Eddy Goldman, founder of Chess Ninja London, poker pro and musician enters the GRID with seven-deuce suited. Eddy has had a very storied life, from a jail cell in Singapore, to streamed games at the Hippodrome.

Eddy talks to us about a hand he played in April 2025 at the Irish Open cash games.  With a bonus bounty at stake, Eddy was thrilled to turn trip deuces…only to get some bad news when his opponent showed.

After the hand, Eddy talks about what he learned from his experience in jail, and what blitz chess can teach us about becoming better poker players. We also discussed partnering up for the 50/50 event at the Women’s Winter Festival in London.

Now that Eddy Goldman has discussed Seven-Deuce Suited, there are 87 hands remaining on the Poker Grid. Browse other hands and see what is left: https://thepokergrid.com/episode-finder/

Discussed:

Hippodrome Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/@HippodromeLivePoker

Chess ninja: https://www.instagram.com/chessninja_london/

Play Like a Champion: https://geni.us/PlayLikeAChampion

The post The Grid 084 ft. Eddy Goldman– Seven-Deuce Suited appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Jennifer welcomes poker dealer and writer Jeffrey San Gabriel on the GRID to talk about dealing a famous hand at the 2024 World Series of Poker Main Event. The fateful four-bet hand featured Will Berry (in the hijack) and Adrian Mateos (on the button). Jeffrey dealt a flop of Q4 2 and Berry bet 425,000 into a pot of 1.36 Million chips. Mateos called. The turn was the 10 of spades and Berry bet 1.3 Million into 2.2 Million. After a little thought, Mateos folded. It was only later that Jeffrey realized he dealt such a dramatic hand: Mateos was holding pocket kings, which he laid down correctly to Berry’s aces.

Jeffrey and Jen move on to Jeffrey’s new substack, “Thinking in the Box”, his pet peeves at the table, and his thoughts on slide-dealing, which is being rolled out at EPTs, with an eye toward full adoption by EPT Barcelona. They also discuss Jeffrey’s most positive experiences dealing, and his tips on tips.

Now Jeffrey San Gabriel has discussed kings, there are 88 hands remaining on the poker GRID. Browse other hands https://thepokergrid.com/episode-finder/

Discussed:

The famous Mateos hand: Video | Facebook

Jeffrey’s substack: https://pokerdealerjeff.substack.com/

Jen’s substack: https://jenshahade.substack.com/

Photo by Matthew Berglund

The post The Grid 083 ft. Jeffrey San Gabriel – Kings appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Today we welcome to the GRID poker pro and a Global Poker Award winner Xuan Liu. Xuan is a powerhouse on the felt, earning over 2.4 Million dollars in live tournament earnings, including final tables at EPT San Remo and the PCA. Now she is a regular in high stakes cash games and streams all over the globe, including this hand, played at the WPT World Championship at the Wynn.

The Squid game was in play, also known as the Stand-Up Game. In this action-packed format, players are incentivized to play lots of hands to earn a squid token or the right to sit down. Otherwise, they have to pay a bounty to each player at the table.

Xuan held King Seven of Clubs in the small blind and with a squid token at stake, it was plenty strong enough to get involved with her friend Peter, who isolated in the straddle. The flop came out Queens of clubs, jack of clubs, and ten of hearts and as the pot approached six figures, Xuan knew what she had to do.

After going over the hand and the nuts and bolts of Squid strategy, Xuan and Jennifer move on to discuss the power and limits of randomization, in poker and in life. Xuan also talks about her successful quest to play poker in every Canadian province, while on a tight budget.

Now that Xuan Liu has discussed King Seven suited, there are 89 hands remaining on the Poker Grid. See which combos are left: https://thepokergrid.com/episode-finder/ Follow Xuan’s adventures at https://www.youtube.com/@XuanLiu

Other Links Mentioned:

Xuan’s YouTube video on this session

Jennifer’s post on the MIT panel with Jen, Xuan, Alex Botez and Nate Silver. https://jenshahade.substack.com/p/hot-hands-and-cold-decks-on-fire

Xuan’s GPA award winning hand from the Lodge Poker Club

The post The Grid 082 ft. Xuan Liu – King-Seven Suited appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Five-time author and three-time WSOP bracelet winner Matt Matros returns to the GRID to discuss a hand from his latest book,Twenty four NLHE Tournament Hands from 2024: A Year of Nitty Folds and Daring Bluffs.

The hand was played in Philadelphia, where both Jennifer and Matt head to next week for the PokerStars Philadelphia Open.  

Matt Matros, 70 big blinds deep with his opponent, raised Ace-Four of spades from the hijack which was met by a three-bet on the cutoff. Matt called and they saw a flop of 653 rainbow with one spade. Matt check called a 2/3 pot bet on the flop. The turn brought the three of spades, which was checked through. The river was yet another three, and Matros went all in, for 1.5x pot. As his opponent tanked, Matt had plenty of time to think about ranges in what he ultimately calls his “favorite hand of the year.”

Beyond the hand, Jen and Matt discuss the stickiness of results-oriented thinking, Matt’s poker writing style and the limitations of solvers when analyzing live poker hands.

They also talk about Matt’s next big career move, as he heads to law school in his 40s. Matt is another example of someone who proves it’s never too late to play your best poker, or to make a big life move. “Don’t let some number on your driver’s license dictate what you’re going to do.”

Find Matt’s books at https://www.amazon.com/stores/Matt-Matros/author/B001IQUJOW   

Now that Matt Matros has covered ace-four suited, there are 90 hands remaining on the poker GRID. See which combos are left: https://thepokergrid.com/episode-finder/ For bonus GRID content, check out https://jenshahade.substack.com/

The post The Grid 081 ft. Matt Matros – Ace-Four Suited appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Alex “Schwibbs” Schwint is a PokerStars USA crusher. He’s won titles in nearly every PA series there is to win from PASCOOP to PACOOP to Winter Series. With a WSOP bracelet and two circuit rings, the wins keep coming–he event won a seat to the 2025 Irish Open on PokerStars PA.

We welcome him to the GRID to discuss two hands from a PokerStarsPA Scoop Warm-Up that he won for 21K. Coincidentally, both hands were with Ace-Six Suited, and match the suits of two recent posts by Jennifer Shahade, hearts and spades.

In the first, Schwibbs held Ace  Six , at the final table—he already had a nice chip lead, with 70 big blinds with a table average of 40.  Another PokerStars PA regular, R-hart215 (30 Big blinds) opened in first position, and Schwibbs called in the small blind. The flop came King  Nine  Six  and Schwibbs check called a small bet. The turn was the six  and when R-Hart215 made another small bet, Schwibbs check raised. When the Nine hit on the river, Schwibbs went all in, after which he got a tank fold. After we recorded the podcast, Scwhibbs’ opponent kindly revealed his holding: pocket jacks.

After discussing another ace-six suited hand history from the very same event—this one a four bet preflop—Schwibbs and Jen move on to general tips on poker study and a breakthrough lesson he had with BBZ poker. He also talks about his forays into live poker, and why he’s so passionate about coaching.

Follow Scwhibbs at https://x.com/SchwibbsPoker, or find him on the PokerStars PA streets. 

Now that Scwhibbs has covered ace-six suited, there are 91 hands remaining on the poker GRID. Use our episode finder to see which combos are left: https://thepokergrid.com/episode-finder/ For bonus GRID content, check out https://jenshahade.substack.com/

The post The Grid 080 ft. Alex “Schwibbs” Schwint – Ace-Six Suited appeared first on The Poker Grid.

High stakes tournament crusher Sam Greenwood enters the GRID to discuss a deep hand with Ace-Deuce offsuit from a recent event in Triton Jeju. The hand kicks off Sam’s new substack, where he takes us on a tour of the many mishaps that even elite performers make: 

https://samgreenwoodpoker.substack.com/

As he puts it: “I’ve played millions of hands of poker and cashed for millions of dollars in tournaments, but I’ve also made millions of mistakes along the way. Everyday on this Substack I am going to revisit the mistakes I’ve made.”

This hand came from level one of a 20K tournament. Sam opened the button with A2and Boris Angelov defended the BB. The board ran out QT4 J2. Sam walks us through each decision, his flop sizing, and turn and river bets, ultimately explaining why he gave himself a D+ for the hand.

Sam and Jennifer go on to discuss the importance of hand histories in the age of solvers, his writing inspirations, and the enduring anxiety of ace-king offsuit.

Find the Punt of the Day at https://samgreenwoodpoker.substack.com/

Now that Sam Greenwood has discussed the corner piece ace-deuce offsuit, there are 92 hands left on the Poker Grid. Use our episode finder to see which combos are left: https://thepokergrid.com/episode-finder/

The post The Grid 079 ft. Sam Greenwood – Ace-Deuce Offsuit appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Dan “DrDadPoker” Schill enters the GRID to talk about a cash game hand from the show No Gamble, No Future, where he got tangled up in a big pot with 17-time WSOP Champion Phil Hellmuth.

Dan and Jennifer go on to talk about what he’s learned about efficient study and poker strategy in the past year, and what he still wants to work on.  They also touch on hot streaks-see Jennifer’s recent essay for another take on poker heaters: https://jenshahade.substack.com/

You can watch the hand, and the entire stream on PokerStars’ YouTube channel

Follow Dan’s twitch streams, including coverage of USA SCOOPS. Now that Dan Schill has covered nine-eight offsuit, there are 93 hands left on the Poker Grid. Use our interactive episode finder to see which combos are left: 

The post The Grid 078 ft. Dan “DrDadPoker” Schill – Nine-Eight Offsuit appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Judy Whitlow enters the GRID to talk to Jennifer about playing her first poker tournament at the age of 75, and why it’s never too late to learn something new or follow your dreams. That tournament was where Judy and Jennifer met, and they’ve been friends ever since. Judy has also become a regular on the tour. She’s played everywhere from European Poker tour stops in Prague and Barcelona to NAPT Las Vegas and the Women’s Winter Festival in London.

Whitlow brings a hand with pocket sevens, from her favorite stop, EPT Monte Carlo.

Sevens is a special hand for Judy these days, as she’s now 77 and plays them every chance she gets.

They also discuss Judy’s successful career in design and construction, what “playing like a girl” really means, and what attracts Judy to another new hobby: chess. 

Judy Whitlow joins Perpetual Podcast host Ben Johnson in discussing 77 on the GRID. 94 hands remain. Use our interactive episode finder to see which combos are left.

Look for bonus content for this episode on Jennifer’s substack including a preflop lesson with Judy. 

The post The Grid 077 ft. Judy Whitlow – Pocket Sevens appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Abby “Abbypoker” Merk enters the GRID to talk about a hand that has been haunting her for two years. Nearing the bubble at the 2023 WSOP Main Event, she faced off high stakes tournament pro Stephen Chidwick in a ballooning pot that would put all her chips at risk. As Abby retells the stress of the moment, and the logic that led to her decision, Jennifer surprises Abby with Stevie’s take on the hand.  

Abby Merk is a poker pro and the 2024 Global Poker Award winner for Rising Star in Content Creation. Follow her everywhere @abbypoker.  Also thanks to Stephen Chidwick, who is a coach at Octopi Poker, for his contribution to this episode.

Sub to the GRID on your favorite platform, and sign up for Jennifer’s substack, Games and the GRID: https://jenshahade.substack.com/ for bonus content

Hand:

Abby (CO): ~65BB
BB (Stephen Chidwick): Covers

Preflop: Abby raises a little over 2BB from the CO with A Q, BB calls.

Pot: 6 BB

Flop: A K 7

Chidwick checks, Abby bets 1.5BB, Chidwick calls.

Pot: 9 BB

Turn: Q

Chidwick checks, Abby bets 8BB, Chidwick raises to 30BB, Abby calls.

Pot: 69 BB

River: 4

Chidwick moves all-in (32 BB effective)….What would you do?

Photo credit matt burgland

The post The Grid 076 ft. Abby Merk – Ace Queen Suited appeared first on The Poker Grid.

Welcome back to the GRID podcast!

Our re-launch kicks off with Hendon mob founder and PokerStars Pro Barny Boatman. Barny relates a pivotal hand in his historic victory at the 2024 European Poker Tour stop in Paris.

Barny Boatman by Danny Maxwell, who won the 2024 Global Poker Award for this photo

With 19 players remaining, Barny was put to the ultimate test by the chip-leader. He held jack-nine suited in the big blind and faced max pressure on a board of J  8 3 2 2. A fold guaranteed survival. A call meant seizing the chip lead, and a fighting chance at all the glory. Boatman recalls the thoughts and intuition that led him to what he calls his “sliding door moment.”

Now that Barny Boatman has checked off Jack-Nine suited, 95 hands remain on the GRID. Use our interactive episode finder to see which hands have been clicked off, and which are waiting to be hunted down.

For bonus GRID content and essays on chess, poker and decision making, sign up for Jennifer’s substack: https://jenshahade.substack.com/

The post The Grid 075 ft. Barny Boatman – Jack-Nine Suited appeared first on The Poker Grid.