Andrei Jambor treats family to Paris holiday thanks to Power Path
On any other day, family man Andrei Jambor would be devastated to stay behind at the hotel while his wife and child go off sightseeing around Paris. Usually, that would be enough to ruin the holiday. But today isn’t a normal day.
Today is the day that the 38-year-old plays his first European Poker Tour (EPT) Main Event – the biggest tournament of his poker life.
“I don’t have much live experience so this is very exciting,” he tells us on the first break.
It took one of the biggest scores of his poker career to get him here, too. Jambor, from Bucharest, has only played Power Path – the qualifying route designed to give casual players the best possible shot of living their poker dreams – a handful of times, but he managed to win a Silver Pass worth $2,500 in one of his first attempts.Â
He then converted that Pass into online tournament tickets and continued to grind. On his fifth attempt, he went one better, clinching a Gold Power Pass worth $10,300 and securing an expenses-paid trip to EPT Paris.
“The Power Path experience has been really good to me,” says Jambor. “That last Step 4 was…let’s say lucky. I ran pretty hot!”
Jambor is playing his maiden Main Event while his family explore Paris
A REWARDING HOBBY
Andrei Jambor is one of at least 10 PokerStars players who used their Gold Passes to play at EPT Paris. He’s been preparing by talking to his friends and fellow Romanian players.
“Last year’s Paris winner Razvan Belea was Romanian,” he reminds us. “We have a very big poker community in Bucharest. I hope I’m prepared to do a good job.”
Outside of poker, Jambor works hard on the real estate agency he set up 12 years ago and also rents out several apartments he owns to holidaymakers. It’s a busy life and he doesn’t have time to play as much poker as he’d like.
“It’s just a hobby,” he says. “There are periods where I can play a lot, and other times where I’m just too busy.”
Still, he’s enjoyed a healthy amount of success – including an $18K online score – for someone who only learned the game seven years ago in a local card room, and for someone who insists they’re not a skilled player.
“I’m not a good enough poker player to do this for a living,” he says. “I’d like to, but it’s hard! Who knows, maybe one day.”
He’s only a couple of hours into his qualifier experience when we talk, but already Andrei Jambor has had the time of his life. “It’s so nice. From my point of view the event has been organised very well,” he says. “The dealers are great and the staff is very nice. I’m having a lot of fun.”
And from what we hear, so is his family. That’s the beauty of qualifying for events via Power Path – you get to treat the family to a great vacation while you pursue your poker dream.
“Paris is a beautiful city and it’s a great experience,” Jambor says. “I really hope I can qualify for more events, I really like it!”
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