Coaches / WiltOnTilt

As one of KRANTZ's early students, I learned first-hand what it takes to be a successful player and a successful coach. Because of the time, money, and energy I invested in coaching, I was able to quit my programming job in late 2006 to begin playing poker professionally (3/6 NL - 10/20 NL) and in 2007, I began coaching over a dozen students at limits anywhere from .50/1 NL to 10/20 NL. I can now be found playing anywhere from 5/10nl to 50/100nl and I have successfully coached over 60 students at a huge range of stakes.

It has been my goal to become the best MSNL/HSNL coach for the price. In an effort to achieve that goal I've created a very friendly online poker community specifically for me and my dedicated/regular students where we can post hands, throw out ideas, and ask questions without any fear of silly flame wars that often degenerate many of today's leading poker forums. My students tell me it's one of the most helpful aspects of their coaching experience. In addition to the private poker forum, I am also available via AIM and email to answer impromptu questions and clarify concepts.

I also try to be very flexible in my coaching times. I've coached players in 7 different countries across the globe from the US to South Africa to Germany to Russia to Australia and finding a suitable times for coaching can be tough, but I try to accommodate everyone as best as I can.

Whether you hire me or another coach, you should be on the lookout for someone that cares about your success as a player and is committed to do what it takes to help you improve. Don't settle for someone who is unprofessional. Find someone that is willing to be there for you during your sessions and outside of your sessions and is willing to thoroughly explain his or her thought processes. Because of the amount of extra time I put in to coaching, I prefer to only take students who intend on having a lasting coach-student relationship, but that said, I do not force anyone to continue having sessions with me if they aren't completely satisfied.

WiltonTilt is a DeucesCracked Executive Producer.

Q. Why do you teach poker? A. I'm a competitive person and I like challenging myself. I love the challenge of teaching someone advanced concepts and showing people how to make money by playing a game! Telling a student to make a raise or call they might never had made without my help and hearing their "Wow!" response when the chips are shipping their way is one of the things that makes the time spent and detailed explanations all worth it to me.

Q. What are some of your proudest coaching moments? A. I've had students with PHDs give up their jobs for poker. I've had students make huge scores in big tournaments (2nd place in the WSOP Europe ME). I've had students who I've coached from the lower middle stakes up to the high stakes that are now making close to a half million per year. All of those moments stand out, but some of the best moments for me are simply seeing the light bulb flash for my students as I point out a place they are missing value, or a new place they can run a bluff, or a concept they have never considered before. Those moments are the real fuel for keeping me interested in coaching.

Q. What games/stakes do you primarily coach? What do you play? A. I coach anywhere from 50c/1.00 to 10/20nl 6max or heads up but most of my students fall into the range of 2/4nl to 5/10nl. I enjoy coaching both 6max and HU, but I tend to like coaching HU better as it becomes more dynamic and there are more creative spots to teach. The bulk of my own play is in heads up games up to 50/100nl, however I still keep a pulse on the current 6max climate because of the coaching I do.

Q. What inspired you to create a series centered on math? A. In short, I did Mathematics of NL Hold'em because no one has done anything like it yet. I feel like math concepts in poker is something that almost everyone can get better at and my series attempts to bridge the gap that many people have in their game. Most know basic pot odds, and I'll cover some of that, but getting into hand range combinations, advanced EV calculations, Fold Equity EV calcs, and G-Bucks can give players a sense of the reason behind some of the plays they make (or better yet, a reason to change some of the plays they thought were "standard"!).

Q. Can't I just learn math from a book? A. I feel that most of the "poker math" books on the market today are too complex to reach the average poker player and a lot of the theory in those books is largely inapplicable for most people in today's online poker games. My series attempts to teach you math that you can actually use, beyond the basics, that shouldn't require anything more than some high school algebra. I think there are some very good math books out there, but if you don't have a degree in a subject that is heavily rooted in math, you may have a tough time digesting what the authors are telling you. It's my hope that Mathematics of NL Hold'em can be easily understood by a large audience.