Daniel Negreanu has set his 2010 Poker Goals
After a very successful 2009, Daniel ‘Kid Poker’ Negreanu has set himself eight poker goals which he hopes to achieve in 2010. Last year (2009) saw Negreanu cash in 8 WSOP final tables, making the final table in two of those, and then he finished runner-up to Barry Shulman in the WSOPE Main Event. His live tournament earnings for 2009 totalled $1.2 million. The year did end sadly for Negreanu however when his mother died. In 2009 his only goal was to knock Jamie Gold off the all-time money leader list which he achieved. For 2010 he has set himself the following goals:
1. $1 million in tournament earnings in 2010.
Negreanu has stated that he will be mainly focusing on the WSOP events this year as well as a few other big buy-in events. Just one big score in such an event would see him well on his way to achieving this goal. If it wasn’t for his runner-up finish in the WSOPE Main Event in 2009, he would have ended the year with only $407,860, and I use the term ‘only’ because of Negreanu’ss high standards and ability. Last year he finished with a total of $1,224,895, but with a renewed hunger who could bet against Negreanu achieving $1 million? I feel that he will certainly achieve this.
2. Stay #1 on the all-time money leader list.
2009 saw Daniel Negreanu overtake Jamie Gold on the all-time money leader list with a total winning to date of $12,428,047. Hot on the heels of Negreanu is good friend Phil Ivey. Ivey has $12,236,714 in tournament earnings and his final table appearance in the 2009 WSOP Main Event will surely have reignited his passion for tournament poker after mainly focusing on cash games. This goal will all be down to Negreanu. The more tournaments he plays in, the more likely he will stay #1 on the all-time money list.
3. Stay #1 on the WPT all-time money leader list.
Daniel Negreanu is also first on the WPT all-time money list with $5,519,657 in winnings. He hasn’t cashed at the WPT since November 2008 and his closest competitor to this honour is Carlos Mortensen. Mortensen has $5,260,360 in WPT earnings so it could be a very close goal. Negreanu will certainly be wanting to play as many WPT events as possible this year in the hope of streaking ahead of Mortensen.
4. Two WSOP Bracelets.
This is Negreanu’s most ambitious goal for 2010. Currently Negreanu has won 4 WSOP bracelets and has finished runner-up four times, as well as third twice, and several final tables. When he began participating at the WSOP he set a goal of one bracelet every two years. 2010 will be his 13th year at the WSOP so he feels if he can win two bracelets this year, that he will be back on track for his bracelet goal. It will be very interesting to hear if there are any prop bets on this goal when the 2010 WSOP begins.
5. One Tour Win.
By being part of Team PokerStars, Negreanu is able to travel the world and enter any tournament he wants. In 2010 he has set himself a goal of winning one of these PokerStars sponsored events. This includes tours such as the EPT, LAPT, ATTP etc, which suggests Negreanu is gearing up for an extensive year on the tournament circuit. With his talent, experience, and bankroll, this is certainly an achieveble goal but lady luck must factor when the cards fall at those crucial times.
6. Move up to 12th on the WSOP all-time cash list.
Currently Negreanu has cashed 43 times at the WSOP, that’s in 13 years attending the series. In the last two years however, he has cashed 17 times. If he can continue this fine form then he could certainly overtake Mike Sexton and Thor Hansen who are currently joint 12th on the list with 46 WSOP cashes each. These are both high quality players and will almost certainly be cashing at the WSOP in 2010, so Negreanu will have to make it a priority to play as many events as possible.
7. Move up to 25th on the WSOP all-time money list.
Currently Negreanu is 28th on this list, and his goal is to replace Dan Harrington who is currently 25th. Negreanu currently has $3,383,080 whereas Dan Harrington has $3,524,47. One big WSOP score could shoot Negreanu up this list, especially a deep run in the Main Event!
8. Get to the $3-$6 level in my bankroll challenge.
Similar to Chris Ferguson’s Bankroll Challenge, Daniel Negreanu began one of his own, to turn $0 into $100,000. Currently Negreanu is playing at the $0.10/$0.25 games on PokerStars which means you have a great opportunity to play against the poker legend! This year Negreanu hopes to build his roll up to around $1500 so he can play the $3/$6 games. Currently he has $180.
Daniel Negreanu will also be working on his poker training site PokerVT. PokerVT is regarded as one of the best training sites available and will certainly help you become a better poker player. Remember, if you want to play against Daniel Negreanu just read our PokerStars review then join the worlds largest poker site.
