It’s been nearly two months since the Black Friday indictments of April 15th. The online poker world has had a chance to digest the ramifications of the three largest U.S.-facing sites – PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, and Absolute Poker – leaving the market. Among those affected was Pennsylvania’s Kevin McColgan (pictured), who goes by the handle bukowski101 here on PocketFives.com. We caught up with McColgan to discuss how Black Friday has affected his livelihood.

McColgan speaks from a mid-stakes grinder’s perspective and told PocketFives.com, “I think this affects the regular mid- to high-stakes grinder the most in the short-term because most don’t have a ton of money laying around and need to make money every month. It definitely can be argued that a lot of U.S. players should have been more prepared for something like this and should have seen it coming, but nonetheless it doesn’t make it easy at this point.”

For many in the industry, the indictments seemingly came from left field. Now, as McColgan put it, the online poker community must adapt: “I think we all have to approach the situation like we approach the actual game: we have to adapt. We have all worked way too hard at this to just give it up. Just like we adapt to a new table in a tournament, we have to adapt to the new poker climate.”

He plans to grind sites still serving the U.S. market going forward. Now, his options include Carbon Poker, Lock Poker, Cake Poker, and Bodog, as well as live poker games in casinos around the United States. He recapped his first Sunday following Black Friday: “It definitely was a different Sunday than I am used to, but there are still tournaments to be won and a lot of money to be made. I think the sites will grow over the next few months; I just hope the cashouts are bearable.”

Upon first hearing of the Black Friday indictments, which were passed down in the late afternoon on April 15th, he rehashed, “My first reaction was, ‘What the ****?’ And then I was kind of in shock because after the news about Wynn and PokerStars, we seemed to be heading in a really good direction. That news actually brought some false assurance that the game was safe for now and will be regulated soon… It is already pretty hard to make it in poker as it is; we don’t need the possibility that it will be shut down to make it any more stressful.”

McColgan has taken down two tournaments on Bodog since April 15th for nearly $5,000 total. Still, that sum pales in comparison to his largest tracked score to date, a $33,000 haul that came by virtue of winning the PokerStars $45,000 Guarantee in January.

Could we see players like McColgan seeking refuge in other industries? Maybe, but our interview subject does not appear to be going away anytime soon: “I have been pretty focused on poker for the past four years and when that news hit, I was like, ‘What else am I going to do?’ I couldn’t answer that question without lying to myself. If you can’t think of anything else you want to do for a job, then you are doing the right thing.”

In the past, his income sources have included working at a grocery store and in restaurants. Then, he pursued landscaping before realizing that he wanted to work for himself. “I got my real estate license in California and my wife and I started investing in real estate and rental properties back in Pennsylvania,” McColgan retraced. “Then, I found poker.”

Going back to real estate would present its own set of challenges, as the industry is, as McColgan bluntly put it, “in the shitter” following the economic collapse of 2008.

He wanted to send a shout out to longtime PocketFives.com member Ari Engel(pictured), whom he dubbed “the ultimate grinder. He has been long-lasting in this industry and I think he will adapt to this situation better than most.” Engel has already found success on the live scene. He finished fourth in the World Series of Poker Circuit Championship Event at Harrah’s Chester in May for $31,000.

Stay tuned to PocketFives.com for the latest Black Friday fallout.