Mike “BrockLesnar” Holtz on his insane 2023 and how BBZ Poker helped him

There were plenty of incredible things that happened in the poker world throughout 2023, but not many rivalled the outrageousness of Mike Holtz’s online poker graph.

Everyone in the BBZ Poker community knew that Holtz – a 33-year-old pro from Ocean City, Maryland, now based in Las Vegas – was doing well. He’d won the WSOP.com Player of the Year Award in Nevada/New Jersey in 2021, playing behind his screenname “BrockLesnar. He then won his first World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet in 2022, taking down a $777 online event for $76,157.

But Holtz’s 2023 was on another level. When all was said and done, Holtz had set a new record for the most cashes in a single WSOP (25), won his sixth WSOP circuit ring, and ended the year with $586,333 in profit (his closest competitor finished with $333,849). All of that meant he won the WSOP.com Player of the Year a second time.

As a long-time BBZ Poker student, Holtz posted his graph in our Discord and countless jaws dropped.

But how did Holtz climb to this level so quickly? What role did BBZ Poker play in his success? And what advice does he have for up-and-comers in the BBZ community?

We spoke with the man himself.

BBZ Blog: Hey Mike. Your graph for 2023 is pure sickness. How proud of it are you when you look back?

Mike “BrockLesnar” Holtz: Very proud, I obviously ran incredibly hot but also feel like I made some adjustments to my game that really gave me an edge over the competition. I don’t expect to do that well every year, but my graph from 2024 is starting to look pretty good as well!

What were the highlights of the year for you and what made them special?

The highlight of my year was mid-December, I did so well that I finally clinched my 2nd WSOP Online Player of the Year award. Im the first person in the history of the website to do so.

The graph suggests it was mostly smooth sailing, but were there any bumps in the road along the way?

Not really, I’m just a complete luck box. Every time I went on a small downswing I would immediately win 50 buy-ins.

Going back, can you remember how you first discovered poker and when you began to take it seriously?

I was 17 or 18 when I first discovered poker. I would binge-watch Poker After Dark and High Stakes Poker, as well as World Series of Poker Main Event episodes.

I tried to take it seriously around that time but my bankroll was non-existent. I moved to Las Vegas in 2017 and attempted to be a live cash game pro but that did not work out.

During COVID-19, I started taking tournaments seriously and I started to study tournament-specific strategies and that’s when I found Jordan, apestyles and BBZ Poker.

What was your process like of moving up in stakes?

I kind of just winged it. I moved up quickly and built a roll from the soft COVID games, then I started grinding on wsop.com in 2021.

I started playing $30-$100 tournaments and did well enough to shot-take the circuits and $250-$500 buy-ins. I did so well in those that by the end of the year I was playing the $3,200 and $7,700 bracelet events. It’s completely surreal that I’m where I am currently.

Could you talk me through your poker journey in terms of the games you played/play now, how often you play, how your study has changed over time etc

I play tournaments between $50-$10,000, I like to 4-6 table online, I feel like my ROI drops so dramatically with any more tables.

A lot of my game is exploit-based and I have a lot of player-specific exploits, so paying attention to every hand is vital. I play anywhere from 5-7 days a week, mostly online but I play the entire WSOP live series and the WPT winter events at the Wynn.

I am naturally gifted at poker/strategy games and I study much less often than you would think. Most of my studying is drilling preflop charts, watching videos, and watching replays of the online final tables with hands revealed. I like to watch how the best play and emulate their style.

At what point did you discover BBZ Poker and what products did you use?

I discovered BBZ in 2020 and have been a member ever since, I use all the preflop charts for studying/drilling. I’ve purchased every bundle, starting with the BBZ and apestyles bundles which gave me an incredible foundation for my game.

Has BBZ had an impact on your play?

Without a shadow of a doubt, I owe a lot of my success to BBZ. It’s my main study tool and I would recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone interested in becoming a better poker player

The graph is so inspirational I have to ask, do you have any advice for other members of the community who are going through a rough patch or just haven’t seen that type of success in their career yet?

While I would say that studying and improving your game is important, I think it’s unrealistic to expect to achieve the level of success I have.

I think people in my position usually say keep working hard and it will happen! The truth is I am naturally gifted, and hard work can only take you so far. I knew from a young age that I had something that other people didn’t. I just know what people are thinking and how they think. I’m able to put myself in people’s shoes and try to stay one step ahead as far as predicting their tendencies. If I didn’t have a chance to build my bankroll during covid I might just be a guy working a regular job.

How about life outside poker? What do you like to get up to?

The last year has been so poker-centred, I have a very large close friend group so I usually hang out with buddies, play video games/watch TV and movies. I’m an avid daily cannabis user so I can always keep myself entertained.

I’m focused on helping a lot of my friends right now. They haven’t seen the success I have in life so I’m really trying to make it happen for a lot of them.