Poker fans around the world were witness to a fierce battle for 2024 WSOP Player of the Year this summer. Scott Seiver eventually claimed that distinction, fending off challenges from numerous big name players, including Michael Rocco, Jeremy Ausmus, Chris Hunichen, Chance Kornuth, Yuri Dzivielevski, John Racener, Calvin Anderson, and Poker Hall of Famer Phil Ivey. But there was also one other not-as-recognizable name on the POY leaderboard, David Prociak, who finished 7th in that race.
The semi-professional poker player won two bracelets this summer ($1,500 Badugi and $600 NLHE Deepstack Championship) and also managed another final table finish (3rd in a $1K PLO event), for a breakout WSOP. Those accomplishments notwithstanding, the now 3-time bracelet winner nonetheless somehow practically flew under the radar as far as media coverage.
David Prociak’s winning ways extended off the felt as well, as he recently celebrated his engagement to Brittney Barnes. One could certainly say he’s in his prime and the sky’s the limit, as he’s in the process of moving to Las Vegas. On that note, I’d like to thank David for kindly giving of his time to sit for this interview. Among the topics we discussed were his poker career, what he loves about mixed games, tournaments, cash games, and the game of poker in general.
Image credit: Hayley Hochstetler for PokerNews
How did you first come to learn about poker? What did you love about that game that hooked you in?
Like many, I discovered poker on ESPN and the amazing early 2000s World Series of Poker broadcasts. It’s was amazing to be able to watch those and have something to aspire to. My dream to play professional sports fizzled out, and here I was watching something I could some day compete in on ESPN. From my perspective and skill level it was likely to never happen but still it was cool to watch, play poker with my friends and dream of one day possibly play an event or two.
Checking your Hendonmob, I see you have tournament results dating back to late 2015. That’s when you first jumped into playing live poker tournaments but you obviously had prior experience in the game. What was your poker play like until then? Just cash games? Or only recreational? Online?
My group of about nine friends were pretty obsessed with poker for a while and one of them introduced us to a free bar poker league where they would award a $5k buyin + $1k travel package four times a year for winning their main event. We played that for a while and one of my friends, Joseph Sanchez, won it!
I never took it too seriously until I was injured playing flag football and couldn’t walk for a few weeks. In that time frame I spent all my time reading poker books, and when the next bar league main event came I actually won it!
After that I was hooked. When I recovered from my injury I never went back to work. I spent most of my time playing poker online and some live cash games in Orlando.
I was just starting to scratch the surface of my abilities when Black Friday happened. I even achieved what was ironically called “Black Card” status on Full Tilt just before Black Friday. I was playing pretty much everything offered online from cash to low/mid stakes tournaments. I’d often short stack mid/high stakes cash games and started to flirt with low/mid-stakes mixed games.
After Black Friday I was devastated. I had more than 90% of all my money in my online poker accounts, so I was pretty much broke at that point. Soon after, I started a business with a friend and my dream of playing poker came to an end. Or so I thought.
Back when you won your first WSOP bracelet in Stud 8, in 2016, you considered yourself a semi-professional. You do still own an online retail business, but at this point do you consider yourself to be a full-time professional poker player?
Yes, I still have my online retail business but I now have an assistant who runs the day to day operations which allows me the luxury to be away and player poker.
In 2015, I hadn’t played a hand of poker for years. When I was in Tampa conducting a business transaction, I randomly decided I’d stop at the Hard Rock to play a little poker for fun. The lists were long and the only game with a seat open was a $5/$5 PLO game. So I bought in for $500 and by the end of the session I had $10,000 in front of me. I was hooked again and I went nearly every day for a week to play, and by the end I think I was up about $60,000.
Going to play each day I saw advertisements for tournaments and I decided I wanted to play a few, so I looked online and saw the next series near me was an HPT in Daytona. I showed up on the first day to play the main event, but being the noob I was I didn’t realize the date I saw online was for the first event of the series, not the main event. So I played the opening event and ended up chopping it with two older gentlemen for $11k-ish.
I played the main event of that HPT and got pretty deep, finishing 24th. Next, I decided to head to Hard Rock Hollywood for their $3500 main event and my heater peaked with me chopping it for nearly $400k. Ironically, I never intended to play so much poker, but I saw I was in the top 5 of their Player of the Year race, and top prize was a $44k package. So, I decided to keep playing Hard Rock events and eventually won their Player of the Year award.
With all those successes, I decided to take a shot at the WSOP in 2016. I brought only $30k with me and planned to return home if that ran out. To me, that was the big leagues and I expected to be outmatched. For the most part I was because I spent much of my time learning mixed games playing stakes like $20/$40 and a few of the $1500 events.
David Prociak (@DavidProciakPok) wins Event 60: $1,500 Stud Hi-Lo for $156,546. https://t.co/hbpprpjr2H pic.twitter.com/M71X8T0qm3
— WSOP – World Series of Poker (@WSOP) July 8, 2016
These days I still consider myself part-time and I actually only play a few poker series a year, but being in Vegas I’ve been playing much more this past year. I have a home in Florida, but I’m moving and relocating my business to Las Vegas at the end of this year.
For many players these days, success in poker isn’t just about playing and getting the reps in; it’s also about getting in the lab and studying, often by enrolling in poker training sites. Do you work on your game away from the felt?
I’ve always been pretty good about consuming information and dissecting it. I’ve always felt like a natural talent when it comes to poker. My studying is mostly watching poker content, whether that be live streams or purpose-made training videos. I’ve picked up a ton just being at the tables with good players and watching what they do and figuring out why.
Also, people at the tables really talk way too much about poker strategy and give off so much information. I’ve picked up a ton just listening to conversations at the tables. My first time playing baducey I’ll never forget some guy telling me the rules followed by his strategy 🤯! I’ve never studied solvers, but I think I understand why they are doing a lot of the things they are doing. I just take some of the core concepts and apply them to my game to the best of my understanding.
I first played with you in a $20/40 mix at Resorts World earlier this year, where I also met your fiancé, Brittney Barnes. She works in the poker industry, and is quite the active poker player herself. To what degree and in what way(s) do you feel you’ve benefitted most from having a life partner who knows, understands, and plays poker?
At the time we played together she was my girlfriend, and we recently got engaged with plans to get married soon. Having her in the poker industry and in Vegas has contributed to me playing more than I usually would. When she was a traveling dealer I went with her to a few stops and won a few Rungood rings.
I came to stay with her in Vegas and ended up playing (and winning) a PGT mixed event I never would have played otherwise. Now that she’s moved on the Venetian I find myself playing there a few days a week as well. She absolutely loves to play in her free time. She’s passionate about it and we often play small-stakes games together. Having her to talk about poker with definitely keeps my mind fresh and her excitement is infectious.
What cash game stakes do you currently regularly play for?
Before the WSOP I played a few months $40/80 and $80/160 mix, and I think getting those reps in contributed to my successful summer. Back in Florida I regularly played in a private $5/$5/$10 PLO/Mix game that evolved into a $5/$5/$25 game then $25/$25/$50. I’m still searching for a game in Las Vegas to play in regularly. I love poker and I play all stakes and structures, whether it be a $100 tournament or $1/$2 PLO; nothing is too small.
What do you like so much about mixed games in particular? Do you have a favorite?
I’ll play just about anything that’s not Hold’em. The more obscure the game, the better. I think I’m good at figuring games out and ways to win, and whenever something new pops up I tend to do well. For example, when double board PLO first came along, I think I figured it out much quicker than everyone I was playing with. The first time I ever played short deck I came in 2nd at the WSOP (they’ve since taken it off the schedule). The complexity of the mixed games just appeal to me.
Picking a favorite is a bit difficult because I love PLO so much, but if I had to pick a game in dealer’s choice solely based on my preference, I think I’d choose badeucey or 2-7 triple draw. The draw games really appeal to me because on the surface they seem so simple, but you can get really creative in many different ways.
You are the second ever winner of the WSOP $1500 Badugi event. What do you enjoy about that game in particular? Do you feel it’s poised to grow in popularity and more people ought to begin playing it, or that it has “just the right amount of popularity” in the poker world?
Honestly, I think it will always be toward the bottom in popularity. Limit games are never going to have a popularity spike in my opinion, but when something is new to the masses, it could ride a wave for a while.
🏆 @DavidProciakPok 🇺🇸 Wins 2024 @wsop Event#11: $1,500 Badugi #poker (🏃🏻♂️: 487) at the @HorseshoeVegas 🎰 for $129,676 💰 & his ✌🏼#WSOP bracelet 🥇
Recap📰:https://t.co/oiArtitBrX
📝:@Liamgannon99 with @PokerNews
📸: @hayleyocho
📲:https://t.co/g3t5bXm0be 📚 https://t.co/gcPfQmwO54 pic.twitter.com/BG7pSrYF8L
— #PokerPaparazzi (@PokerPaparazzi) June 5, 2024
What’s your favorite poker room to play in and why?
Hard Rock Hollywood will always have a special place in my heart, as I’ve had a lot of success there. I haven’t been there much since 2020, but I do plan to play there more in the future. As for Vegas, I love the Wynn and the new poker room at the Venetian is amazing. I’ve been at the Venetian nearly every day since the new room opened and it doesn’t hurt that my future wife is often in my line of sight.
How do you decide which tournaments you want to play and where? What are the primary factors for you?
I don’t really chase huge prize pools as much as some people. I’ve recently started aggregating all my data to see where my best hourly or ROI is so maybe my answer will change once I finish, but for now I don’t put a lot of thought into it. I know I’ve done best in the $1500 WSOP events and it’s not even close, but outside of those I just look for series where I can play a lot of mixed/PLO events.
Do you like cash games or tournaments more? Why?
The complexity of tournaments appeals to me a ton. No two scenarios are ever the same. You can literally change one thing that has nothing to do with the actual hand you are playing, and the hand might play totally differently. For example, you are at a final table and you are second in chips and depending on where the chip leader is seated or how he plays it can change everything about every hand you play.
In every hand, there are hundreds of factors dictating your play and the guys who are best at processing all those factors are going to win more money. Nothing comes close to the excitement of a deep run in poker as well.
Your third bracelet came this summer in the $600 NLHE online Deepstack event. Obviously you have that online poker background. How much do you still play online? To what degree are you “still primarily an online poker player” or has the balance really shifted more to live play over the last 8 years?
I’ve rarely played online tournaments in the past few years and my online play has mostly consisted of PLO cash games. I go through phases where I play a lot then times where I won’t play for months, so it’s just all about how I feel.
During COVID, the WSOP had the online WSOP and I traveled to NJ to play that and did pretty well. This summer I didn’t intend to play much online, but being in the Player of the Year race, I finally got my account setup so I started firing toward the end. I think I ended up having more cashes online than I did live 😂. Being in Las Vegas since the series ended, I’ve been playing WSOP.com a few times a week and it’s going well so maybe I’ll become a staple on there; we’ll see.
One might think that it’s been one of your three WSOP bracelet wins that notched you your career high scores, but none of them came close. The actual highest dollar amount you’ve won in a tournament came from a runner up finish back in 2015 at the Rock N Roll Poker Open Main Event in Hollywood, Florida, for just over $330,000. Was that a life-changing tournament for you? Does that one stand out even among the three bracelet wins simply because of the significantly larger amount of money you won?
That cash at that time was life-changing in the sense that it inspired me to play a lot more poker and gave me the bankroll to play whatever I wanted. I was perfectly fine financially before that but having an influx of cash that large definitely relieves a lot of stress especially with my first son arriving shortly after. My first bracelet stands out far more in terms of accomplishments for me because it was my dream from the very beginning to win a bracelet.
There were some huge names who chased 2024 WSOP Player of the Year. Perhaps because of their prior pedigree they were the ones getting all the poker media attention. Considering the career year you’ve had, can you talk about both how it felt like to be in the running alongside these longtime poker crushers, as well as to nonetheless seemingly be “the afterthought horse in that race” not getting as much of the spotlight?
All of those guys have been around and competing longer and have accomplished a lot more than I have to this point, so their recognition is well deserved. They are literally legends of the game. I’ve never been able to play the entire WSOP start to finish until this year, so hopefully this becomes the norm for me and I can expect some poker media coverage in the future.
Screenshot: WSOP.com
Why does chasing WSOP Player of the Year mean so much to you?
The WSOP in my eyes is the most prestigious series in poker. Everyone wants to be considered great at what they do and something as exclusive as the Player of the Year, where only one person can win every year, for me would be incredible. I hope to be in the running in future years, it was very exciting to be in that position.
Within a few-weeks’ span, you suddenly went from having one WSOP bracelet to three. In what way, if at all, has that changed your perspective on the game, you confidence level(s), the way you play, the way others play against you, etc.?
I always knew I’d win more bracelets if I kept playing, but to win two in the same series feels amazing. Poker is definitely a game of confidence so having the reinforcement of winning really helps. Last year I did not play the whole series and managed two second place finishes, so to follow through this year and get some wins means a lot to me.
You were really hard on the grind throughout the summer. What have you been up to since the end of the WSOP?
I’ve been relaxing, playing almost no poker and concentrating on relocating to Vegas. I’m planning a trip later this month, and then I can return to play something in September.
Besides time devoted to running your business, what other hobbies do you have outside of playing poker? How else do you like to spend your time?
I have a short attention span so I tend to cycle through hobbies, but one recent hobby has been mountain biking. I’ve been gearing up to start a YouTube channel based on poker as decide to move toward playing full-time.
Thinking of starting a YouTube channel and putting out content but debating whether it should be poker or my business 🤔. Realistically my business would probably have a bigger upside but I def enjoy poker a lot more and think it would be much cooler to show that.
— David Prociak (@DavidProciakPok) July 14, 2024
Finally, considering the success you’ve experienced this summer, how do you “top that”? What sort of horizons are you hoping to cross next, and what achievements – either trophies or at the cash tables – would you like to add to your resume over the coming year(s)?
I just want more bracelets 😁
