Matt "ch0ppy" Kay currently sits at the top of the Online Player of the Year leader board with 3,172 points. He kicked off his trek up the leader board with a win in the PokerStars Sunday Million tournament in early January. Since that time, he's earned points for finishes in nine other tournaments, including six final tables and two first-place finishes. His total winnings for OPOY tournaments alone come to almost $335,000.
Kay recently turned off his dual-screen monitors for a bit to talk with CardPlayer about his success so far this year:
Shawn Patrick Green: How long have you been playing poker?
Matt "ch0ppy" Kay: I've been playing a little over two years total, although I didn't start winning until about six months into it. As soon as I turned 18, I was on the phone with NETELLER at midnight so that I could put money online ASAP.
SPG: Your biggest cash on PokerStars before your big win in the Sunday Million was for $1,900. It's some jump from $1,900 to $201,000, huh?
MK: Well, technically that's what it was, but there's a guy in my residence, "P2Kelly," and I paid half of his buy-in for a tournament and basically helped him through because he didn't have much experience. We ended up winning for $11,000. So, I got to split half of that.
However, I was more of a cash game player before that, and had a bankroll of about $15,000 at the time. I met "hit21hit" around November 2006 and he showed me how to play the tournaments better, and my tournament game has improved a lot because of his help. I was able to develop my own strategy through this, and it seems to be working pretty well so far.
SPG: What kind of impact did the win at the Sunday Million have on you?
MK: Pretty huge. I was able to get a car (Toyota Corolla CE Special Edition) and the guitar I've always wanted (a Gibson Les Paul for $2,800 CAN). It's also allowed me to play the higher games, which I knew I've always been capable of, but I've always had to watch the bankroll.
SPG: How did you handle the money?
MK: I put it all into a 4 percent interest savings account and then I kept playing to see how I did. I expected to win more, which I did, thankfully. And then, just the other day I invested in stocks and such.
SPG: You won that top prize without chopping; ironic, considering your name. Did chopping ever cross your mind?
MK: I felt like I pretty much had control of the final table the whole time, so a chop wasn't really that interesting unless I got a really good deal that I couldn't turn down. I figured that, with the Sunday Million, so many people want to chop it normally that I could probably hold down and get a lot more. But chopping never really came up, which surprised me.
SPG: What are you thoughts on chops?
MK: I generally don't take them unless I get a good deal; better than a straight by-the-chips chop. Like, in the Sunday Million Second Chance that I won recently, I had $1.7 million in chips and the other guy had $1.8 million, and we chopped so that I got $39,000 and he got $37,000 and we played for the remaining $2,300.
SPG: (Laughing) How did you convince him to do that?
MK: I don't know. I just talked a bunch (laughing).
SPG: How often do you play now?
MK: I have the summer off now, so I plan on playing quite a bit. I try to make every Monday (for the Full Tilt $1,000), Wednesday, and Sunday, for sure.
SPG: You've made more than $136,000 since your win from OPOY-qualifying tournaments alone. That's basically 70 percent again more than your already major cash. Did you expect to carry your win in the Sunday Million to this level?
MK: I didn't know how well I'd do; I expected to do better than before, but I was still figuring out my game and figuring out what works and what doesn't work. Now I've got a pretty good understanding. My beginnings of tournaments aren't what I want, yet, but near the middle and end, when I have decent chips, I generally play very well. I find myself going through and, when I'm really in the game, I can call down people with king high and such.
SPG: How would you describe your playing style?
MK: I try to change it up so it can be tight-aggressive or loose-aggressive – but I'm always aggressive. And I play differently against different players, of course.
SPG: There's got to be something that sticks out in your mind as a particularly good mindset or a strategy that has helped you in tournament play thus far. Do you have any idea what that might be?
MK: It may just be more motivation to get that top prize. When blinds are bigger, it's better for my aggressive style because lots of people get afraid there. And I don't care about the pay increases, really, I just play to win. So, I find that I can really take advantage of people who don't play to win.
SPG: You're under the legal gambling age in the U.S., just like quite a few other top-ranking Internet pros. (Annette_15 comes to mind.) Do the current gambling laws make much sense to you?
MK: I don't like them. I wish I could play in Las Vegas in the World Series of Poker this year, but instead I have to wait a couple of years. I can still do the tournaments in Europe. I'll be doing the European World Series of Poker and I'll also be in Aruba, as well. Before that, there's a casino in New York that's 18-years-old plus, and they've got a couple $200 to $1,000 buy-ins. So, I get to get some live experience first.
SPG: Have you played live much, or no?
MK: Just in side games with friends, but nothing besides that. But I don't think it will be that much different.
SPG: So, you've never played in a casino?
MK: Nope, not yet.
SPG: You're from Canada, right? Where, specifically?
MK: I am from Waterloo, Ontario. It seems to be a growing place for upcoming poker players, like stevejpa, hit21hit, cutiepi314, Ibluffuout4, and so on. A lot of people have realized this and have changed their city to "Waterloo" on PokerStars in an attempt to run better (laughing).
SPG: What are you currently doing in school and what school do you go to?
MK: I am currently at the University of Waterloo for mathematics and chartered accountancy. However, I've realized I don't like it a lot, and I also don't care about money as much. So, I'll be taking a year off to play poker and think about what I may want to do. Unless I win a World Poker Tour event or something … then I can just live off of interest as a backup plan.
SPG: So your life plans have changed since poker took its grip on you?
MK: Before poker I didn't really have that much of a plan, I just knew what I was good at in school, and what I could be successful at, but I couldn't find a career I thought I would enjoy. My current plan is to keep improving my game and to not have to work a day of my life in a "conventional job." I like poker more than any job I could get, I believe.
SPG: What kind of job do you currently hold?
MK: I currently don't have a job. It seems kind of pointless to have one at my age. I make more in interest doing nothing now than I would working 20 to 30 hours a week at $9 to $10 an hour. My last job was at Dairy Queen. I decided to quit in the beginning of October because I didn't enjoy it anymore, and playing $2-$4 cash games made the bi-weekly paychecks from Dairy Queen kind of useless, since I can win or lose my paycheck in one hand, easily. Recently, I found out my boss wanted me back, but he said "It would cost too much to get him back." I found that funny (laughing).
SPG: How does it feel to be at the top of the Card Player Online Player of the Year leader board? Do you think you deserve it?
MK: I think I played pretty well this year so far. I hope I can maintain the spot. I'll try my best. I'll have to keep playing; fewer breaks (laughing). I need to try to cash in more of the 100K-plus tournaments that count. That would always help.
