Schwartz knows exactly what he wants

News / Dave Allan / 03 November 2008 / Leave a comment

I don't imagine many people would have known too much about World Series of Poker finalist Ylon Schwartz but personally I am beginning to warm to the 38-year-old from Brooklyn and hope he goes on to win, writes Rob Eddy.

He is not particularly in a great position to land the gold bracelet and huge cash prize of $9.1m, lying fifth in the chip count with 12,525,000 - less than half of leader Dennis Phillips - and, consequently, fifth in the betting on Betfair.

I (as a closet alcoholic) am actually beginning to get behind him because he has some very simple plans on how to spend the life-changing fortune that he may accrue if successful, and that is to get drunk, very drunk.

"If I won $9 million, I know exactly what I would do with it," he said. "I'd drink a whole lot of tequila.

"I would get the best tequila there is and just drink it. I do not know, be a high-class wino for like the next 10 years. I told all my friends I'm going to go away and please don't come looking for me."

Perhaps not the greatest ambition there is, granted, but I like the honesty of the man and I know if I were ever in that position, I would be thinking on similar lines.

Schwartz, who made money hustling chess games down Broadway as a teenager, has enjoyed both the good times and the bad times at the hands of the poker gods.

Living the 'glorious' highlife when things were going well but experiencing a divorce, another relationship failure and going broke six times in 12 years when lady luck was not smiling.

However, he refuses to forget the hard times as it helps him to remain focused but now he has adapted his approach to the game, just to keep his sanity.

"It's very important to be hungry," he said. "You have to be hungry to win.

"I remember leaving my house at night feeling like an android," he added about marathon online sessions. "Nothing made sense. I had to get back to the lime, the coconut, the beach, rum and relaxation.

"So now, to stay balanced, I do lots of yoga, go to therapy as much as I can and stay involved with the physical world and out of (two-dimensional) life for the most part."