Nick is a cash game player, content creator and part of 888poker’s Stream Team. Each week he shares his thoughts and experiences as a player dedicated to the daily grind. This week he traveled to Manchester for a live event…
I’ve been creating content for 888poker for nearly three years now, and one of the most enjoyable parts of the job is taking part in various live events across the world of poker.
In that time, I’m yet to make a run deep enough to trouble the upper echelons of the prize pools, but I have witnessed a plethora of incredible stories and miracle runs along the way that make this game so enticing. One of these happened this week in Manchester, UK, to an online qualifier by the name of ‘Zild’. And it’s this kind of fairytale story that keeps me hopeful of a miracle of my own one day.
The monkey on my back
This past weekend, I attended 888poker’s UK Poker League (UKPL) tour stop in Manchester. As an 888poker ambassador, and being from the UK, I’ve been lucky enough to attend almost every event this year so far, and played the Main Event at each one to boot. On each trip, I vlog my experience and record every notable hand that I play in the hope of a deep run that I can use as content for my YouTube channel (and obviously make some money).
Unfortunately, one way or another, that run has never really materialized. I did manage to min-cash the WSOP Main Event in 2022 for $15,000, which is still my crowning achievement, but not being able to convert any opportunities at 888 live events is definitely a monkey I’d like off my back.
Fighting frustration
Now I should mention that I am by no means a tournament player, certainly not a good one anyway. I’ve always been a cash game player and that’s where the majority of my passion for poker lies. But with so many exciting events this year in the calendar, and with me continuing to experience disappointment at each one, frustration is certainly beginning to rear its head.
If you’ve ever watched any of my content before, you’ll know that I think I run worse than the average player, to say the least. I have a video on my channel proudly titled ‘The Worst Session in Online Poker History’ (watch it below), and that may well end up being my only poker claim to fame. I certainly believe I’ve been on the wrong side of variance for the most part in these tournaments, but I’ve obviously made my fair share of mistakes as well. I consider myself a content creator first and a poker player second, so finding time to study my own cash games, let alone tournaments, can be difficult.
So whether it be bad luck, poor play, or lack of study, it just hasn’t come together yet. With every missed chance, I’ve started to wonder whether making it to a final table just isn’t for me. That was until this last weekend in Manchester where I witnessed something relatively miraculous.
The freeroll spin-up
Unfortunately, none of the miracles involved me. Both of my bullets were seen off in manners to which I have become accustomed. Although I did manage something quite spectacular on Day 1D as, in the nearly 5 hours I played, I was moved seats more times than I won a pot (5 to 4).
But there was one player in attendance who was playing his first ever live tournament after qualifying online at 888poker, and that player is Jamie ‘Zild’ Heckle. Zild played a freeroll hosted by one of the 888poker Stream Teamers, Josh Manley, from which he cashed for $12. He then took that $12 and won a seat through a satellite on 888poker to the £560 UKPL Main Event in Manchester.
Zild entered the tournament alongside myself and Josh, and found himself on Josh’s first table. That’s when the seeds of the miracle were first planted, as I started to receive texts from Josh about Zild’s hands:
‘He’s had top set twice in the first orbit, he’s just going to final-table this isn’t he?’
A bit premature, surely, but when Zild was moved to my table and immediately flopped a set of aces in a big pot, I started to believe.
The miracle run
Low and behold, Zild battled away and made it to day 2, where he got short on multiple occasions before always finding the double. He was even down to 5bb at one point and about to post his big blind and ante when the floor came over to move him to another table, where he swiftly doubled again.
As the day moved along, Zild eventually found himself on the final table, playing for a top prize of £30,000.
Players battled it out all around him as Zild carefully maneuvered himself into the final three, before finally losing out all-in with 
against eventual winner Jamie Geraghty’s jacks. Oh, and third place was good for £16,170, by the way. In his first ever live tournament. After winning a ticket for $12. After winning that $12 from a freeroll. What a guy, incredible!
So maybe I am unlucky, or could play a lot better, and study the game more. Or maybe I just need my own little miracle?
Nick Eastwood regularly posts videos, vlogs and live streams of his play, focusing mainly on low-stakes online cash games but also covering hand analysis and live events. Catch his most recent videos on his YouTube channel and follow him on X to keep up to speed with his latest news.
