A Beauty of Poker - Evelyn Ng

This woman is not just another pretty face; she is also a talented and experienced poker player. Playing cash games for the last decade and making a quite successful living off of it, Evelyn has now moved to tournaments. Evelyn placed 2nd in the 2003 World Poker Tour Invitational, as well as making five other major cashes in the last two years.

How did you learn to play?

I used to be a dealer. I started dealing underground poker clubs back when I was like seventeen. I just paid attention when I was dealing. I first paid attention just to learn how to deal the game properly and then after awhile I just started to see the same people winning all the time so I just listened to their conversations and tried to gather as much information as I could just from dealing.

What is your relationship with Daniel Negreanu?

We had met through playing pool when I was sixteen. We hadn't seen each other in years and we had both made our way into the poker world and had ran into each other from that. He really mentored me, more so in the inner game, not really strategy so much. He really taught me how to have a professional attitude and not let my emotions get the better of me. He taught me the things that are really important, not how to play AK before the flop. Those things he taught me were the most important lessons I think.

How long did it take for men to start respecting you at the table?

I don't even know if I get that now. I think I've always been successful at poker. Ever since I started I have been a winning player. I'm not really sure if people really give me that respect because I never really tried to get it from them. Maybe I do get some more respect now than I did when I started probably from recognition from television. I always feel that I've done pretty well in the game and that I should get respect.

What is your greatest poker moment?

I think the first major event that I played, the first time I really pulled off a bluff. I made a huge bluff for all my chips. It was a big moment because it took a lot of courage and I wasn't really sure if I could get away with it, but I did and that was a moment for me that I really knew that I was playing tournament poker. I wasn't just trying to squeak in or survive, I was playing to win. That was a good moment for me.

What would you be doing if you weren't playing poker?

Probably something creative, I'm sort of missing that creative outlet. I like to write, I like music, media, all kinds of movies, so probably something where I would be creating something.

How does poker affect your personal life?

I've always had serious boyfriends my whole life, and right now I am trying to focus on playing poker, winning tournaments and not getting sidetracked. I'm not really that romantically inclined right now, but I think that poker is probably a good resource for women because there are a lot of guys in poker.