The final PokerStars Sunday 500of September featured a showdown between Kevin lobbyludParkes (pictured) and David Bakes Baker. The latter had a 4:1 edge in chips when play began and ultimately came away with the win for $98,000, while Parkes booked a not-too-shabby payday of $72,000. Bakes, as you might know, is a two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner who is on the brink of passing $4 million in tracked cashes.

“I feel great,” Parkes told PocketFives in an exclusive interview. “I’m excited. I just booked a family trip to Las Vegas in a few weeks.” As we said, Baker had a commanding chip lead heads-up and, according to Parkes, “He’s a world class player and knows how to play in that situation. Heads-up didn’t last very long anyway, with my A-9 of spades losing to his 4-4. I flopped a nine and he rivered a straight.”

Parkes has $1.1 million in tracked online MTT cashes in his PocketFives profile spread over nearly 900 in the money finishes. The runner-up exit from the Sunday 500 was the largest we’ve logged for him, edging out a $62,000 score for taking down the Sunday $100 Rebuy on PokerStars in March of last year. On his key to success, Parkes told us, “I played a very patient, low risk game. I tried to keep decisions easy.”

Parkes hasn’t played poker much since January. Why? He hasn’t been traveling, but rather has been focusing on becoming a scratch golfer. “I’m down to a four handicap,” he told us, “but I am getting better all the time. Despite the $70,000 score, I will keep my day job.”

By day, he works as an accountant or, as he described, “counting the cash.” As such, he’s a tad busy, with obligations pulling him left and right, and he’s a father to boot. We asked how he has time for all of his various endeavors. “My wife asks me that same question,” he joked. “I work hard at work, play hard at play, and am a good husband and father in between.”

He has a daughter, Olivia, who is 16 years of age and “knows all about poker. At the moment, she is more interested in boys, but she will certainly help me spend the winnings.”

The Sheffield resident will head to the Nevada desert, Las Vegas, and stay at the Wynn. He explained, “There is a tournament series there, so I will play in a couple of tournaments. Also, I am taking golf clubs, so I will play a couple of rounds while the wife and daughter demolish my credit card at the mall.” We loved the gratuitous use of the word “demolish.”

He found poker through a friend at a golf club who knew the owners of Poker School Online. He got into golf 15 years ago while his rugby career was winding down. The England pokercommunity member joined PocketFives in the first month of 2008 and reached an all-time high of #668 in the PocketFives Online Poker Rankings last year.

The Sunday 500 and other big-time online poker tournaments run regularly on PokerStars. If you don’t already have a PokerStars account, sign up through PocketFives’ link and make a deposit to get one free month of PocketFives MTT Training. You’ll also get a 100% up to $600 sign-up bonus. Click here for PocketFives’ PokerStars link.

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