Justin Bonomo is a student of the game of poker, and that education has paid off with plenty of tournament success and over $1 million in career earnings. As a member of
Team Bodog, Bonomo is hoping to collect more cash (and a bracelet) at this year’s
World Series of Poker. ZeeJustin took time out of his busy poker schedule for these 20 questions . . .
1. Dude. You have been kicking some serious butt lately. What's up?Better lucky than good, right? Seriously, I've been playing really well, and catching some cards at the right time doesn't hurt either.
2. And what is up with SENS (Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence), your charity of choice? Are you afraid of getting old?
Aging is the deadliest disease on our planet today. 150,000 people die every day, and two thirds of them die from aging or aging-related diseases. In the industrialized world, that number is closer to 90%.
There are two huge hurdles in our way of fixing this. 1) People don't understand that it's a feasible goal to fight aging on a cellular level (it is), and 2) People don't understand that if we did this, Alzheimer's disease, broken hips, and most forms of cancer would become a thing of the past if more money were put into this research.
People live in their shells, and are happy in their worlds. I wouldn't be a poker player today if I didn't realize that there are better things out there than the status quo. Think bigger.
3. Like your fellow Team Bodog member, David Williams, you played a little 'Magic' in your youth. What is it about 'Magic' that captured your interest?
I played Magic with my brother and next door neighbors when I was eight, but it wasn't until a few years later that I fell in love with the game. It was when I played my first tournament, and realized how competitive and how strategic the game really was. Also, watching this dude named Abe win $50 every Sunday was one of my first "eye-openers" (I was 11 at the time and $50 was a lot. I later found tournaments with MUCH bigger prize pools).
4. But back to poker. You latched onto multi-tabling sit-n-go tournaments early on in your online poker career. What did you like about sit-n-go play?
They were a joke. Just complete free money. Nobody had a clue. I was able to play 12 of them at a time and just make an absolute killing. My bankroll skyrocketed from them.
5. Looking back, how do you see your progression as a poker player? (Especially going from online tournaments to live, land-based tournaments.)
I accelerated so fast (in terms of both skill and bankroll) in my first 18 months as a poker player, and the growth really just had to slow down after that. It wasn't possible to keep up. A lot of people look at my success over the past two years and don't realize that I really was a great player four years ago. The switch from
online play to live play was very natural for me. I already had tons of tournament experience, and Magic gave me all the experience I needed in high pressure situations against live opponents.
6. What do you consider to be your biggest accomplishment? (And it doesn't have to be poker related.)
There aren't really any specific accomplishments that I'm particularly proud of, but I will say that it's cool that I was the first teenager ever to make a televised table in
poker (when I got 4th in the European Poker Tour tournament in Deauville). I went 3-0 in the Magic draft we did last night! I've also never been dumped, and I make amazing scrambled eggs.
7. As a pro poker player, what is your number-one goal? What are you reaching for?
I don't have specific goals in poker. I just try to always balance my life and poker so that I'm always enjoying what I do.
8. You're a young, single guy. What's it like being young, single and living in Las Vegas as a pro poker player?
I love it. I basically have no responsibilities. I do what I want, when I want, and girls seem to like that freedom (when it's with success rather than unemployment).
9. Have you learned anything about the game from any of the veterans (Moneymaker, Negreanu, Hellmuth) on the scene? (If so, from whom and what have you learned?)
I'm a poker leech. I learn from everyone and everything, both good and bad examples. Negreanu would fall in the former category, and Hellmuth in the latter. A few of the guys like Barry, Daniel, and Matusow have really taken a liking to me, and they've given me tons of little bits of wisdom. Other "veterans" have clearly shown me how easy it is to lose your whole bankroll if you have a few vices, and I've definitely learned a valuable lesson from them as well.
10. If you could sit down and play a game of poker with any five people in the world (living or deceased), who would you pick?
Thom Yorke from Radiohead and Miley Cyrus, and I'd instigate a fight. (Google the back story to this, it's hilarious!) Then I'd pick Neil Degrasse Tyson, Ray Kurzweil, and Stephen Hawking to finish the pack. I'd love to see those guys debate about topics I would barely understand, especially if I got to ask my obligatory stupid questions so that I could follow along at least a little bit.
11. If you could sit down and play a game of STRIP POKER with any five people in the world (living or deceased), who would you pick?
From the previous list I'd keep Stephen Hawking... ok not really...Heidi Klum (my first ever celebrity love), Jennifer Aniston, Elisha Cuthbert, Avril Lavigne, and Olivia Wilde.
12. A few weeks ago you finished first at Caesars Palace Poker Tournament - WSOP Circuit Event and walked away with $227,692.00 in your pockets. What does a win like that feel like?
To be honest, it wasn't that great. It's not my biggest cash ever, and I have a bunch that are just about that big. Also, the event used to be televised and used to get more players. I'm still looking for that huge win (i.e. a WPT, or a major
WSOP event) with over $1,000,000 for first.
13. Do you think you have what it takes to win the Main Event at the 2009 WSOP? For that matter, what does it take?
It takes a ridiculous amount of luck. Even the best player in the world is still going to be about 500-1 against winning the tournament. Making predictions for the Main Event is just silly.
14. What do you make of David Williams, Jean-Robert Bellande, and Evelyn Ng? They seem like pretty cool people. Of the three, who could you take heads-up?
They're all awesome. If I could play one heads-up, it would probably be Evelyn. She's the most fun out of the group.
15. To all of the young, online poker players sitting at home right now, taking it one online tournament at a time with the hopes of winning a few firsts and some good cash, what advice do you have? How hard is it to make a living playing poker?
It's hard to make a living
playing poker. Most people either fail or regret the decision. If you want to do it for a long time to come, make sure you are always studying the game, and always getting better.
16. The WSOP has come a long way. What do you like about the 2009 WSOP?
It gets bigger every year. There are more events, and bigger buy-ins. I think the 40k NL event will be the highlight of 2009. I hope they continue it (and not just because I final tabled it).
17. What do you think about Scotty Nguyen giving up on poker if he doesn't win a bracelet?
I call BS. The man's delusional. He was betting people he'd win $4,000,000 in the
2009 WSOP? Get real. He doesn't even have a single cash yet this year.
18. Annie Duke announced on national television (Celebrity Apprentice) that she gives "a great blow job." What, if anything, have you heard?
I don't know Annie that well, but Joe seems to be a very happy guy. She's probably telling the truth!
19. Moving right along. How do you stay in shape for a strenuous and stressful tournament like the WSOP?
I'm actually gaining weight for the first time in my life. I have to say good bye to my perfect metabolism. I'm going to start running when the WSOP is over, but until then, I'll just eat reasonably healthy without going overboard.
20. What do you think of the WSOP? What changes would you suggest making?
I love the WSOP, even though I don't really fall for all the prestige. For me it's just a chance to play for large sums of money against mediocre competition. I wouldn't change much, but I would keep the 40k NL event, and add a few more 8 games to the list of events.
