Victoria Coren Talks about Her Life

From playing poker with her brother and his friends to playing poker with the bigwigs, Victoria Coren is out to prove that winning poker is not in the gender, but it is in the skills.

Today, Coren did prove to the poker world that it takes skills to be able to bag a championship, and bag it she did when she landed the European Championship title, earning herself a hefty million dollars along the way.

Early Childhood

Coren was not interested in what usually interests 15-year-old girls when she was at that age.  In fact, when girls her age were dating and talking about dresses and boys, she was still climbing trees or going to her grandmother's house for a visit. Coren also clearly remembers that she was more interested in knowing what was going on at the other side of the wall, where her brother, Giles, and his friends were.  She was more interested in finding out what the sounds of the clay chips meant, why there were howls of injustice, or what they were talking about when they say «bullets,» «trips,» or «cowboys.»  Furthermore, she wanted in on their game — poker.

Pretty soon, she found herself playing against them, putting her allowance at stake by betting her pocket money and playing poker with the boys.  And you could say she found her niche — the straightforward game of poker.

Lessons in Poker

Coren shares two strategies that she wants other poker players to learn.  One came from her father, and it talks about bankroll management — play just enough but not too much to cripple you.  And the other came from a long-time friend who said to never disgrace an Ace.  Coren learned to base her entire strategy on these two things.  She knows how to manage her bankroll, and she never, ever let an Ace pass.  In time, it brought her success and fame in the poker world.  It also made her a member of the elite Team PokerStars Pro.

On Her First Win

It was in the 2006 European Championship that Coren landed her major win.  Her hand of 6 of clubs and 7 of diamonds won against Emad Tahtou's 6 of hearts and 8 of clubs.  The flop revealed 5 of clubs, 3 of clubs, and 4 of diamonds.  It was pure luck that the turn revealed 10 of diamonds, not a 7.  This earned her the championship at the London EPT, giving her £500,000.

Today, Coren is earning the benefits of being among the top poker pros of the world.

TagsCoren, EPT, poker, poker player, PokerStars, Victoria Coren

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