My tribute to the late Mr. Wayne Beh Kok Weng

The first time I met Wayne was in 2014. Right after I started running my first poker room, I made it an effort to get to know the people in the industry. I went all the way to Kuala Lumpur to rub shoulders with the hosts and players at Goldhill Poker club. I doubt he noticed me much at the time, but fate would have it 9 years later, we got to know each other more and reminisced in the early years of Malaysian poker and look back on how far the industry has come.

Wayne was one of the pioneers of poker in Malaysia. He and others before me paved the way for us to enjoy poker the way we do today. He was passionate about the game, innovative and creative, always coming up with ways to make the game more accessible to new players. 

In the past I was always a little bit intimidated by Wayne. He had a temper and sometimes would get upset and scolded the people around him. But as I got to know him, it was his way of teaching others to improve and do the best they can. There is often a better way to do things and he would always push others to think, learn and do their best. He also had a softer side to him. Anyone that approached him, he happily joined them in conversation, often with funny stories and jokes, only until recently when his health was waning where he was more quiet. 

In the last few months I got to spend more time with him, even had a few phone conversations. Wayne had irritable bowel syndrome and when it acted up it would give him stomach cramps and put him in pain. One time when we were playing poker, I tank called a big river bluff from him. However after the hand his IBS acted up and he was in agony. Even though I should be happy to win a big pot, I felt so bad afterwards and since then I tried to act as fast as I can whenever I was in a hand with him. 

The last time I saw him was at the recent Poker Dream 8. Everyone saw that he was unwell, he even complained about being out of breath. But against the advisement of all his friends, he insisted on staying on to play poker, a place where he feels at home, where he could see the fruits of his labour, his legacy. The next day he took our advice and went home, we exchanged some texts and one of the last messages I got from him were "LOL ok" and "thanks". 

I am grateful to have met Wayne and gotten to know him more. He shoots like a straight arrow, but he means well. If he saw something he didn't like, he wouldn't hold back. He doesn't butter you up or soften the blow, but gives you his honest opinion. He was kind and generous in giving and helping others. He commanded respect and authority, and could solve some of the biggest issues with one phone call. He would often affectionately call someone (myself included) "你条 bangkali" and then joked and laughed together. You will be missed and fondly remembered, rest in peace. 

Poker Dream 8, Genting Malaysia Report

I was very excited to play my first series of the year. Kudos to Poker Dream, the turn out was amazing. It total exceeded my expectations and I am truly excited to see this kind of response in the Malaysia market. I am also very pleased to see some clear improvements from the organizers, for example the graphic displays, to the now more prominent and grand final table, the media shared during the event, extra floor assistants, VIP buy in sheets, these little things are very encouraging signs. Can't wait to see further improvements and innovations in the upcoming series. 

Bye bye money

Back to me, this series was a big fat L for me. 3 ITM, but all shallow ones, and more crucially are my 3 bullets in the SHR all amounting to nothing. I was truly touched by the support of my friends who had complete faith in me. Some even offered to buy 100% of my action, or whatever I was willing to sell, without question. I am just annoyed I couldn't reward their faith with some good ROI. I feel that I played a few spots amazingly, but I also did make quite a few mistakes. Although I have been playing live poker more often than before, my stamina this trip was not what it used to be. I have been battling a bad cough for weeks, couldn't sleep well, and I had a terrible room to boot. Every morning at 9:45am I will hear the loud music from the theme park which was my daily alarm clock. Not very good when some days I played until 3-4am. 

Played a great line but was not rewarded

However there were some positives from this series. I met some pretty cool people and made new friends. A few of my students had really good results, one even finished 2nd in a side event. Some made their first ever live ITM. Although they had luck on their side, but luck is when preparation meets opportunity. I've played with some players in this series where even luck hit them straight in the face they will never win because of how badly they played. 

I'll be back

Overall this series is now the biggest losing series of my career. But I am thankful that my bankroll is at it's healthiest of my career as well, so it wasn't too hard to take. Funny when you work hard, give your passion and effort, do good and be good, help others without expecting anything in return, somehow good things will happen to you. I see some players complain about their luck. But if some of them looked closely at how they live their lives, maybe they can see they don't deserve good luck. Good things happen to good people. Instead of focusing on getting good things, focus on becoming a good person first. I know "good things" happen to bad people too, but don't worry, their time of reckoning will come. You just focus on bettering yourself.