If you’ve been following the 2006 World Series of Poker, you might recognize one name making big waves: Andy Bloch.  He’s already made 2 final tables, finishing 2nd in the inaugural H.O.R.S.E. tournament, which featured the highest ever buy-in for a WSOP event: 143 players ponied up $50,000 each to play a rotating game of Limit hold’em, Omaha Hi/Lo, Razz, Seven-Card Stud, and Seven-Card Stud Hi/Lo.  The steep entry fee and broad array of games generated the highest-profile list of entrants ever seen: truly a who’s who of the professional poker circuit.  Andy steamrolled the competition, ultimately settling for a 2nd place finish, and a $1.03 Million payday.  Andy’s not only a feared opponent on the felt, but also a pretty smart cookie, holding degrees from M.I.T. (where he played with the infamous MIT blackjack card-counting team chronicled in Bringing Down the House) and Harvard Law School.  We couldn’t turn down an opportunity to pick the brain of one of the smartest guys on the professional poker scene.

Law School Poker: Hi Andy, thanks for taking the time to chat with us today.
Andy Bloch: Happy to.

LSP: First off, can you tell us about your application to law schools?  I read that you only applied to three.
Andy: When I first quit my engineering job to play poker and blackjack, I told myself, and my parents, that it was just a temporary activity while I figured out what I wanted to do next.  I decided to go to law school, but I wasn't sure so I just applied to my top 3 choices, Yale, Stanford, and Harvard.  Yale and Stanford rejected me, but Harvard let me in.  I was hoping to go into public interest law, civil rights, or criminal defense, so I could do something more positive for society.  I never wanted to be a regular lawyer.

LSP:  When you were in school, did you find it easy to talk with your law school peers about your poker and blackjack successes and failures?  Or did you try to keep your gambling and academic worlds separate to some extent?
Andy:  My classmates found my gambling career fascinating.  I even brought a few of them with me on a limo trip to a casino one night, and they were cheering for me when I played in the WSOP main event during the last week of classes my first year.

LSP:  You worked with a major law firm one summer, but have written that you didn't find the work particularly stimulating.  Was there anything in particular that left you disillusioned?
Andy:  I had a summer internship at an intellectual property firm.  I didn't go to law school planning to work in the private sector, but I decided to give it a try anyway.  There were so many more private firms with openings for the summer than public interest organizations that it was easier for me to get a job in intellectual property law, especially given my MIT engineering background.  I enjoyed it, but I decided it wasn't for me.

LSP:  Do you think there is any significant crossover between the analytical skills you honed in law school and those required to be a good poker player?  There are, after all, quite a few individuals who seem to have a background in both.
Andy:  Analytical thinking does cross over between law and poker, although I think there are more crossovers between science/mathematics and poker. Greg Raymer, for example, was a patent lawyer.

LSP:  Although you've never practiced law, you did choose to represent yourself in an appeal of your arrest during an antiwar protest.  Did you enjoy being able to flex your 'legal muscle'?
Editor’s note: You can read about Andy’s fascinating run-in with the law at his website here.  He and others staging an antiwar protest in front of the White House were arrested and convicted of violating a Police Line regulation, and sentenced to probation.  Not one to allow an unjust outcome to stand, Andy represented himself in a successful appeal.
Andy: I am just as proud, or prouder, of winning my appeal than any of my poker tournament wins, or even winning over $1M for second place in the 2006 H.O.R.S.E. tournament.  I felt that there were important first amendment issues in my case that needed to be brought forward in the post-9/11 climate.  I didn't win on the issue that I wanted to, but I still won the case on First Amendment grounds and it has definitely affected succeeding trials.

LSP:  Wow; well I guess it’s cool that you finally got to use your Harvard Law degree.  Do you think that your career might yet take a turn into a legal field?
Andy: Maybe in a year or two I might do something involving my law degree, but right now I'm too busy with poker.

LSP:  Lastly, I’m sure our readership would be interested to hear your take on the current online poker boom, which has led a considerable number of young students, especially undergraduates, to leave school in order to pursue poker full-time.  What are your thoughts about students making that decision?
Andy:  That the online poker bubble might burst is why students should stay in school now instead of leaving to play poker.  Taking time off will make it less likely that they end up graduating and will delay their careers.  But poker will always be around and it's something that they can do part time as a hobby throughout their careers.

LSP:  Agreed.  Well thanks for your insight, Andy, and best of luck in the remaining 2006 WSOP events.
Andy:  Thank you.

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