poker is not going to make you a winner. You need to be able to get busy with hands like 5-6. There are so many decisions to make in poker.
Moving on to players, Ram Vaswani told us that you were one of the reasons why he got into poker as he saw you as one of the true characters in the game…
D: Ram is one of the nicest kids in the poker world. I once saw Tony G having a go at him and I had to go over to Tony and tell him to calm down. But the verbals never bother Ram. He is very, very talented and he knows how to get the chips. Once he has them, his game is so strong. He is a true poker player, plays all the games to a very high standard. Ram is just a very likeable kid. All the Hendon Mob are great players – very solid players in every game.
You just mentioned Tony G. You two have had some battles…
D: Off the table, Tony G is a mouse. He hardly says a word to anyone. Nice bloke, but unfortunately, as I said, people need to get themselves on TV. Mike Matusow has never said anything to me; he ribs other people, calls them donkeys. But I’ve seen him make moves at the table and I’ve pulled him up on them. When he does bad stuff, he says he’s playing badly that day. But when anyone else does it, then they can’t play and are a donkey.
And Hellmuth?
D: Hellmuth is a really likeable kid off the table. I’ve always said that if he were made out of chocolate he would have eaten himself long ago. He is a very honest man, straight down the line. He genuinely believes he is the best no-limit hold’em player in the world, and with 11 bracelets you can’t argue. I have seen him off the table, and I know what he can really be like. In fact, I remember when him and me were in Pure nightclub (Vegas) and a load of English boys came over and started asking to have their picture taken with me. They were like ‘Devilfish this’ and ‘Devilfish that’. Now the English just aren’t too keen on Phil, so the lads ignored him. Then Phil disappears and goes home to put his sunglasses and cap on because he was worried that nobody recognised him. He definitely has some mental problems in that department, but overall he is a great guy.
It’s fair to say you have a reputation. Do you think people really have a problem with you, or are they just jealous?
D: I’ve got loads of friends in poker. The people I play poker with are friends. I like everybody; I’d like to think people like me. I haven’t got a lot of enemies, that’s just jealousy.
But you’ve upset some people along the way…
D: I say what I think and some people don’t like that. Everybody wants my lifestyle; I’m always the one the cameras are on. I’ve got a sense of humour, usually have the best-looking girl on my arm, and I’m a good- looking bastard. If I like someone, I’ll never have a go and ridicule them. I may make a constructive comment and say they played a hand badly, but that’s all. You have to remember that there are a lot of people out there who aren’t really poker players. Yeah, they’ve had some results, but they aren’t really poker players. They are the ones who probably don’t like me.
How long will the Devilfish continue to play a key role in the poker world?
D: I’ll always be able to play poker. For as long as your brain works, you can play. You see guys in Vegas with no arms and legs, but they are still playing good poker because their brains are working. You need physical fitness to play for days, I guess. But I’m okay on that score. Look at me, not an ounce of fat anywhere.
Patting his stomach to show off his slender physique, Ulliott asks what time my train back to London is, before offering me a lift to the station. Chatting freely over the distorted R&B pumping through his Hummer’s sound system, he turns to me, rather matter-of-factly, saying: ‘One of the most important things for me is that I’ve won awards outside of poker.’
As for his 2007 renaissance, there is certainly a sense that his lack of desire to be run down by the grind of tournament play has made his game great once again. But however good or bad Ulliott’s form runs at the tables, it’s fair to say that his place at the forefront of UK poker will stand the test of time.
‘The ’Fish is a legacy for poker,’ says Tony G, the trash-talking Australian. ‘He remains a super talent and one of the game’s true characters.
‘I have been fortunate enough to play with the ’Fish many, many times and have also had the pleasure of knocking him out of many big events. That has given me immense pleasure and satisfaction – simply because Devilfish is a British icon.’
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