Dylan Linde Talks India Poker Sports League and WSOP Plans
In a country where poker is not generally regarded as a game of skill and players have to bind together to fight for their right to play the game they love, the energy and positivity at a poker event can be uniting. This is the case in India, and professional player and Run It Once coach Dylan Linde got to experience the refreshing energy firsthand when he played in the Poker Sports League last month.
The Indian government still rules poker as gambling, resulting in a stigma associated with the game and its players in the eyes of the broader society. The close-knit Indian poker community is striving to counter misconceptions about poker by pushing it as a "mindsport," one that can be played fairly with teams in a friendly and competitive environment.
“It's such a different attitude there,” Linde said. “The league has such a great atmosphere to it. Everyone was so positive.”
Besides the positive environment, Linde was impressed with the overall attitudes toward the game that differs from much of what he’s seen in the States.
“Everyone wanted to learn. People were asking about hands,” Linde said. “It wasn't uncommon for opponents to ask me about hands they busted in. I've never seen such a positive approach to the game.”
About the Poker Sports League India
The League is set up for 12 regional teams comprised of 10 players each. There’s a well-known pro or person that serves as a mentor for each team and poker pros draft a combination of pro Indian players, online qualifiers, and live qualifiers.
Each team also gets to pick two wild cards, which can be any outside talent that will come in to play and help promote poker in India. In this role were players like Linde, Martin Jacobson, and Sofia Lovgren.
"I've never seen such a positive approach to the game.”
Across four full days of play, with a total of $750,000 worth of prize money up for grabs, teams are allotted points that they can spend on putting players into five tournaments a day, which include the Main Event, Tag Team, Pot-Limit Omaha, Heads-Up, and Turbo formats. Tournament results in the preliminary events each day determine points or chips for that day’s Main Event.
The Main Event format is like none you’ve ever seen, consisting of a three-player tag team with players switching out each level. Down to three-handed play, two teammates play together, while all three members of the sub-teams collaborate when it’s down to heads-up, a format Linde called “just wild.”
“People are just shouting. The crowd's just going crazy. You win a hand and people are just cheering like crazy. Our team has songs. It was the craziest British rail for every moment of the tournament.”
Every day, the team that accumulated the most points earned between $15,000 and $20,000, with the first-place overall team splitting close to $300,000 amongst the players, and owners who sponsor the team. Linde pointed out that for many of the participating players, the cash prizes signify very large sums.
Linde’s Involvement in the League
When Linde got a Facebook message from Indian poker pro Nikita Luther asking whether he’d be interested in participating in the league, he was intrigued. Before he knew it, he was agreeing to hop on a flight to India to play for a team called the Goan Nuts, instead of Stephen Chidwick who decided last minute to head to Montenegro to chase GPI points.
Originally accepting the post in part because he hadn’t yet been to India and saw it as a good opportunity to do so with most of his travel covered, Linde went in with little expectation.
"People are just shouting. You win a hand and people are just cheering like crazy."
“I figured I'll go out, I'll help promote poker, and I get to see India for free. But it turned out to be a unique and incredible experience. I made a lot of really good friends there - very, very good people.”
Linde never fancied himself a poker celeb, despite a very successful tournament poker career which has seen him accumulate more than $1.78 million in live earnings including winning the WSOP Circuit Hammond Main Event in 2016 for $348,269. During his first foray into India, though, he got a taste of stardom, stemming from the popularity of his training videos on Run It Once.
“I've never had so many fan moments - people asking me to take selfies with them,” Linde told PokerNews. “It was really interesting. Everybody knew me. It was really flattering but it was a very strange thing for me.”
League Mission
The mission of the league is presented on their website as follows:
“Poker Sports League aims to sportify the game of poker and test it on a team level. PSL gives a chance to Indian poker players to showcase their skills and get the ultimate shot at glory.”
In the vein of lobbying for a shift in society’s view of the strategic game that so many Indians share a love for, around 10 newspaper reporters were present at the event to help represent the game. Another key spokesperson for the league is five-time World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand, who explains in the clip below, "Poker, like chess, is a mindsport."
Poker Sports League Season 2 is being broadcast on DSport in India from June 12-17 from 8-9 p.m., further broadening the reach of the League and its representation of poker to the outside world. The following trailer gives viewers a sense of what the league is all about, including the emphasis of the mental strategy needed to succeed in the mindsport.
When asked if Linde would be willing to return for the next edition of the Poker Sports League, he didn’t hesitate.
“I will 100% go back next year. If they invite me back, I'll be going back. It was too much fun, way too much fun.”
Shift to WSOP
Upon his return from India, Linde spent some time grinding the SCOOP online in Mexico where he shipped his second title before heading back to Vegas to jump into the WSOP. His goal coming into this year's series was to pace himself and not overexert.
“I’ve definitely had a problem with playing too much and not giving myself enough time to rest and play my best. So I’m hoping to just continue with a nice, steady even pace.”
“I [plan to] take some time off, skip some events, not just look at something and run to it and register as soon as possible."
Linde plans to keep that steady pace with the help of working in plenty of R&R with his lady and dog, letting us in on his plans:
“I plan to take some time off, skip some events, not just look at something and run to it and register as soon as possible... Go to the dog park with the dog and my fiance, enjoy the morning, get some sleep.”
The no-limit hold'em specialist has been putting in more hours in mixed games of late, especially with his recent move to Las Vegas, and is working in a good variety of events to his flexible schedule. After the first two weeks of the WSOP, Linde already has three cashes under his belt, three of which came in non-hold'em variants.
Linde's 2018 WSOP Cashes to Date
| Date | Event | Place | Entries | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 9 | Event #22: $1,500 Eight Game Mix | 24th | 481 | $4,844 |
| June 7 | Event #18: $10,000 Dealers Choice 6-Handed | 11th | 111 | $19,784 |
| June 5 | Event #13: $1,500 No-Limit Hold'em | 25th | 1,306 | $9,350 |
| June 3 | Event #9: $10,000 Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or Better Championship | 15th | 169 | $20,948 |
His new laid-back approach to the WSOP seems to be working out thus far, in terms of both deep runs and general life satisfaction - if his Twitter feed is any indication.
After busting 11th in the 10k dealers choice I snap registered the 8game. Was a little sad after busting in 24th la… https://t.co/obaGnmU29m
— Dylan Linde (@DylanLinde)
Reporting from Mo Nuwwarah contributed to this article.
