Philip Hilm Chip Leader at 2007 World Series of PokerRemember the name. You'll be hearing more about him after this week. It's Danish poker player, Philip Hilm, and coming into Tuesday's final table of the 2007 World Series of Poker, Hilm had the chip lead.
Hilm has performed well on the European Poker Tour, where he is ranked 73rd and has winnings of €109,390.
He has placed 4th in the EPT in Copenhagen and 1st in the WCP in Barcelona.
"Between October and December 2003, I was demonstrating and selling coffee machines in supermarkets. It was a lousy job, but I needed the money to buy Christmas presents," he told PokerTips.org.
That's when Hilm decided to try his hand at poker.
"Around that time a friend of mine, who had been a professional backgammon player for 4 or 5 years, started playing poker and introduced it to me. I decided to give it a real shot, so I studied and practiced intensely. After one month I was making 3 times the money playing poker in the evening, than I did at my job. The decision was easy, and I never looked back."
Hilm told the site how he considers poker both a hobby and a job. His first year he made $50,000 playing.
"It was a lot of money to me then. Today the same amount is easily an up- or downswing for one month."
As the chip leader coming into Tuesday's finale of the 2007 World Series of Poker, any tips that Hilm could offer should certainly prove invaluable to online poker players looking to make some nice cash.
"On the technical side, practice playing heads-up cash games," he offered PokerTips.org. "Try to really focus on your own and your opponent's playing styles. Improving your skills in that area will improve your overall game tremendously.
"On the psychological side, try to welcome bad beats. The existence of bad beats is the only reason poor players keep playing - when they win a big pot, their illusion of being a good player is kept alive. I make money because a lot of people play poorly. So bad beats are actually the main reason I make money. It's a lot easier to play solid poker when you appreciate the inevitable bad beats."
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Ace King, Gambling911.com
Originally published July 16, 2007 7:44 pm ET
