LeRon Washington

ClubWPT Star Wins By A Knockout!

Qualifier LeRon Washington scored one for the ClubWPT by winning the Celebrity Invitational at the LA Poker Classic last month. We talked to him. ClubWPT qualifier LeRon "Dream187" Washington recently took down the World Poker Tour Celebrity Invitational after defeating a field nearly 600 players from all walks of life. He earned $100,000 for his win and if you think the result was a fluke, then think again. LeRon had to beat a final table that included established poker pro Thor Hansen on his way to victory and had numerous clashes with poker’s big hitters along the way. Perhaps even more amazingly, LeRon qualified for the Celebrity Invitational via satellite right here on ClubWPT.com and we caught up with the professional boxer shortly after his win.

Read about his victory at the 2010 WPT Celebrity Invitational

Interview

ClubWPT: LeRon, congratulations on your win. How much live experience had you had prior to the Celebrity Invitational?

LeRon: I’d been playing live poker for the past five years – at least that’s when I first started out, but I’ve only moved into playing online recently. This was my first WPT event.

ClubWPT: Having started playing online with ClubWPT, what was it about the site that made you choose it over some of the other big US facing poker rooms?

LeRon: I’ve been playing with ClubWPT for just over a year now and I was first drawn to it because I saw the opportunity to enter events like the Celebrity Invitational and win cash in their daily tournaments. It was also good to watch the ClubWPT show and see how they acknowledged their big weekly winners. All that really interested me and made we want to play on their site.

ClubWPT: Of course, it was through ClubWPT that you qualified for the Celebrity Event – did you have a game plan when you went there or were you just out to enjoy the experience as a whole?

LeRon: It started out as just a bit of fun and I just wanted to go out there and enjoy being in the company of celebrities and pros, but I knew once it got down to playing poker, I had to play my game and stick with my normal strategy, despite the big occasion.

ClubWPT: Were there any pros that you clashed with during the event or any celebrities that you sent packing on your way to the final victory?

LeRon: At the time I didn’t really know any of the pros that I did knock out on my way to the final table, but I did clash with one known player, Phil Laak, and we had a couple of interesting hands together which I came out on top of. Of course, that was a really good experience for me on the inside – I couldn’t show it on the outside during a hand or anything – but it felt good to be sat alongside poker’s elite and still hold my own.

ClubWPT: What was that like for you? Did you find it intimidating playing against all these professional poker players or was it something that didn’t particularly faze you?

LeRon: Oh no, it wasn’t intimidating at all. Once it came down to playing cards, it was all about me knowing what I could do and simply sticking to my game and what I’ve learnt in the past. When I got the cards I played them how I wanted to play them and it didn’t really matter who I was against – I would do the same against anyone, be they amateur, pro or whoever. It really just came down to having the confidence to play my own game and fortunately it all panned out for me.

ClubWPT: Having made your name in boxing, are there any particular skills or mental attributes you’ve developed which you were able to apply at the poker table?

LeRon: Oh, for sure. Boxing and poker go hand-inhand with each other. They’re both about mind games and having a set strategy going in. It’s all about picking your right moves and knowing your opponent’s next move before they make it; beating them to the punch. In the end we all want to knock somebody out and come away with a victory!

ClubWPT: On the back of your WPT success, are you looking to play more live events like this and are you considering the possibility of getting a sponsorship deal?

LeRon: I am trying to and it is something that I’m looking into right now. I’m hoping that this win will open up the doors for a sponsor to see my talent, see what I’m able to do and hopefully will give me the opportunity to play in more events and do what I love to do. I’m not in the same position financially as a lot of other players where I can just travel and play in these $10,000 main events, but I hope that this opens a few doors and allows people to think, “Okay, this is one of the players that I would like to take a chance on,” and see where it goes it from there. I would definitely like to turn pro one day and just make it a career because outside of boxing it’s one of the things that I love to do most in my spare time.

ClubWPT: So you’re not planning to reinvest the $100,000 you earned for the win in other live tournament events just yet?

LeRon: Really, I’m just going to be using the money to take care of my family. Me and my wife talked about what to do with the winnings and decided it could be used to really put my family in a more comfortable situation. That’s all it’s really going to go on and I really appreciate ClubWPT giving me the opportunity to do that.