yeahthatsme

I'm yeahthatsme, PL/NLO8 coach. My name is Derek and I play as Zophar or Zophar101, mostly on Full Till and Pokerstars. I came into poker later than most, in my mid-20's. Not to say that I didn't play it before that, but the Moneymaker boom was around that time and like so many others, I was sucked in.

Growing up as a skateboarder, skier and snowboarder, poker fell well into that individual skill within a group category. I like the interaction, but preferred to base my successes on my dedication and hard work. These pursuits lead me all over the country, I've lived in Maine, Boston, the mountains of Colorado, NYC and elsewhere, which has given me a great perspective on many different people and personalities, an asset for me in my career as a small business owner from the age of 21, my poker career and coaching.

After bouncing around games, then finding HORSE, I eventually found PL and NL Omaha 8. I started at .05/.1 and worked up to playing $100PL/NL regularly in about a year or so. I occasionally play $200PL/NL and higher, but given the bankroll structure I've implemented for myself, it's a rare occasion. A brief interest in HU NLHE brought me to DC, but I found myself watching all sorts of videos, reading and posting in the forums, then applying what I learned to O8. A year later, I won the Insomniac video contest and 6 months later was making my own series with Danzasmack, In a Nutshell. Half way through the production of that series, I was invited into the coaching team and the rest was history.

My coaching consists of developing an understanding of my students through their history and goals, then analysis of their play through HEM & HH reviews and sweat sessions. My goals are to provide new ways of looking at the game, different lines, and find/plugging leaks. I average 1-2 students on a monthly basis, and have watched several shift from nervous $5PL players to $50PL regs. I typically work on a sliding scale and consider myself generous with my time, I simply enjoy talking about the game with people who share the same enthusiasm. For a couple of reviews see Here and Here.

I'm currently playing anywhere from $25-$100PL/NL and have a recent blog post with my prior year or so winrates.