The Brilliant Belgian – Why Thomas Boivin is Crushing Super High Rollers
As another Triton Poker Series plays out in Jeju, South Korea, many fans will be looking forward to following the fortunes of the greats, the players whose names have been hollered in households around the world for many years. From Phil Ivey to Isaac Haxton, Jason Koon to Daniel Dvoress, legends of the Triton Poker Series are present in every event. But a recent less-fancied name might just be the best route to profit and a way that PokerStake investors can make their fortune heading into the end of the year.
We’re talking about the brilliant Belgian Thomas Boivin, and his recent record in Super High Roller events will give you cause to back him in South Korea this month.
The Belgian King
Thomas Boivin has won a grand total of $12.4 million in his live poker career, which dates back to his first cash for just over $8,000 in Ireland back in 2012. In his home country of Belgium, Thomas’ first result was a 38th-placed score in the $350-entry 2012 Wallonie Series of Poker for just $844.
In the space of four days in Las Vegas this summer, Thomas won over $3.25 million in two events.
The rapid rise of Thomas Boivin is nothing short of spectacular. So how did this precocious talent from Charleroi in Central Belgium rise to become one of most respected high roller in the poker world? The Belgian sits top of the All-Time Money List for his countrymen, ahead of luminaries such as Davidi Kitai, Pieter Aerts and even the two-time WSOP Main Event finalist Kenny Hallaert, with whom we spoke at great length last week.
A combination of ultra-discipline, GTO study and highly focused performances at the felt have catapulted Thomas to the upper limits of his nation’s players. Here’s how he approaches the game in a deep dive about Thomas’ origins and progression in poker:
The Podium Crusher
Back in June of this year, Thomas Boivin was just about to enter the $100,000 NLHE 8-Max High Roller, Event #38 at the World Series of Poker. With 103 entries in total, only 16 players made the money places and among them were some of the best players in the world. Young phenom Landon Tice came 12th for $203,960, Phil Ivey cashed in ninth for $247,130 and Andrew Lichtenberger finished sixth for $471,281.
Thomas finished third for $1,212,000, and eight events and three days later, found himself at the final table of another huge event, the $250,000-entry Super High Roller WSOP Event #46. Once again, the competition was fierce, with just 63 entries and only 10 of the best players in the world making the money.
Thomas flew through the field, outlasting genuine poker legends along the way as Daniel Negreanu (9th for $531,284), David Peters (6th for $826,348) and Bryn Kenny (4th for $1,446,929) all fell short of the podium places. Not Thomas. His run to third for $2,057,430 meant only the winner Seth Davies and runner-up Alex Foxen finished with more money than him and has bolstered Thomas’ already rising reputation.
What is Thomas Selling to in Jeju?
Thomas Boivin is selling to three events so far in Jeju this coming fortnight. In Event #5, the NLHE 8-Max event, he’s got 15% on sale for two bullets in the $63,000 buy-in event at a markup of just 1.06. In the recent Triton WPT Global Slam event, Thomas turned the $26,500 buy-in into a result worth $103,500, multiplying investors on PokerStake’s pieces by four. Even at the markup of 1.10 that he sold to that tournament for, if you’d paid under $270 for 1% of Thomas’ action, you would have cashed out over $1,000.
Selling 15% of his action to Event #6, the $53,000 buy-in Event #6, Thomas has priced up that tournament at a markup of 1.07. Fitting into his sweet spot buy-in level, he has an edge over much of the talent in that field and could hardly be in better form, with it being in No Limit Hold’em just like Event #5.
Finally, in Event #8, the NLHE Turbo Bounty Quattro event, Thomas is selling 15% of the $52,000 entry, at a markup of just 1.03. While he crushes in any format, it is his recognition that a slightly different format can increase variance so has passed on the benefit to buyers at the low markup he’s offering. We make Thomas Boivin a huge favorite to cash in at least one of these events, which could well be enough for profit if you take a small piece of all three tournaments.
