The countdown to the 2024 World Series of Poker is on. Each day until the start of the series on May 28, we'll bring you tips and insider info from some of the biggest names in the game.
Dara O’Kearney is a sponsored Unibet Poker pro, and the co-host of The Chip Race podcast with David Lappin. He is the co-author of Poker Satellite Strategy, PKO Poker Strategy, Endgame Poker Strategy, GTO Poker Simplified, Mystery Bounty Poker Strategy and the just-released Beyond GTO. Follow Dara on X.
How do you recommend players prepare for the WSOP?
Physically, get there in as good a shape as you can. Get as fit as you can, eat well and live clean in the run-up.
Strategically, concentrate on consolidating what you already know via daily drills rather than trying to learn new things.
Mentally, prepare yourself for all the likely hurdles and adverse outcomes you could face.
What event are you most looking forward to?
The Main Event, which is the best tournament in the world, is the obvious (and correct) answer. Apart from that, I'm really looking forward to the $5k Seniors. This is the first time there's been one.
The $10k Seniors in the Wynn in December was the softest $10k I've ever played, and while I've never won a seniors event, I have cashed about 75% of the ones I've played and final tabled several.
What is the biggest event you will play?
The Main Event. My record in that is as bad as it could be (0 cashes) but it's still my favourite tournament of the year.
What advice do you have for players who want to satellite into the ME?
Look into the differences in strategy between landmark satellites and traditional ones. Most people don’t realise just how different they are – they are very, very different. And all the satellites at the WSOP this year are landmark satellites.
Why is a GTO approach so difficult for some people to understand and put into play?
I think there’s a lot of misconceptions, like it’s a robotic, predictable style of memorization and always doing the same thing.
In fact, one of the central tenets of a GTO style is keeping your opponent eternally guessing whether you have value or are bluffing by being unpredictable (or what is called 'balanced' in GTO). I think fundamentally, most poker players are lazy. For obvious reasons, it attracts a lot of get-rich-quick types so it’s perhaps not surprising they prefer to freewheel their own strategy and call it 'exploitative'.
Why is your choice of fashion essential to your poker success?
Recently, the shirts have gotten a lot of attention.
I used to wear suits when playing live. As I became better known and couldn’t get away with pretending to be a newb, I abandoned the suit and ties in favour of more comfortable clothing.
However, when I went to the WSOP every year, where I met a lot more people who didn’t know me, I would try to look like a typical middle-aged man in town for a convention, complete with Hawaiian shirts.
At the WSOP last year, Andy Black and I talked about this at length, and he convinced me to start wearing colourful shirts even in places where I’m well known.
I can’t go into it in greater detail than that without giving away a few secrets, but I am having my best year live in a decade and I believe the shirts are at least part of that, for reasons I’d rather not disclose at this point.
Check out the full schedule for the 2024 WSOP and plan which events you're going to target this summer. If you're looking at the lower end of the buy-ins, check out The Rec's guide to the WSOP. If you're looking for action with a bigger budget, follow what Jennifer Tilly is doing.
Images courtesy of PokerStars
