Player Interview: Dan Ott
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Dan Ott is pretty new to live tournament play. In fact, this is his first summer at WSOP, and the Main Event is one of the first tournaments he's entered. "Go big or go home," comes to mind.
He did rack up two cashes which created a player profile on WSOP.com and Hendon Mob, the first step to becoming known. And to say his result here is making the transition from online to live a success is an understatement.
As we caught up with Dan Ott on the second break of the day, he was talking with Neil Patel about being on the feature table.
Patel: How are you doing? I'm stuck on 6 [million], and they're moving me to the feature table. I hate all the cameras.
Ott: I'm at 18 [million]. Yeah, I'm doing well. I just left the feature table. There's so much going on; the cameras are everywhere. The rail is deep, but you get used to it. It gets easier.
Patel: See you at the final table.
Ott: Hell, yeah.
PokerNews: I see you're getting to know the other players. Tell me about your journey to 18 million. Can you summarize your tournament so far?
Ott: All my bluffs have been getting through. All of my hands have been getting value. I've been able to win some pots with favorable boards textures to either run some bluffs or get full value. I've been winning some all-ins.
Winning the all-ins is what has helped the most. Kings versus ace-king. I held with that. Top pair versus a flush draw and that held. People have been making some aggressive plays against me, like ace high shoving into my set. So, yeah, it's been going my way.
PokerNews: You talk like you're a pro, but you only have two cashes, and both were from this summer. How much poker do you play?
Ott: This is one of the first tournaments I've played and cashed in. This is a huge opportunity for me. I've been playing online, studying a little bit, trying to get better. I was able to take a shot out here, and it's obviously going really well.
PokerNews: How did you get started playing poker?
Ott: I started watching poker in 2003 when Chris Moneymaker won. I was a 12-year-old kid then, and I started watching and playing with my friends. And then I started playing online and just kept studying the game.
PokerNews: What prompted the decision to come out and try your luck here this summer?
Ott: I heard these were some good tournaments and I finally had some money to buy in. And I decided to take my shot at this, and the rest is history.
PokerNews: Do you feel comfortable in this environment?
Ott: Some moments I'm really comfortable, and other moments it just hits me, and I panic. There have definitely been some anxious moments. I'm just trying to take deep breaths and not be as anxious. Overall, though, I think I've remained pretty calm.
PokerNews: We're getting into the big pay days now. Have you started to think about the money?
Ott: Honestly, I'm already guaranteed over $100,000, and that's better than I expected. I'm trying not to think of the millions of dollars at the top. I'm just trying to stay focused on where I am now and playing as best as I can.
PokerNews: How do you plan to use the chip lead to your advantage?
Ott: I think I can bully some short stacks around, especially as we get close to the pay jumps. I have the chips to put pressure on people in some spots, but I have to be smart about it. Having chips helps more the further down the road we get.
PokerNews: I imagine the play is getting tougher by the minute. What's your plan to navigate the day?
Ott: I'm going to try to keep playing my game. I will be aggressive in the spots I should be aggressive in, and if I lose, I'm going to try not to be so worried about it. I'm going to do my best to brush it off. That's my plan. I'm just going to play the best I can and go from there.