Ahead of the Phil Galfond Challenge, I asked him who had been his fiercest competitor. The first name that fell out of Galfond’s mouth was Viktor ‘Isildur1’ Blom. The Swedish star who rocked the high stakes boat like no man had ever done, or has ever done since.
Galfond once won $1.6m against Blom in a war spanning multiple tables of $300/$600 & $500/$1000 Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO). It remains Galfond’s largest winning day ever. Blom was ‘learning’ the game at the time (Blom would also win a million in a day from Galfond during their battles).
Today, Galfond prepares to resume his €100/€200 PLO heads-up challenge against VeniVidi1993. In parallel, Blom’s just won the Battle Royale freeroll at the Unibet Open in Dublin, where he’s appearing as a ‘friend’ of Unibet.
Galfond is down a million euros.
Blom’s just won €1,500.
In a revealing blog post penned by Galfond circa 2012, he spoke highly of Blom as a player and a person, stating that the Swede had more raw talent, and therefore the ability to rule the world should he want to.
You can read it here.
In that same blog post, we learned how much Blom loves the game, and how competing with the best in the business, and having fun, are the two primary reasons that he contends.
“It’s just money,” said Blom, when questioned by Galfond about a leak in his game.
How amazing would it be to see Blom competing in the Triton Poker Super High Roller Series, both in tournaments and the cash games? I’ve seen him in the shadows, but so far, he’s not found the courage/fuel/network (delete as appropriate) to take a pew.
If you want to have fun, playing poker, against the best, then the Triton Poker Super High Roller series is where you need to be. Still, you can have all of the natural talents in the world. Without the right forms of nurture, it’s going to be challenging to create a legacy. We will always remember Blom for the way he ripped the game apart during that halcyon period. But man, how incredible would it be to see him chop through whatever weedy paths are preventing him from doing it all again.
From a laptop in the San Fernando Valley, I can’t say why Blom is playing at the Unibet Open, and not the Triton Poker Series, but the smart money is that Blom doesn’t have the fuel to light on fire at the highest levels.
Given that the high stakes poker stratum is still on an uncharted path laden with more treasure than ever before let’s hope that someone does an Abba, and takes a chance on him. Let’s also hope that if he does take this chance, it doesn’t stop him from competing in Battle Royale freerolls. He’s a tall lad. Let the poker world all have a piece of him.
Here are those Battle Royale results.
Results
- Viktor Blom – €1,500
- David Vanderheyden – €1,000
- Espen Uhlen Jørstad – €500
- Dara O’Kearney
- David Lappin
- Jorma Vuoksenmaa
- Alexandre Reard
- Monica Vaka
- Dehlia de Jong
Niall Farrell & Max Silver Cash in High Roller
Blom isn’t the only player with high stakes experience, currently trying to put players in a Bonnington Hotel tomb.
The Triple Crown winner, Niall Farrell, and the World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner, Max Silver, are also in the Emerald Isle. Both cashed in the €2,200 No-Limit Hold’em (NLHE) High Roller (results below).
Silver is also in a decent position to make a deep run in the €1,100 Unibet Open Dublin NLHE Main Event finishing 2/24 from a field of 83-entrants on Day 1A.
High Roller Results
- Tarek Qunber – €11,170*
- Niall Farrell – €10,000*
- Robbie Toan – €10,000*
- Max Silver – €4,830
*Indicates a threeway deal