Poker News

Susie Isaacs

The first time I interviewed Kathy Liebert was in 1994 at the Gold Coast in Las Vegas. This unknown young woman was making a splash in her first ever poker tournaments. Being the “on the spot” reporter, I wanted to do a story on this newcomer. Back then she was so shy I practically had to pull the words out of her. Eleven yearsof experience has made a huge difference. This once shy introvert (at least with the press) is now an outgoing major league player on the green felt. An attempt to interview Kathy in 2005 in a casino is nearly hopeless because players, friends, and fans are constantly interrupting to visit, to say hello, or to ask for an autograph. We both turned up in San Jose at the same time, and I had the opportunity to sit down with her in the living room of her suite and have a great private visit. I was surprised to learn that Kathy and I were born in the same southern town, Nashville, Tennessee. Why then do I still have that slow southern accent while she talks fast like Northerners? It seems her father secured a job at State University of New York when she was a toddler so she had been whisked from Nashville to The Big Apple before the Southern accent had time to set in.

Susie Isaacs: I recall that you had a business a degree, went to work in the corporate world and were not satisfied with your career.

Kathy Liebert: I have a business finance major from Marist College. I worked for Dun and Bradstreet for a year. I was making good money and on my way up but I was not happy. I talked to my Mom. She had just read a book titled, “Do What You Love, the Money Will Follow.” That was her advice to me. Problem was, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I considered law school. I had visited the West Coast when I was 12 and I knew that held an attraction to me as well as Colorado because of the snow skiing. After sitting around and watching soap operas for a month, I headed west. That was in 1991.

SI: West to California or Colorado?

KL: San Diego. I even took a couple of pre-law courses at the University of California. I was still in search of myself but I had enough faith to keep looking.

SI: Did you find yourself, Kathy?

KL: Not in law school. I went to Las Vegas with a friend on a vacation. I wasn’t a gambler but I liked competition. My friend wanted to do tourist stuff but I found the poker room at the Dunes. The people were friendly so I wasn’t intimidated. I was playing seven-card stud and I remember my first hand. I had two threes. I played them like they were two aces. I bluffed my first hand and didn’t know I was bluffing! I don’t remember if I won or lost overall, but I had a great time and stayed all day and all night.

SI: Did you find what you were looking for at the Dunes?

KL: No, my next stop on that quest was Colorado. I liked skiing and it was inexpensive to live there. I got a job selling ATM machines. I worked on commission so my time was pretty much my own. I had heard that there was gambling in Blackhawk and Central City. I thought that would be the perfect place to sell ATM machines. I walked in and happened to find the poker room and somehow my interest turned from selling ATM machines to playing poker. I was trying to learn the game when I met a guy. He took me to lunch and told me that I was never going to win consistently playing the way I was playing. He gave me some good advice and I went to a bookstore in Denver and bought a lot of the poker books that were available.

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