Tony Miles Relying on Optimism and Aggression as the Final Table Approaches
An avid dancer and Seattle Seahawks fan, Tony Miles brought his infectious enthusiasm all the way from Jacksonville, Florida. He's been playing tournaments since August 2011 and had two modest scores this summer in The Colossus (for $2,358) and the Millionaire Maker (for $4,038). But his summer really caught fire when he entered the Main Event.
"I got off to a pretty slow start," Miles said on Day 1. "But, as players know, this tournament is a marathon, not a sprint, and I'm not worried at all.”
Indeed, Miles had little reason to be worried.
By dinner break on Day 3, Miles had amassed 790,000 chips, well above chip average. He was fortunate enough to run his aces into an opponent's kings, opening the door for an aggressive gameplan. "I'm going to try to apply some pressure to people, using my stack and the money bubble to my advantage," he said. Miles would do just that, bagging 996,000 chips and paving the path for a deep run.
On Day 4, Miles competed on the ESPN Feature Table alongside 2012 Big One for One Drop winner Antonio Esfandiari. In one notable hand, he raised to 23,000 from middle position and Esfandiari called from the big blind. Both players checked the 
flop. On the 
turn, Esfandiari check-called Miles's 19,000 bet, and checked again on the 
river. When Miles bet 32,000, Esfandiari check-raised to 79,000 and Miles paid him off. Esfandiari held a king for a full house and collected the pot.
Miles, however, was unfazed. Soon he faced another tough pro, David Kitai, who raised 35,000 under the gun. Miles three-bet to 115,000, Kitai shoved all-in for about 350,000, and Miles snap-called with two aces. Kitai's two queens couldn't catch up, and the Frenchman was eliminated. In the meantime, Miles bagged Day 4 with 2.358,000 in chips and kept up the pace, day after day, as the field dwindled.
| Day | Chips | Rank |
| 1c | 72,800 | 1,258/3,470 |
| 2c | 123,800 | 955/1655 |
| 3 | 790,000 | 700/1,182 |
| 4 | 2,358,000 | 183/310 |
| 5 | 5,600,000 | 68/109 |
| 6 | 14,945,000 | 12/26 |
Coming into today, Miles planned to stay aggressive. "People are going to be folding a lot more than they normally would," he said. "The pay jumps are significant. I don't blame them for playing that way, but I'm looking to exploit that."
It's a strategy that, so far, is working. A few hours ago, as his family clustered around him on dinner break, laughing and posing for pictures, Miles expressed gratitude and excitement.
"It’s a dream come true, man," he said. "This is what we play for."
