SPOX: So you're not sitting in a casino every day. Is there at all a typical day in the life of Phil Hellmuth?
Hellmuth: Of course, it depends. A few weeks ago I went to L.A. and hosted a celebrity party, the next day I attended a Lakers game where I sat in the box with [Lakers-owner] Jerry Buss. I sat next to him, which was kind of an honour. Then I came home for the weekend and watched a lot of football. You know, some days I will write my article, some days I will write on my book. Can you hold on for a second?
SPOX: Sure
Hellmuth: Okay, sorry! I had a radio interview with London scheduled at 2.30 (laughing) but they cancelled, that's good for me!
SPOX: And for me...In addition to your writing, you also devote time to a clothing company. How much time do you invest in all that stuff?
Hellmuth: Tons of time. Writing an article is only two or three hours a week, writing my book takes a lot of time, of course. But I have people who work for me, too. I have a chef, a maid, a gardener, a professional bill payer, an accountant, attourneys, a COO who runs my company, the president for my publishing company, Shannon. You know, I don't have to worry about playing the WSOP for one month, it's like vacation.
SPOX: Is poker still the main source of income for you?
Hellmuth: You know, it depends. 2009 I lost money in poker. It was the first losing year I've ever had.
SPOX: How much money are we talking about - and why did you lose it?
Hellmuth: I'm not even sure, but over 200,000 Dollars. I think I lost money because I was a part-time poker player. My family is number one. My son is 16 years old, in a year and a half he'll be in college and I can devote more time to poker, if I want.
SPOX: What are you like as a dad?
Hellmuth: One thing is I pick him up from school every day I'm home, even though he is 16. It was always a sacred thing to me to pick my children up from school - because that's the best time to talk to them. Right after school they will tell you about their day. One of my sons is already in college.
SPOX: Let's get back to the game of poker. The poker boom of recent years brought massive coverage on TV. Do you ever watch poker, maybe to learn more about your opponents on the table?
Hellmuth: Yeah, I enjoy watching poker on TV. For example Poker After Dark, I think you get it in Germany too. Just recently I watched an episode, because Antonio (Esfandiari) had raised my blinds about thirty times in a row, and he won all thirty - with three players in. I just couldn't believe it and wanted to know what he had. I don't mind, you know, I'm very patient. I wanted to trap him and that's what Phil Laak did, who ended up winning. But anyway, I watched the show on TV to see what he had. And I will get back at Antonio (laughing).
SPOX: Do you consider the coverage as an advantage for the amateurs, when they get to sit next to the pros in big tournaments?
Hellmuth: Well, it's an advantage for the amateurs for two reasons. One: They can read them better. But Two: They can see the style that the players using to win play. That's the reason why Erik Seidel hates the holdcard-camera, because he felt like he spent like twenty years of sweating blood learning to play the game the right way and then due to the cameras people learned very quickly what he was doing. That's a huge advantage for the amateurs. They see the great players play, and even when they see bad players, they can see what they do wrong.
SPOX: Still, your playing style is hard to describe. Sometimes you're playing very aggressively, raising with any kind on hand, the other time you're folding preflop pocket-queens. Is this flexibility the crucial point for your success?
Hellmuth: You have to use all the moves in poker. You have to play superfast and superslow, you have to be able to checkraise weak and strong hands etc. You have to know when someone has you beat and fold a very strong hand. What I try is to dictate my style to the other players. I'm a counter-puncher. When someone punches, I counter-punch. That means: If they all play very tight then I raise every pot. If they are folding a lot I bet a lot. You try to take advantage of weaknesses, of inconsistencies in other player's game. But the most important thing is: You have to be able to read them.
SPOX: What is your favourite playing style?
Hellmuth: I like to play deep stack poker. When you can play a few more hands. I like to call a raise with 4 and 5 of diamonds. When you play deep stack poker you can do that, sometimes. So deep stack is fun. But I have the most fun when I'm playing tournaments, they are very meaningful to me. So I play the WSOP a lot.
SPOX: On the table you are known as the poker brat. Sometimes one can see you act very short-tempered. Is that also part of your gameplan?
Hellmuth: No. If I didn't act that way, if I kept my emotions out a little bit more, I would have won a few more bracelets, maybe three more. 2007 was one of my best years on the WSOP and I wasn't acting like a brat. But sometimes emotions are a beautiful thing, too. Sometimes you have to have a little emotion so it gives you a boost. I don't know. So part of me thinks I need to lose some emotions and not be that upset. And part of me thinks that's why I am who I am. In life you always try to get better, as a person and a player. I wanna be the greatest tournament poker player of all time. And I feel like, "Yeah, I'm a great player".
SPOX: What about online poker: Do you get emotional over a bad beat on the internet as well?
Hellmuth: Sometimes. Not too often. I get very emotional when I'm playing a side-game on the internet and I'm losing a lot and it seems that I just keep on losing. That's very frustrating. But, you know, when I played on the net like in 2005, I was way more emotional. I screamed, got upset and frustrated. You know, Mike Matusow threw his laptop in the swimming pool one time.
SPOX: Today, most of the new players learn the game on the net. How did that affect the game?
Hellmuth: For a few years the internet players entered the real world and they didn't do very well on the side-games, they tended to lose a lot of money. And in the tournaments, they played too aggressive and way too many hands. But now the great players from the internet have adjusted their game. There's been a lot of changes and many great players come from the internet. Mathematics are a great factor for them. For example, they will tell you: "If you re-raise a pot, 80 percent of the time you'll win it." Re-Raising in my days was just a move that you made when you thought you smelled weakness.
SPOX: The pro community seems to stick together pretty much. In a business where that much money is at stake: Is there real friendship between you guys?
Hellmuth: Absolutely. I get along with almost every professional player. I hang out with Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, Erik Seidel or Phil Ivey - and we always have a good time. Even Doyle and I were out drinking.
SPOX: But there must be some players you don't like!?
Hellmuth: No, I try to respect everybody and see the good....
SPOX: We're almost done. But to finish the interview I have to ask some of the classic questions. Let's start with you're favourite hand...
Hellmuth: Probably two black nines since I won the Main Event with them.
SPOX: We know you don't like bad beats. But what about a suck-out in your favor?
Hellmuth: When I won bracelet number ten at the final table: I had Kd-5d, the flop is Ks-Qh-9d. My opponent flops the straight with J-10. 70 percent of my chips are in and I hit running diamonds!
SPOX: What was the sickest side-bet you've been involved in?
Hellmuth: I'm not sure. I bet on people's weight a lot (laughing). But I bet on any kind of things.
SPOX: Okay, last question: When poker fans go to Vegas, where's the most probable place to see you play?
Hellmuth: I'm hanging out in the Golden Nugget a lot. There's a really nice vibe. They have a shark tank in the new tower. My wife's favourite hotel is the Pallazzo, but most of the time I'm in the Nugget.