From $0 to affiliate manager! What's my story?

It was the year 2006 when by chance I crossed myself with the poker world, live poker of course, and I required no much time to understand this is one of the most profitable business available, although in that time the term "online poker" was not even known in the Colombian streets. I'll never forgot those little poker sessions with friends where the most important result was winning enough to buy the next beers.

Yeah, 11 years ago we used to play poker in our houses

It did not take me too long to be involved in the online poker world, PokerStars, Full Tilt and Party Poker offered the most popular games, but the big question was: ¿How, with the economy of a college Colombian student could I play in the online poker rooms? Well, the free bankroll websites were the answer, and I remember even sending the craziest fake ID's that where approved quickly (even one using the Homer Simpson mexican ID, if you are a fan, you'll understand inmediately). In less than nothing I was multitabling 9 games! I know, in 2017 this sounds really lame but in 2006-2007 was absolutely amazing. And here is the thing: 11 years have passe, and I've never made a deposit in a poker room using my own money.

Playing 9 simultaneously tables was incredible in 2006 

The online poker world started its way in Colombia and under the "vargoso" nickname I started as a forum enthusiast (some of them disappeared as the home of the Colombian poker old school, ColombiaPoker), becoming even a forum moderator in the biggest poker website from Colombia. And it was there that I actually realized that poker, both live and online, could become a very important source of income.

I started of course playing microlimits, NL2 to be specific, trying also some MTT tournaments with some very appropriate winnings to help financing my studies. My fist experience with live poker was in Manizales city, in a poker tournament organized by a lounge bar named Buda Bar, to which I could enter only phew hours later of getting my National ID to certify that my age was legal. The tournament lasted until late in the evening, making a third place for about $300 prize and a dinner that my parents enjoyed.

Crushing microlimits

I remember entire nights playing in the NL50 tables with NL10 bankroll (don't do that guys!) under the alcohol effects (don't do that guys!), tripling my bank with maybe 3 hands in which I was probably the lucky fish of the table, and also recall the first hack to my poker accounts after using the most insecure password of the world (don't do that guys!) losing all my bank and of course having no answer from the poker room.

I used to play 2-3 hours per day, reaching up to 4-5 hours where I got my best results. By chance in that moment, being a very recognized person in the online poker world in Colombia, I became an sponsored player, with coaching, endless training sessions, follow up, a dream that lasted...3 months! Yes! Inexplicably my sponsors disapeared from the stage leaving me with a bigger bankroll and some downswing unexplained.

After my short time as an sponsored poker player, I managed to live an experience that no much poker players have! I worked as a dealer in a small local clubc named Joker Club. That's right! The lucky of all the players was in my hands, I learned to see the bad bets from other sight and appreciate the generosity of the grateful poker players that after a very lucky river dropped a tip.

Underground poker games

After that, I met the translations world, always by the poker side, participating in a non-profit project to translate the Professional No Limit Hold'em, which was a success. An article there, a poker school over there, and the business is growing and growing so the poker tables need to be left a bit aside to focus on a much bigger business: the affiliates world.

Getting into the affiliate world! With Rodion Longa, the great!

It was September 7, 2016, when someone named Timofey answered my job application for employment, and there begins this adventure with Worldpokerdeals, crossing borders, meeting colleagues from Russia, Ukraine and reaching the top: Latin America and Spain Affiliate Manager for Worldpokerdeals, one of the most reputed poker affiliate sites in the world, with a great team and opening my eyes to the Asian world which was previously totally unknown.

And you, poker player, what's your story with the online poker?

Juan, Worldpokerdeals team