WCOOP

With over three weeks of intensive online poker, players have been working hard to make sure that they are prepared in every way possible.

Just before the start of the PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker (WCOOP), which is the largest online poker tournament in the world, hundreds of players were preparing to be at their best both mentally and physically during this extremely intense event.

According to Joe Cada who won the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event, “The PokerStars World Championship of Online Poker continues to be the pinnacle in online tournaments”, he went on to call it “the World Series of the online world.”In actual fact the WCOOP can almost be called the Olympics of online poker with 62 tournaments and $50 million of guaranteed prize money spread out over three testing weeks.

Players spend time preparing for the WCOOP making sure that their bodies are well-fed and that their minds are sharp and alerts. Marcello Del Grosso the PokerStars pro recently said, “With the WCOOP around the corner, preparations are under way, and I am looking forward to a great tournament series.”

Del Grosso has been doing a number of things in order to prepare. He started with his computer, “I am updating my poker station to include two monitors and a new chair. Having a functional and comfortable station is really important for the WCOOP because some of the tournaments will have extended blind structures and larger fields which could have you playing for up to 24 hours straight!”

He also says that he has been working hard on his game, “I have been playing more mixed games to sharpen my skills and enhance my play. I will be playing in a bunch of events in the WCOOP. My strategy is to get as many mixed games under my belt before September 5th.”

The final thing to work on was his body, “If you plan on winning, like I do, start banking some sleep hours, and try to prepare some healthy meals ahead of time.” He went on to warn other players to avoid too much junk food which is commonly associated with poker, “While playing tournaments, you will want to avoid things like: caffeine, alcohol and refined sugars that will cause you to crash and burn.”

An event as large as the WCOOP takes some considerable planning and players such as Marcello Del Grosso will be hoping to gain an advantage through some serious preparation in the weeks before hand. Only time will tell how much it has helped.