Outlasting the 1,000-player field that turned out for the mid-stakes version of PokerStarsSpring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) Event #16 was Cathal shinerrrShine. The $215 No Limit Hold’em Ten-Max Double Shootout ended in a showdown between Shine and fellow community member Beldar C. When the smoke cleared, the luck of the Irish prevailed, as Shine, a Triple Crown winner, walked away with $36,000. His other claims to fame include victories in the Titan Poker $100,000 Guaranteed for $27,000 and PokerStars $40,000 Guaranteed for $9,800. PocketFives.com sat down with Shine to rehash his SCOOP title.
PocketFives.com: Congratulations on taking down a SCOOP event. Can you walk us through how the Ten-Max Double Shootout played out?
Cathal Shine: I remember when the first table started I thought I was in for a tough time. I recognized almost everyone as being a solid regular. Luckily, the best of them seemed to bust early. The second table was a lot softer. I only recognized two players as being strong and they busted quickly. The rest of the table seemed like casual players and I ran pretty good, so it wasn’t too difficult.
The final table was a strange one. The two previous tables had lasted at least four hours each, but the final table was over in just under two hours. The standard was pretty high, but Beldar C in particular was running the table. He was opening pretty much every hand. I think he knocked out seven or eight players at the final table, so I basically folded into the final three and had only picked up a few pots before that. I managed to double through once or twice when it was three-handed, though, so we were pretty even in chips when Beldar C took out Lovetoslamin third place.
PocketFives.com: How will winning the SCOOP event affect your poker game going forward?
Cathal Shine: It’s a nice boost, as I’ve been on a bit of a bad run recently. I’ve been trying to get into live poker more as well, so this will go a long way confidence-wise.
PocketFives.com: Will you be hopping “The Pond” to play in the 2010 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas?
Cathal Shine: I’ve played one or two satellites, but have had no luck so far. If I win a satellite, I’ll definitely go, but there’s a good chance I’ll head over anyway and play in a couple of events even if I don’t.
PocketFives.com: When we think of Irish poker, we think of guys like Andy Black (pictured at right) and Marty Smyth. PokerStars also runs tournaments in the United Kingdom and Ireland and Paddy Power has a strong presence. Talk a little bit about the current state of poker in your native land.
Cathal Shine: It’s getting bigger. In the past couple of years, I haven’t bothered playing in many live events in Ireland because there were a lot better tournaments online, but in the past year, I think there has been a big improvement. There are a couple of decent events coming up in the next couple of months.
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