Martin Wins EPT London; PL.com Interviews

By Martin Derbyshire Oct 5, 2008 | 1 month ago

Michael Martin wins PokerStars EPT London Season 5

In a run of good cards and sick luck rarely seen at this level of poker, 24-year old American Michael Martin went from four-handed short stack to chip leader and never really looked back on his way to the PokerStars.com EPT London Season 5 crown.

With a £1 million first-place prize in his pocket and a massive faux-crystal PokerStars trophy weighing him down, he sat down with PL.com to tell us all about his first dramatic win here at his second EPT final table.

What an amazing run to glory Michael. How does it feel?

It feels awesome. At the beginning of heads-up when I lost a coin flip, I was sick to my stomach, thinking that I couldn't take it another second, and in [the past] I have mentally given up at those times. But I got incredibly lucky to get through this final table earlier and I came back from $95,000 in chips. That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen so I just stuck with it.

I think having my family here helped me stay in it. They flew here last night and I thought there was no way I would make them fly out here for a second place.

Once you went from short stack to leader you had to start seeing winning as a definite possibility; take us through your mindset there?

Honest to God, when I tripled up with the eights there, I knew I was going to do something with the $250k. Then I get nines the next hand on that sick river and I get aces the next hand. It was surreal, the whole thing was surreal. That stuff happens maybe once a year online and to have it happen at a live huge final table, it's beyond belief.

You've really set the standard for the chip and chair win here at the EPT; how does that feel?

Self-proclaimed luckbox.

It's nice to be a luckbox; honest to God.

Let's get back to before the magical triple- and double-ups. At the start of play Eric Liu really ran things, and you seemed card dead. Were you just telling yourself to be patient?

To be honest, I knew [the cards] would come, but there was nothing I could do. I had Eric [Liu] and I had Phillipe [D'Aauteuil] and Johannes [Strassman] all to my left. I couldn't even steal because they don't let you just raise with cheese from late position or from anywhere. So I basically just waited it out.

In the end, when you got heads-up, Michael Tureniec stayed close. Was there ever a time you were worried the win might be in jeopardy?

The very beginning it was a lot of gambling, because he was really short and I'm going to be shoving almost any button. When I lost that coin flip I still had a really good lead. He won a few pots, but I felt like I had it the whole time.

We're behind you all the way, Michael.

So what's next for you Michael?

The rest of the season here on the EPT; home for a couple of weeks [first] and then back to Europe.

And tonight, how are you going to celebrate this win?

Oh, I am drinking and you guys are all invited.

* * * * * * * * * * *

And with that PL.com is off to the bar for some booze at our favorite price, Free.99, courtesy of Mr. Martin, who displayed enough skill and luck here at PokerStars.com EPT London to be able to afford the good stuff. Add this win to his Grand Final final-table appearance in Monte Carlo last season, and we're getting hammered with one of the game's brightest stars.