Three-Time WPT Champions Club Member Anthony Zinno Reflects on his L.A. Poker Classic Victory

Asking a three-time WPT Champions Club member to rank his favorite WPT title is like asking a parent to rank their favorite children, but Anthony Zinno (pictured) is well spoken so he found a judicious answer to the question.

“So Borgata was the one that was most life-changing for me, and financially I went from having a lot of law school student loan debt to not having anymore debt and a having a healthy bankroll. What I had been chasing for years finally happened. I will never forget that day.”

“But when that happened you have some people that will say, ‘Oh, he’s a one-hit wonder kind of guy, or he got lucky.’ There was that mentality where maybe I did just run particularly well. So the second one at Fallsview was some vindication. It was like, ‘Alright cool, I’ve got what it takes.”

“This event is perhaps the most prestigious WPT event I would say. And you see that with some of the winners like Antonio Esfandiari, Phil Ivey, and Michael Mizrachi. I would say that once I won the third I kind of escalated myself to that level. Prior to that I didn’t feel in the same league as those guys despite having two titles. I still felt like, well I’m running quite well, playing more tournaments than they are, that type of stuff. But then I felt like I escalated myself to that league of being able to play tournaments as well as some of those big names. But that type of stuff I don’t like to talk about too much because I don’t want to sound like cocky or whatever. The vindication was there to the full effect after winning the LAPC, because now I felt like all the work had paid off and I felt more deserving, it was incredible. At the time I was one of only three players with three titles, it was Gus [Hansen], Carlos [Mortensen], and myself. Three people had three, it was this cool trifecta of winners so I will never forget that.”

Zinno did join a prestigious group of past L.A. Poker Classic champions, but his addition to that list also helped sustain the legacy of notable champions here at Commerce Casino that has been continued by Dietrich Fast and Daniel Strelitz since Zinno’s win.

“I had a lot of friends on the rail for this tournament. Having the support of friends and family was cool. Everything kind of came together on that third win, I will never forget it,” said Zinno when he was asked about his favorite memories from the final table day.

Zinno also acknowledged the tough journey throughout the tournament on his path to victory. “It was a battle every day; literally every day was extremely difficult. I was put to the test a couple times each day. There were no easy tables, I remember one table I was at had Scott Seiver, and Igor Kurganov, Darren Elias, Marvin Rettenmaier, and Aaron Massey. I had some really tough tables. Just getting to the final table was awesome, but I came in fourth or fifth in chips so I didn’t expect to win statistically speaking. I guess I just ran pretty well at the final table and played my heart out. I don’t believe in fate, but it felt fate-like. Everything was clicking, and a couple months later I won my PLO bracelet.”

If there was ever a moment of doubt for him at the final table, it came when Chris Klodnicki doubled up through Zinno when he made a pair of kings with king-queen in the hole against the pocket nines of Zinno when play was four handed to put him last in chips. “My head sank, it’s rare that I will react emotionally to a hand, but on that one I was like, ‘Oh man.’ Once I lost that flip I was down to 15 big blinds or something. Where a lot of people might just say well good game, and have that attitude where it wasn’t meant to be. I didn’t give up. I hung in there. One of the keys is to stay optimistic. It helps with everything. It helps with mental clarity; it also can help with decision-making. You can also exude confidence that way, if you have that ho hum feeling, people are going to eat you, it’s dog eat dog out there.”

It was at that moment that Zinno found a familiar friendly face at the final table rail. “Upon losing the hand I was straight-faced, I wasn’t my normal self, not smiling much when I should be. I’m at a final table at the LAPC, I should be smiling but I wasn’t. And Caldo (James Calderaro) did this thing where he looked at me and he did this (draws a smile across his face) telling me to smile from across the way, and I knew what he was trying to say: cheer up, hang in there. I look up to him, and I will never forget that. I’m going to do what he says, smile, and next thing I knew I won a coin flip, and then I was right back in it. Everything felt fate-like after that.”

The iconic Remington trophy he was awarded as the L.A. Poker Classic champion now proudly sits at his mom’s house as a token of his appreciation. “My mom is my biggest supporter. She has always let me do what I wanted to do in life. Coming out of law school I thought I wanted to play poker instead. And she was like, ‘Cool, good luck.’ Lots of people don’t have that opportunity. Lots of people, their parents might not have control over the situation, but their lack of support can affect your mentality. It gives you a chip on your shoulder, and if you have that chip on your shoulder with anything in life it’s hard to make it your passion. If some young adult has a passion for something that is niche or takes some particular skill set, that’s probably not going to happen if the parents are very much against it. It creates a different energy about it, and in order to become the best at something you need to have absolute passion for it. You have to love it. It’s key to eliminate distractions from your line of work so you can have a clear mind to perform well.”