Jonathan Little WSOP Main Event Day 1 Advice

The World Series of Poker Main Event is one of the best structured tournaments in poker with two-hour levels and a 50,000-chip starting stack.  Surviving the first day can be a challenge – even for noted pros. Jonathan Little already avoided a couple tough spots in the opening levels and above the starting stack with 59,000 after the second break.

“Well I think the goal, if you’re a good player, is to play as many hands as possible in a profitable manner,” Little said. “If you happen to find yourself all in early in the tournament and lose, well you don’t get any more profitable pots in the future.”

“You want to make sure you don’t play any big pots unless you’re running a bluff that has a huge chance of success or you have the best hand,” he continued. “Earlier today, I had a set and my opponent checked-min-raised me on the turn with three clubs on the board. That’s a spot where you just call and hope to make a boat.”

“He happened to bet small again on the river, which I called, and he ended up having a bad flush – so it’s probably not a good call,” said Little. “But you don’t want to play big pots without the nuts if your opponents are taking an aggressive line.”

Jonathan Little made the final table of a Shootout event this year. (Photo: PokerPhotoArchive.com)
Little transitioned from the felt to the anchor desk this year, providing commentary several times over the summer for PokerGO.

“It was a lot of fun commentating this year,” he said. “It’s great to watch other world-class players play at a very high level. Being able to see what they do and try to figure out why they’re doing it is fun and exciting. I love being part of the team, making a great product and I’m glad PokerGO is working out well.”

“It would have to be a mix because I have to make some money playing poker sometime,” he said. “It’s a lot of fun and certainly a different kind of stress than playing poker. Playing poker you lose and it’s just a pile of money, where if you’re commentating you can forget how to speak English – which is the worst possible thing.”