PocketFives had the opportunity to catch up with Krishna ninjaGOKalidas (pictured, ranked 19th in New Jersey), who plays under the handles sharkslayeron Borgataand ninjaGOon WSOP. A Somerset resident, Kalidas was drawn to poker after coming across an ESPN broadcast of the World Series of Poker and immediately knew he wanted to be there one day.

With over $53,000 in tracked online cashes, some of his notable accomplishments include a win in the PartyPoker/Borgata Poker $50,000 Guarantee, a win in the network’s $10,000 Guarantee, and a win in the 888 Poker/WSOP $10,000 Guarantee for a total of $13,521. Visit PocketFives’ New Jersey poker community for the latest news and discussion from New Jersey players.

PocketFives: When did you start playing poker and why was it appealing?

Krishna Kalidas: I came to the party late. You’ve probably heard similar stories from so many others. I was channel surfing on a boring day and saw poker played in ESPN. The thing that got my attention is when they announced the first prize, I was like, “What? You can win so much money playing cards?” I was curious to learn the game.

I found 2+2 and put $25 into PokerStars and then many more after that, but finally when I was getting the hang of the game after spending lot of time reading poker books and watching tons of training videos, Black Friday happened and that was the end of it.

PocketFives: What are your favorite New Jersey online poker sites to play and why?

Krishna Kalidas: I play mostly at Borgata Poker and WSOP. It could be because I have won the most money on these sites. I like WSOP for their software. It is so easy to use and simple things like taking notes on players and adding on are very easy to do in WSOP’s software.

I am basically a tournament player, so I have a list of tournaments I like to play. I come from work and spend some time with the kids and log in to play, so usually I am registering late. WSOP R&A tournaments give you enough chips to play even when you late register. Similarly, Borgata keeps registration open for 10 levels.

PocketFives: Since the launch of regulated online poker in New Jersey, what has been your most memorable cash or win?

Krishna Kalidas: I have to say the most memorable win is when I took down the PartyPoker/Borgata Poker $50,000 Guarantee. It was a great feeling to get that under my belt. It brought lot of confidence into my game and helped further improve my game. The next week, I made the final table again in the same tournament and when we were down to four players, I lost my internet connection. It was the most frustrating and tilting thing ever. I blinded out and finished fourth, but could have had back-to-back wins. Who knows?

I have steadily climbed the PocketFives Rankings and finally made it to the top 20 in New Jersey last month. My next goal is to make it to the top 10.

PocketFives: Is there anyone or anything that helped change how you approach the game?

Krishna Kalidas: I started playing poker online again when New Jersey regulated it. I noticed I accumulated lot of chips in the beginning of tournaments only to lose all of them by making one or two bad decisions. I started writing down my bust-out hands and went through my play.

One thing I noticed quickly is I overplayed my hands and put lot of chips in the middle with one pair or draws. I started reading about pot control and small-ball poker, which helped my game tremendously. Once I started folding big hands, my play and the results got better.

PocketFives: What do you do away from poker? What else interests you?

Krishna Kalidas: I have a regular full-time job and play poker for supplemental income. I work in the software industry. I have two kids, a boy and a girl, and they keep me busy, but whenever I get time, I try to log in and play. Saturdays are strictly a family day, so I don’t play on that day.

I have never played in the World Series of Poker or been to Las Vegas, but I already booked and pre-registered to play in this year’s $560 buy-in, $5 million guaranteed Colossus event. I am pretty excited about it and looking forward to that trip. Winning will be great, but even cashing will be good. My primary goal for this trip will be to experience the WSOP and have fun.