The last weekend of December marked a coup of sorts for PocketFiver DoubleS00ted. He took down the PokerStars Sunday Millionfor $208,000 following a three-way deal. It was his second victory in the weekly Sunday Major, the first coming in 2007 for $184,000 officially. He told PocketFives, “It’s surreal right now. It’s different this time. When I won it in 2007, I felt on top of the world. I felt like I deserved it and that I was a great player. Now, after taking a few years off after Black Friday, I recognize the game has changed so much and I have so much work to do.”

He’s humble to say the least. He doesn’t feel like he’s on top of the poker world, but is rather in amazement at his feat. He came into the final table third in chips and narrated, “There were so many players really short, so I started tight. I open-folded 8-8 and A-J offsuit in middle position because I knew the chip leaders were going to 3bet me with any two cards and put me in a tough spot. I nitted it up for the most part, won a few flips, and once we got four-handed, I started to loosen up.”

A chop was discussed when four players remained, but an accord was not reached. Shortly thereafter, another player busted and the field was trimmed to three. He explained, “I felt I was one of the better players at the final table, but with the stacks being so short, I knew I couldn’t get out of line. I didn’t feel like flipping for $50,000.” Also at the final table was fellow PocketFiver Christopher NigDawG Brammer (pictured), who finished outside of the chop in fifth place for $70,000.

“I have a workable roll for 2014,” DoubleS00ted, who is from Edmonton, said when asked what his plans for the money are. “I’m no longer backed and will continue to work on improving my game via coaches.” He added that he had just returned from Costco, a warehouse retailer, where he bought “a lot of fruit” and a 32-inch monitor to replace his 27-incher. He pointed out, “The 27-inch one I’ve been using for tournaments didn’t work at all during the Sunday Million, soI was stacking my tables on a 16-inch monitor. I guess it worked out okay, but it hurt my eyes.”

You might wonder why a person who has won the Sunday Million twice would possibly need coaching. “I am really not that good at the new style of play,” DoubleS00ted confessed. “I was playing a few low buy-ins in the past week and couldn’t believe how often people would just randomly cold 4bet and then fold with air. The game has changed. I need to learn how to handle other people’s aggression better. I can count on one hand the number of times I got 3bet in the Sunday Million; it was the perfect storm.”

George Clooney movies aside, “Rounders” and Chris Moneymaker’s (pictured) Main Event win in 2003 thrust DoubleS00ted into the poker world. He originally began by playing sit and gos on PartyPoker and then moved to MTTs. Nowadays, DoubleS00ted is not a full-time poker player, but rather is in school getting his Master’s degree in Coaching. He previewed, “I might get my MBA after I’m done. I think I will be a lifetime learner.”

Other prime scores for DoubleS00ted include a victory in the Full Tilt Poker $750,000 Guaranteed one month after his Sunday Million win in 2007 for another $132,000. Two years later, he placed fifth in the Sunday Million for $56,000. Three of his top four tracked scores on PocketFives come from the Sunday Million, so we’d say he’s a fan of the weekly event on PokerStars.

Speaking of PokerStars, if you don’t already have an account on the site, create one through PocketFives’ links to get a 100% deposit bonus up to $600 and one free month of PocketFives Training when you make a deposit. Plus, PokerStars will host a special PocketFives Openas part of a three-tournament series on January 28. Get started here.

Want the latest poker headlines and interviews? Follow PocketFives on Twitterand Like PocketFives on Facebook. You can also subscribe to our RSS feed.