A - Z of Poker: Day 8

From London to Vegas in 26 Letters

Day8: H is for ...

H is for H-Bomb. Poker nicknames are for life. I can't ever change my name now and (like any good poker moniker) it was not invented by the owner.

I believe it was "Ron Burgundy" of the Gutshot forum who coined the phrase during a lively forum league game last year. I had just scooped a huge pile of chips in my trademark style of building a massive pot whilst in need of some help from the deck, and then hitting.

The phrase "H-bomb" immediately resonated with the other players in the game, and the name stuck.

The H-bomb style is built on aggression and luck. The luck sometimes appears to flow in unlimited quantities. The aggression rarely slackens. The collective memory of my opponents (and myself) tends to selectively remember those occasions when the aggression and luck have combined to suitably thermonuclear effect.

The H-bomb effect is often instantaneous. I will sometimes sit in a stagnant £1-2 PLO game, where the £500 stacks are moving at glacial speed, and have the whole table all-in pre-flop within 5 hands. Usually sooner.

At the WSOP this year I am hoping to explode a few bombs without causing too much collateral damage.


H is for Hendon Mob. Ask poker players what "Hendon Mob" means to them and I am guessing that whilst many could name one or more of the four mobsters, nearly all of them would mention the massive database hosted on their site. Results from every significant poker tournament are tracked there. Hundreds of tournaments per month, thousands of players. A cash in a WSOP, EPT, GUKPT would obviously be there along with all the successes from festivals (large and small) from all over the world.

Type in the name of any famous player and their achievements will be listed. However, it is not just the world champions and household names. Many of my poker friends merit inclusion. Sometimes it can be just a £300 place in a £50 end of festival freezeout.

Not a big deal really ? But: they are there and I am not !

This is one reason why if I get near the money in Vegas this year, I am folding till past the bubble. I am folding until I am in that database !