High stakes heads-up player Jake “Jllama” Abdalla talks to Jennifer Shahade on the GRID about a shocking rendition of eight-deuce suited against Phil Ivey. The 2015 No Limit Hold Em hand was played as part of an eight-game mix on PokerStars, a typical battlefield for Abdalla and Ivey.  Jake and Jen talk about how the “American Poker Dream” of playing Ivey heads-up matched up with reality, as well as their hefty cross book on the side. Jake also advises listeners on which mixed games they should study first, and tells us about some of the most important lessons he took away from his epic battles with Phil “Raise Once” Ivey.

On twitter, Jake now refers to himself as a “recreational professional poker player”, as he finds a new career as the director of “Mile High Labs.” In 2018, Jake created a course at the training site Upswing on “Mixed Game Mastery.” Follow him on twitter at jllama99.