CardRunners, one of the top online poker training sites in the game today, announced yesterday the addition of top Norwegian Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) master Andreas “Skjervøy” Torbergsen to their roster of poker talent, with his first video for the site set to debut today.
Torbergsen, who will also step up to become a Full Tilt Poker red pro with his new status on CardRunners, has routinely terrorized the PLO world online. He has seven figures in earnings on both PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, playing anywhere from $2/$4 PLO Six Handed tables to the rarefied air of $100/$200. Even with these sterling statistics online, “Skjervøy” doesn’t hesitate to take his chances in the live arena.
His first exposure to live poker success came in the biggest arena the game has to offer, the World Series of Poker. In 2008, Andreas made an outstanding run in the 6,844 player field to finish in 551st place, earning $23,160. Since that time, Torbergsen has earned two other cashes at the Norwegian Poker Championship, but primarily plays online now.
CardRunners founder Taylor Caby knows Torbergsen’s skills quite well and is excited about the newest member of Team CardRunners. “Andreas is an incredible PLO player and he’s a great addition to our talented group of instructors,” Caby stated during the announcement. “I can’t wait to see his first video!” With his skill set, Andreas will be doing high-stakes PLO videos for CardRunners.
In an interview on the CardRunners site, Torbergsen took the time to give some background to participants on their forums. “I’m from Skjervøy (hence the screen name), a small town in Norway with 2500 people,” Andreas replied to one of the questions posed. “ I moved out from home at 17 to go to high school in Tromsø… (many) poker players with success are from there, especially the old Prima crew.”
When asked about how he became interested in poker, Andreas stated that his father was his first exposure to the game. “We would play five card draw for nickels and dimes…I was about twelve years old,” Torbergsen reminisced. “I really got into poker when I was 19, in a weekly game with two friends I shared a house with.”
Torbergsen gave his first advice on poker during the Q&A, regarding how he got his start playing PLO. “I gave myself a PLO roll, which I kept separate from what I would play No Limit Hold’em, on Party Poker and I grinded it up,” Andreas advised. “After some time, I was able to reach a stake where I started playing $10/$20 PLO there in late 2006.”
Finally, Andreas was asked how his time at the WSOP this year went. “In the Main Event, I got a nice stack off of an older guy early,” he reported. “The blinds were 150/300, he limps cut-off, button limps, I complete QTo in the small blind and the big blind checks. The flop came perfect for me – A-K-J rainbow – and I check the small blind. It‘s checked to the gentleman in the cutoff, who bet 1100, and the button folds. I make it 3000, everyone gets out of the way except the old guy. He makes it 10500 and I just shove 30k more since he clearly thinks he has the nuts and he snaps AJ.” Torbergsen’s endgame wasn’t good, however. “In the end, I lasted into Day 3 in the Main Event but didn’t cash.”
The addition of Torbergsen to the CardRunners staff means there is yet another excellent instructor for players to learn from. With such players as 2010 WSOP bracelet winner Matt Matros, potential “durrrr Challenge” opponent Jungleman12 and “LearnedFromTV” on their roster (among others), the CardRunner teaching staff has something for whatever form of poker a player is looking to improve in.
