» Vanessa 'PrincessDonk' Peng Interview
By: Zimba
December 22nd, 2009 (3:48pm)
Vanessa 'PrincessDonk' Peng, 26, is a professional poker player residing in Las Vegas. I came to know Vanessa when she was learning cash games at CardRunners. She had a very competitive desire to get better and built up to being a 2/4 and 3/6 6max regular. In May 2009, she re-evaluated her game and thanks to the influence of Jason 'NovaSky' Koon, she shifted to playing MTT's as her main focus. He acted as a mentor to her in her transition. In her first week, she won outright the UB 80k Sniper and PokerStars $11r for $35k combined. She also has had an outright win in the Stars Nightly Hundred Grand and final tabled the Sunday Second Chance. Now coming off her biggest month ever in November where she had seven MTT scores between $8k and $18k which includes a first place showing in PokerStars $55r. On December 2nd she won both the PokerStars $109 buyin $40K guaranteed and the $30K guaranteed on UB for over $23k combined. Then, on December 14th, she chopped the UB $80k Sniper for the equivalent of 1st place prize of $22.2k along with a 2nd place showing in the UB $20k DS for $4.7k and a 2nd place showing in the UB $100 (1r+1a) for almost $7k for a total of $34k. I thought it was a good time to hear her perspective on her journey in poker so far.
How did you get into poker initially?
As a child, I completely idolized my brother and copied all his extra-curricular activities. This resulted in me loving all types of "boy activities" like football, wrestling and especially video games.
In 2004, I lived about 3 blocks from a casino my first year of law school and never set foot in that poker room. It was always filled with smoke and the idea of playing live poker never appealed to me. It was only when I watched an old boyfriend's friend play sngs on bospoker.com that I became fascinated with the idea of playing poker. I deposited $25 on pokerstars in November 2006 and built up a roll from there.
You completed law school in Virginia before becoming a full time player. Why did you decide to abandon a law career to pursue poker?
Going to law school and becoming an attorney was my childhood dream and goal. My entire life was spent working towards that dream. After graduating from law school, I took some time off while studying for the bar exam and it was at this point that poker started going well for me (relatively speaking) to the point where I started to seriously consider playing for a living. It took a big leap of faith for me to make that decision and move to Vegas, but I am surely happy for falling off the traditional path.
You came up in the cash game world, influenced early on by CardRunners. What caused you to shift to playing tournaments full time?
I decided to try playing tournaments full time this past May. I ran really hot and won 1st place in the UB 80k Sniper for 23k and Pokerstars 10r for 12k in one night. I decided to stick with tournaments then and there.
What do you prefer about playing tournaments that suits your game?
Cash games really started to feel like a grind for me. There is never really an end to them. I could just play when I wanted and quit anytime. I like the discipline involved in tournaments. When I take a bad beat at a tournament, I simply have to move on to the next table and it takes a lot of discipline to not tilt and continue to play my best.
The adrenaline rushes while deep in tournaments are nice as well.
You are very appreciative of the influence Jason 'NovaSky' Koon has had on you. How has he mentored you?
Jason is very concise and thought provoking in the way he explains hands or poker concepts. I was very fortunate in being able to send him hand histories for him to review. The best advice he has given me is to "Always question. Never take anyone's opinion at face value and accept it verbatium, even mine."
You moved to Las Vegas last year, but you often talk about a pull back to the South where your family and friends are located. What is the right place for you to live and play?
My close friends always joke that I'm quite the gypsy. I love to travel and I also love Vegas. However, I am also quite comfortable and at home in the South. I think in the future, I will be splitting my time and spending more time here in South Carolina.
What unique issues do women in poker face?I think most people (myself included) assume when they see a female at the poker tables that she is an easy target. This is actually something that a female can easily use to her advantage in poker.
It is difficult being a female in a male dominated industry to make friends. I find myself often questioning people's motives after learning the hard way that not everyone I meet is sincere.
We have quite a number of female members at Poker Curious, what advice do you give to women looking to advance in poker?
Grow thick skin and don't let other people discourage you.
This doesn't apply to online play, but if you do play live, you can quickly figure out who will call you down lightly or cut you extra slack because you're a woman.
Like a lot of regular MTT players online, you are currently backed for some of your online play. How does that work?
For the majority of good backed players, they have 50% of their action. If one has makeup, meaning they owe their backer money from being in the hole from previous tournaments, it is deducted from the actual score. An example, someone wins 10k but has 5k of makeup. The backer and the player splits 5k only so the player keeps 2500 and the backer gets 7500.
Being backed has its positives and negatives. How does an up and coming player demonstrate they are worthy of being backed?
I honestly have no idea, I never set out looking for a backer. I've never been backed myself until switching to tournaments. I think being trustworthy with a good work ethic are the most important traits that a backer would look for.
I am very happy being backed and could not imagine being backed by anyone else.
What are your future aspirations in the poker world?
Being sponsored by a site is high on my list of priorities. Other than that, I'm always looking to grow as a poker player and like to set various short term goals for myself.
Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions, Vanessa. Before you go, we have several fun questions inspired by Bravo's Inside the Actors Studio.What is your favorite fun poker phrase/slang/acronym?
According to my friends, its "oi" meaning over it. Followed closely by "yik" or "nik" for yes, I know or no, I know.
(Her King Charles spaniel Gamby)
If the poker industry disappeared completely, what other career would you most like to attempt?
This one is easy. I'd like to be a professional BASE wingsuit jumper. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4U6T_BB1N8
If you were on death row, what would be your last meal?
I've given this question a lot of thought. From Emeril's Delmonico, I'd want ceaser salad and dessert pecan pie and vanilla ice cream. For a main course, filet mignon and truffled mashed potatoes from Prime at Bellagio.
When your poker career is over, what would you most like to be remembered for?
Not going busto. I think that's pretty important.
