Gina Tuttle’s poker origin story begins, like many others, with her family. As a child, she watched her relatives play seven card stud and served drinks with her sisters, hoping for a dollar or two to come her way.
Later, in her twenties, Tuttle was introduced to no-limit hold’em at a home game. “They gave me two cards and I was like, ‘Where’s the rest of the cards?’” she recounted.
It didn’t take long for the two-card bug to take hold, though, and Tuttle quickly immersed herself in the cash game world. Then, about a year ago, she made her first foray into the tournament streets, playing in a small local event.
“First hand: pocket kings. I flopped a king, but lost to Broadway and thought, ‘Okay, never doing this again.’ A couple weeks later I went back and actually won it. Then I won another one.”
'I love the game'
Tuttle’s early success spurred her on to Maryland Live and her first experience with large-field events. After reaching Day 2 on a couple occasions, but failing to turn any of her runs into a meaningful result, she kept at it.
“I just kept knocking because I knew eventually the door was going to open,” Tuttle told us. “Then, in June, I played again. There were 400-something players and somehow I made the final table and ended up winning it. It was an overwhelming feeling. It was a feeling that I’m going to keep chasing.”
Tuttle’s victory saw her add $34,000 to her career tournament earnings, but the money isn’t what she’s chasing – it’s the enjoyment of playing the game.
“I’m not doing this for anything other than my personal enjoyment. I love the game and I don’t ever want to lose that. We all love money, but I don’t want to do it for the money. I love competing and seeing what I can do.”
London calling
A few months after that seminal victory, Tuttle’s husband Drew and son Jake nominated her for a PokerOrg and PokerStars collaborative giveaway to send one inspiring woman in poker to compete at the Women’s Summer Festival in London. Tuttle didn't know about her nomination until one of her friends sent her the video while she was on vacation in Florida.
"We're on the beach looking at this and I'm saying, 'I can't believe they did that, I can't believe they did that. They do like me!'"
While there were countless worthy nominees, Tuttle’s story was undeniable and the combined panel of PokerOrg and PokerStars judges selected her for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"A couple days later I got home from Florida and my phone was going off at 5:30 in the morning," she continued. "My husband said put the phone down and go back to bed, but I was like, 'I won! I won!'"
Tuttle's fear of flying had her apprehensive about making the trip to London and she went back-and-forth on the decision. Eventually, she realized it was moment she couldn't pass on.
"It's an experience of a lifetime. I mean, who gets to do this? I'm just a regular person and now I'm in England playing poker. It's an amazing feeling and I'm so thankful," Tuttle said. "When I got here it was just an overwhelming feeling, it's been absolutely beautiful. Everybody has been so welcoming and so nice – all the anxiety went away and I just felt at ease."
On Thursday, Tuttle entered the £400 Women's Summer Festival Main Event and while it took two bullets, she found a Day 2 bag and will return on Saturday to continue her run.
Additional images courtesy of Manuel Kovsca/PokerStars/Rational Holdings Limited.
