BBZ student scoops $80K mystery bounty prize

Back in July, BBZ Poker student Adam Calder – known as “Caldini” in our Discord – did something spectacular.

The tournament was the $215 Mystery Bounty Main Event on GGPoker and it was a behemoth, attracting a staggering 143,211 entries – but Calder didn’t win it (he finished 1,227th).

He didn’t even cash for a life-changing score (he received only $80 from the regular prize pool for his efforts).

But, thanks to the tournament’s Mystery Bounty format, he still earned himself a monster payday, becoming one of the handful of lucky participants to win a massive bounty prize: $80,000.

We spoke to Calder, a 30-year-old poker pro and poker coach from Hartlepool, England, about how it felt to land a huge mystery bounty, how he pulled himself together afterwards, and more.

BBZ Blog: Congratulations on winning the biggest mystery bounty! Can you remember the hand and how you knocked out the player to win it?

Adam “Caldini” Calder: Thank you! We were just shy of the top $100K bounty, but I think I can manage with the $80K instead.

I do remember it, it was quite early in the ITM stage. Early position shoves 6bb, we reshove our 20bb stack with A8o, all fairly standard. What wasn’t standard was the action/luck involved. We run into KK behind, EP has A4s. The board runs out A83Q5 and another player shows a folded ace!
So we spiked the case ace to win it.

Can you describe the moments after you saw the bounty prize revealed? It must have felt incredible!

I just remember thinking “no fucking shot” a few times over, lol. Shock, elation, confusion, immense gratitude, all of the above and then some. Shocked and grateful stood out though.

You still had a tournament to play. How did you maintain focus having already won such a large prize? Or was it a struggle?

There was a lot to process for sure. Usually with a significant score in poker, it happens at the end of your session, but I still had tables to play. It was a unique moment, experiencing that high and then having to refocus and continue playing was a first for me.

I did manage to stay focused and it wasn’t too difficult to do so. Knowing there were still massive rewards to play for helps a ton, but I’d attribute it to the work I’ve done over the years. As soon as hands started popping up on my tables I was back into ‘play each hand as well as possible’ mode. With a few extra bpm on top, to say the least.

I’m sure you love them now, but what were your thoughts on Mystery Bounty tournaments before playing that event?

I’ve always enjoyed them, there are plenty of new strategies to learn which is fun as a student of the game. The format may not be perfect for me as a full-time player as less variance is generally better, but they seem popular. Bringing in more players is always great for the ecosystem of poker. The chance of a huge score is always exciting too.

Could you walk me through your poker background?

I’ve always loved playing games; football, card games with the family, video games. The idea of playing one competitively for a living, however, didn’t seem plausible until my early twenties. I wasn’t aware at the time, but I took my first step towards professional poker when I swapped my Fabrication & Welding course at Hartlepool College for Games Design. I joined the course four months late but the thought of doing something I enjoyed was a huge motivation to catch up.

The Games Design course led me to study Games Design at Northumbria University, with the idea of making it my career shortly afterwards. There was always something not quite right though, maybe it was a lack of competition. Maybe it was the fact that making and programming games isn’t the same as playing them. I know, who would’ve thought?

By Christmas break in Year 3, with only a few months left, I’d already settled on not pursuing it any further and almost quit. So close to the finish line, it would’ve been a shame to miss out on the achievement. I went back and finished up. I didn’t intend to play poker professionally at this point, though. My first passion was a game called Dota 2, which I played regularly during university (alongside a little poker with friends and some tournaments online).

I pursued that for a little while and when that didn’t work out, poker seemed like a perfect fit. A game I’m passionate about, it’s competitive, you’re your own boss, there’s potential to travel, and the skill ceiling is unbelievably high. I wish I’d found it sooner.

2018 was my first year of full-time study and volume, RYE helped me get my feet off the ground and understand the basics of how the game worked. I joined the BBZ Coaching For Profit (CFP) program in June 2020 and that’s when my game really took off. With the support of everyone at BBZ behind the scenes but also Jordan specifically. Around 2021 was my first year earning a living doing what I love, so it took a couple of years but we made it!

I’ve been playing/studying and coaching NLHE poker tournaments ever since.

How has BBZ impacted your progress in poker?

BBZ Poker and BBZ/Jordan himself have impacted my game immensely. It’s given me a level of confidence, understanding and consistency that has made a world of difference.

I genuinely consider myself pre-BBZ and post-BBZ to be two completely separate players. Even looking at my winnings graph you can see the difference after joining. I’d mostly attribute that to attending the seminars, my 1-to-1s with BBZ/Jordan and the friends/colleagues I’ve made along the way.