Month: August 2019

The Grid 015 ft. Peter Svidler – Ace-Seven of Diamonds

August 24, 2019 Jennifer Shahade 45:14

Eight-time Russian Chess Champion, beloved commentator, and poker aficionado Peter Svidler enters the GRID to talk to Jennifer about an “accidental NLHE” hand while he was waiting for PLO on RunItOnce. Peter held the ace-seven of diamonds, and as the pot swelled, he takes us through his discomfort in NLHE, as opposed to his favorite game, PLO.

Peter also talks about what makes him so good at chess, the importance of memory and chess, why he prefers PLO and the influence Phil Galfond has had on him. He also tackles the difference between himself and another elite chessplayer, who rose to the highest stakes poker games, friend and team-mate Alexander “Sasha” Grischuk.

Now that ace-seven suited has been discussed on thepokergrid.com, 154 combos remain.

Follow Svidler on twitter @polborta and find many video series hosted by him on chess24, as well as frequent commentator stints at grandchesstour.org. 


The Grid 014 ft. Muskan Sethi – Jack-nine offsuit

August 19, 2019 Jennifer Shahade 33:59

Muskan Sethi comes on the GRID to discuss a thrilling televised hand against Mike “Timex” McDonald on the PokerStars TV show the Shark Cage. Muskan held Jack-nine offsuit in position, and faced crucial decisions on all streets, with an extra strategic element in that a called bluff would send her to an in studio “Shark Cage”, while successfully bluffing a better hand would send Timex to the Cage. 

Jennifer and Muskan talk about how the hand and her experience on the show propelled her to a professional poker career and if she would have played the hand differently today. She now represents PokerStars and was honored by the President of India with a ‘First Ladies’ award, celebrating her position as the country’s first female professional poker player. She has also been appointed as India’s Responsible Gaming Ambassador.
You can follow Muskan on instagram at https://www.instagram.com/muskansethi5/ and twitter at https://twitter.com/muskaansethi. Relive or watch for the first time the full Shark Cage episode on YouTube and the pivotal hand at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrcWe5RIp0k&t=1957s
Now that J9 offsuit has been covered on thepokergrid.com, 155 combos remain. 


The Grid 012 ft. Dan Smith – Pocket-Sixes

August 1, 2019 Jennifer Shahade 34:26

High stakes tournament player Dan Smith comes on the GRID to talk to Jennifer Shahade about a pivotal hand against Reiner Kempe with pocket sixes at the 2016 Super High Roller Bowl, a $300,000 poker tournament with a 5 million dollar first prize. Dan, who has won more than 27 million in live poker tournaments, including a WPT title and a runner-up finish in the 2016 WSOP One Drop, talks about how he handles high pressure situations and disappointments like bubbling.

Dan also talks about some of the typical mistakes he sees from less successful poker pros, and reveals how difficult he still finds some aspects of the game.  Jen and Dan discuss his charity projects that culminate each year in the “Double up-Drive” and why the “Strong Minds” organization is so personally meaningful to him.

Dan Smith and Jennifer also know each other from the world of chess. Dan Smith is a member of the PRO Chess League team, the Montclair Sopranos. This year, Dan scored a shocking upset against four-time US Champion Alexander Shabalov, and he explained how that victory stacked up against his many poker tournament successes.

Follow Dan on twitter @dansmithholla, his website https://dansmithholla.com/ and doubleupdrive.com.

Now that sixes have been covered, there are 157 hands remaining on thepokergrid.com.