Jeff Madsen Breaks Down Borgata Winter Poker Open Win

Over the weekend, two-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner and Full Tilt Poker pro Jeff Madsen took down the $3,500 Main Event of the Borgata Winter Poker Open for $625,000. Madsen sat down with Poker News Daily to recap his run.

Poker News Daily: The final table of the Borgata Winter Open Main Event seemed to lack a little bit of the star power of other high-profile tournaments. Can you talk about its talent level?

Jeff Madsen: I didn’t think they were no-names or anything. There were a few online guys I had heard of like Ross “tysonduke23” Mallor and I had also heard of David Marchese. I had also heard of Matt Matros and Sirous Jamshidi before. There weren’t a lot of big names, but I knew it wouldn’t be an easy final table. There were a few soft spots, but by and large it was tough.

PND: You were even entering heads-up play against Sirous Jamshidi. What was your strategy against him?

Jeff Madsen: I knew I had him outmatched. He’s a good player, but he didn’t have an answer for my aggression. At first, I was being aggressive, raising pre-flop, and continuation betting. I knew he didn’t like to fold very much, so I just chipped him down until he was pretty low. He didn’t want to put his chips in bad and I put a lot of pressure on him to make tough decisions.

PND: You’ve had a solid last three months, with a deep run in the 2010 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) in January and a final table in a Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic preliminary tournament in December. Have you been feeling good on the circuit?

Jeff Madsen: I’ve been playing better in general. I had a good 2009 and just had one bad patch from the WSOP to December. Overall, I’ve been playing well now. I’m a streaky player, but I’m coming around. I’ve been changing some things about my game and it’s more about polishing things up and staying focused. It’s also about being even keel, even outside of poker.

PND: Is it weird describing yourself as a streaky player?

Jeff Madsen: It’s how I’ve always been. I came in and did well right away and then had a few rough patches. I have an aggressive style and I’m young. I’m getting more consistent too, which is good.

PND: Does the Borgata Winter Open Main Event retain some of its luster despite no longer being televised? Is it still prestigious to play in and win?

Jeff Madsen: I wish it were still a World Poker Tour (WPT) event, but it was a big tournament and had over 700 people. Plus, the Borgata is the premier place in Atlantic City. It’s still a very lucrative event and a lot of big pros turn out.

PND: Will we be seeing you in the $50,000 Player’s Championship during the 2010 WSOP?

Jeff Madsen: I want to enter it, but it’s more the money, not whether I think I’d do well. When the time comes around, we’ll see. I’ll try to get into it, even if it means having 25% of myself out there.

PND: Talk about your L.A. Poker Classic Main Event prop bet with Joe Sebok and Gavin Smith, which involves you guys getting tattoos of each other’s faces. How did that come up? Sebok wants to back out, but do you still want to go through with it?

Jeff Madsen: We’re all into prop bets. Gavin and Joe had this bet already and one day they told me about it and talked me into it. It sounded like a terrible idea, but seemed like fun anyway. I’m playing well and I think I’m a favorite not to get last. It’d be funny to see my face on someone else. I accepted it and I’m not backing out.

PND: You’re a Full Tilt Red Pro. Talk a little bit about Rush Poker on the site. What were your first impressions of it?

Jeff Madsen: I tried it when it first came out. It’s fun and ridiculous, but I’m not as huge of a cash game player in general. Rush Poker is a way different dynamic. I think it’d be sick if tournaments had it, but I don’t know what the format would be.

PND: What are your poker goals for 2010?

Jeff Madsen: I’m already doing well, which is good. I want to win a WPT event because I haven’t done that yet. I’d also like to win another bracelet. I have points now, so I could go after a Player of the Year title. I definitely have high standards. I think I can do everything I just said, but I have to focus.

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Casino poker language:

RACE - In tournaments it is sometimes convenient to remove all lower-denomination chips from play, as the remaining players' stacks tend to grow. Small chips are converted to larger chips and any odd chips are "raced off" in the following way: each player with odd chips places them in front of his stack and is dealt one card for each chip. Highest card (rank and suit) takes all the small chips and converts them to higher-denomination chips.
THIRD STREET - In Stud, the third card dealt to each player.
BELLY BUSTER - An inside straight draw. Same as GUTSHOT.
PAT - Holding or being dealt a pat hand. "I'm pat" would mean "I don't want to draw any cards.
SIXTH STREET - The sixth card dealt in 7-card stud.
QUARTER - [1] Twenty-five dollars, often symbolized by a green casino chip. [2] To divide half a pot between two tying hands. In split pot games, a player who "ties" another player for their half of the pot is said to be "quartered". One might say "I didn't bet my A-2 because I figured I'd get quartered".

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