Zarvan Tumboli speaks to India Poker Ranking about the kind of discipline and focus required to professionally succeed in poker, his take on Cash v/s Tournaments, and his association with MadOverPoker.
“One of the key aspects of being a professional poker player is the freedom it allows me. I choose my days and hours of work. I am my boss and I am accountable only to myself,” says Zarvan Tumboli – who needs no introduction in the Indian poker circuit. But how did he get introduced to the game? “I used to play for hours on Facebook’s Zynga Poker, and the motivation of selling the chips for real money got me hooked on to it very soon. Then I started playing live Rs.100 buy-in with friends over sleep-overs,” he recalls. “I have freedom and flexibility and the strategic complexities of this game fascinates me. Most people have no idea what it takes to play poker for a living and the amount of mental discipline, steady game plan, dedication and focus required.”
We talk about tournaments vis-à-vis cash games, and online v/s live. “With enough work, volume and commitment, you can be profitable in whatever format you choose. The big pro of tournament poker in a big field where numbers are huge is that you have a shot to get a big score. You play against recreational players and not regulars. The thrill and excitement I get playing tournaments is different from cash. The biggest con would be variance, so much variance! It is way more time consuming and has bankroll requirements. Advantages of cash games are more room for analytical play, less swings and some of the cons are that you will never get a massive payday like in tourneys!” As for live v/s online games, “I’ve played a lot of live poker throughout my poker career. I gradually increased putting volume online because there was a lot of value attached to it but live is definitely more exciting! The pace of the game differs and you can multi table online - I can play 6 to 7 tournaments together which cannot happen live. Strategies differ and so does the variance. Table talk, live tells, dynamics and reads is what I focus on while playing live and it counts,” shares Zarvan.
Zarvan is also a Team Pro of MadOverPoker – known for being a great value for money to budding poker enthusiasts, and he speaks to us about the association. “When the opportunity came up, I was excited because being a Pro isn’t only about playing, but also having strong public behaviour in terms of ethics. At MadOverPoker, new players get a feel of how the game actually works, and the constant innovative promotions and products are great!” Talking about new entrants in Indian Poker, “India Poker Ranking is a unique ranking system where you get ranked amongst more than 5,000 players based on your online performances across various sites. The numbers are only going to increase and every player deserves to be recognised, appreciated on their achievements and IPR is doing a great job with this and I hope they continue to do so!”
We ask him a success mantra that he could give other players and for him, “If you are playing for a living, it is necessary to balance both and grind cash games to support your bankroll.”
Lastly, quickly choose, live v/s online. Quickly! “I am a way better player live.” But, we at India Poker Ranking wouldn’t agree! Earlier this week, Zarvan won about Rs. 20 Lakhs for a Rs. 5,000 Buy-In in one of the biggest Indian online tournaments and currently ranks #1 on IPR’s Monthly Leaderboard!