The PCA branded baseball cap is a giveaway that Jodi Hurley has played poker in a more exotic location then Lenton. Indeed the Londoner, from Norwood, is a Platinum Pass winner who participated in the PSPC earlier this year. A $25,000 buy-in is a far cry from his poker beginnings.

“To start with it was difficult to get my friends to play a game for money that they didn’t understand too well, until a friend that did play online on PokerStars suggested trying out a pub poker game.

“We went and you have never seen three grown men so nervous about playing a £5 buy in game of poker. It was a weekly league structure and we were soon attending every week. I think it was probably six months before I won the game for maybe £60-70 and I was thrilled at that and had officially caught the poker bug.” 

Qualifying on Power Path for $1.50

I’m chatting to Hurley shortly after he’s busted out of Day 1D of the UKIPT Main Event.

He qualified via Power Path for just $1.50 and last weekend won another Silver Pass. It’s burning a hole in his pocket and he’s tempted to re-enter.

But, with each Silver Pass also containing a seat to the UKIPT Cup, which started today, he eventually decides that he’ll keep his powder dry and likely use it to play Eureka Prague in December.

Although, given Hurley’s love for Power Path, he may well have snagged another Silver Pass by then as he tells me he has three $109 Step 4 tickets that he’s waiting to use.

“From the moment I heard about the Power Path and the passes I was locked into trying to qualify for one. I have always appreciated when there is extra value in games and with all the added tickets and overlays in the qualifiers there isn’t anywhere else with so much value available to players.”

In pursuit of a Silver Pass

So with tunnel vision, Hurley has made a beeline for the Power Path lobby whenever he logs onto PokerStars.

“My plan was to play as many of the $1.50 and $11 steps with added seats as I could, preferably not buying in directly for more than the $1.50. I grinded the game for weeks and accumulated quite a few of the $109 qualifier tickets. I was getting close but not quite winning the Silver Pass.

“My worst miss was coming ninth when there were eight silver passes after a short stack cracked aces twice in a row, the second time being my own.

“The very next qualifier there were five Silver Passes available and I was deep in it realising I was probably going to have to try and steal light to make it as I was pretty card dead, I got jams through with junk hands a couple of times and was comfortable this time when the bubble came round and managed to hold on to win.”

Onto that PSPC experience.

Memorable moments at the PSPC

Hurley won his pass via a Twitch giveaway about a year before the PSPC and although he didn’t cash in the Main Event, he did end up on the feature table on Day 2, before busting to Leo Margets.

“It was the experience of my life,” he said. “I didn’t cash the Main, but I did manage second for $1600 in the $50 PSPC Invitational for pass winners and their plus ones, just missing out on the trophy and official winners photo, losing to fellow pass winner Robert from Essen in Germany, a deserving winner and real gentleman.”

It’s clear from the way Hurley talks about his poker experiences that he values the camaraderie and friendships he has built up through playing the game.

“Live poker is such a social game and a great excuse to get out and be around others and be sociable. The value that playing poker has added to my life has been immense, from making a lot of friends, to having some amazing experiences and even making a bit of money from the game.”

Paying it back

And he has a special message for one member of the PokerStars team.

“Since meeting him for the first time last year I have to really give a shout out to Willie Elliott (PokerStars player liaison), he would do anything to make his players comfortable and welcome and is really inspirational with his generosity and real care and consideration for the players and poker in general.” 

Always the value hunter, with the interview over Hurley, a keen quizzer, is on the hunt for team mates to participate in the PokerStars Pub Quiz which starts later that evening, where there are seats in a Sit and Go with free tickets and a package to be won.

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