Sam Grafton has taken his game to the very top of the tree, with over $15 million in tournament winnings. That includes a mammoth $5.5 million score for winning the $200K buy-in Coin Rivet Invitational at the 2022 Triton Poker series in Cyprus. His first major tournament win was the 2012 UKIPT London Main Event for £102,700, and a steady stream of successes since led to him joining PokerStars as an ambassador in 2021. We caught up with him, fittingly, at the 2024 UKIPT London.
What’s one bit of essential prep you do before a big tournament or cash game session?
Sleep is absolutely massive. It sounds really boring, but it’s something I really underrated. I used to push the body clock and mess around, but having a really good night’s sleep and making sure you've got everything you need for sleep – a blindfold, melatonin, whatever it is you need. Have a good meal, don’t overeat, but make sure you’re not hungry.
What piece of strategy advice did you get when you started playing that you wish you’d ignored?
I think I felt like I had to win every pot. The thinking was if you raised preflop, you could have aces, so play every hand like you’ve got aces. Realizing that it’s okay to just give up on a hand or start a bluff and wave a white flag at some point.
What’s the dumbest thing you’ve seen or done at the poker table?
I’ve done so many stupid things. I was playing a $50K High Roller and for some reason I had to fold A5 suited... I can’t imagine what the action was, but I tried to do a flair fold, and I threw the cards up in the air, and they spun and landed in someone’s coffee. That was pretty bad. I also, jokingly, put two cards in my pocket once in a very high-stakes tournament. I was busy trying to amuse people, and they were like, ‘That’s a very severe security violation, you can’t jokingly put your cards in your pocket.’ Sometimes I’m enjoying myself too much at the table and I lose track of what’s appropriate.
What’s your most memorable hand?
I think at GUKPT London in 2012, which is the first really big tournament I won. I had aces vs kings and I held with aces for the chip lead. That was a massive, huge hand. Winning that tournament made such a difference and gave me so much confidence. I remember that really well. It was against Jon Spinks. Jon Spinks was such a nit, even then.
What’s your single best piece of advice for poker players?
Enjoy yourself. It can get lost in the pressure to excel, the pressure to study, and the pressure to put in volume. The reason you got into the game is because you enjoy it. Making sure that after a four-year career, a 12-year career, or a 25-year career that you’ve enjoyed yourself at work. People would give anything for that. Some of the most successful people in the world, when they have a weekend off, spend it playing poker. What does that tell you about the game? If you’re not enjoying yourself, maneuver yourself into games that enable you to have fun at the table.
If you owned a poker room, who's the first player you'd want to sign as an ambassador, and why?
I might be biased, but Spraggy has a kind of joy, humor, love of the game, and desire to play all stakes of poker, which is amazing. He’ll literally sit and play a $100 tournament or a $10K and love them both. He’s amazing as an ambassador. I’ve been super lucky to have people like Lex [Veldhuis] and Spraggy already in the company when I came in, Fintan [Gavin] as well. They conduct themselves in such a great way.
Featured image courtesy of PokerStars/Danny Maxwell/Manuel Kovsca
