Tom Dwans Seasaw Poker Ride

5/6/10 – The ‘mountain and valley’ style action of online high stakes poker aces is avidly watched by legions of Internet railbirds – none more so than the inscrutable Tom ‘durrr’ Dwan.
 
After ending last year in a disastrous decline of around $5.5 million and well into a ‘valley’ phase, Dwan persevered, coming right in the early months of 2010 and soaring into a mountain climb that saw multi million dollar wins in February, March and April to become this year’s top earner thus far.
 
His heads up clashes against the likes of the mysterious Isildur1 and the redoubtable Ilari Sahamies have become almost legendary in 2010, but the month of May has not been kind. 
 
Dwan has come off his heater on the Internet nosebleed tables at Full Tilt in the last week it appears, losing $2.5 million in a matter of days in heads-up matches – much of it against jungleman12 and Phil Ivey.
 
Last Saturday Dwan played a marathon 8 400 hands, the vast majority of them against jungleman12 on $200/$400 NLHE, and dropped close to $600 000.  The same day he clashed with international ace Phil Ivey on several $500/$1 000 PLO nosebleed tables, dropping another $420 000 or more.
 
It’s anyone’s guess whether we’re in for another tour of the valleys, or a return to the peaks.
 
The top Finnish player, Patrik Antonius has seen similar swings in fortune, starting 2010 with a series of disastrous losses that saw him $4 million or more in the hole, but in recent weeks fighting back into the black against players of the calibre of Dwan, Phil Ivey, Ilari Sahamies, Gus Hansen and Cole South.