I don't see why people give him **** for being with his GF for a good week or more.
Another thing, he started streaming because poker was getting boring for him. Main reason for him to stream is finding back the joy of playing poker whilst communicating with his viewers. I don't see him quit doing that anytime soon.
The guy is happy at what he does. Got signed with 888. Got a girlfriend. Travels the world for 888 events and give commentary on the events. And yet, he finds time to stream a good amount of hours nearly every week for his 'fans'

Give him credit instead of making it look he quits poker or twitch...

This. +1

busto donkeys with nothing else better to do mad.

Nothin but love for mr tonka. Have a good rest and gl on the tables

Yeah I agree the guys saying theres nothing but love for Father. He's really entertaining and its also awesome when he does punt off a stack and takes the time to explain to twitch why he did what he did. His style is really fun to watch, especially at the highest levels and he isn't scared to play the way he does or defend himself when things work out or say he made a mistake when he thinks he did. If you've followed from the beginning you've seen him bink two 100k scores on stream plus a bunch of other huge FTs and also seen him on a massive downswing where it feels like he can't win any pots. Its been a really fun look into the life of a high stakes MTTer and he's kept his energy level high most, if not all days.

I also totally get him trying to have a work life balance. I think we totally forget that his actual job is to be a pro poker player and he streams along with it, which takes up even more time. Just cause he works in his house doesn't mean he shouldn't be able to go see his GF or go drink with his friends, go to raptors games etc...Too me the guy is killing it and its been fun to watch the whole way.

Streamers arent allowed to have days off. And if they take one they should atleast tweet and instagram about that and obv make a vlog. Most of the twitch audience are losers w/out a life of their own so it's impossible to undestand someone else having one.

he's online

I'm not taking anything away from Tonkaaaa's Twitch grind the past year or year in a half. The dude has been streaming his butt off and putting in the hours hence the fruits of his labor paying off.

The fact of the matter is that he's streaming less and there is a definite pattern starting to emerge. Let's face it, Twitch streaming is Parker Talbot's job. There's responsibilities that come with building a sizable user base through loyal subscribers, donators and followers. Twitch viewers are fairly forgiving and if Tonkaaaa wants to take a week off here or there it's not the end of the world. Unfortunately this recurring theme of travelling off for weeks at a time isn't a "one-off". He's flat out deciding to "no show" or excusing himself at the expense of his loyal audience. I assure you, if any Joe working a 9-5 type of job tried this no show act he/she would be canned faster than you can say pink slip.

I'm a neutral observer who likes watching poker on Twitch. I have no vested interest in Tonkaaaa or anyone save for JCarver & Pokerstaples (As I subscribe and donate $$$ to their streams)

I caught a little bit of Parker's stream yesterday and to be completely honest I was flabbergasted by the final table K10 shove. I give credit to Tonkaaaa for being a high caliber MTT player, but even I know this is a questionable play. Didn't like it and of course he's up against pocket 10's and gets felted. Top prize is like 11K and he cashes for around 1XXX.XX.

One last thing: I don't know if the Ellen Degeneres thing got him "triggered" but he was highly perturbed by something and it caused Parker to lash out. He's usually a laid back guy but there were moments where he become visibly angry and the streaming atmosphere suffered as a result.

Lol what you stupid? He is a professional pokerplayer not a freaking streamer. He aint hired by the people subbing him. That's every inviduals own choise to support the streamer if they want. Every time yo post I think it cant get any dumber than this and time after time you still manage to do that.

not really neutral if you sub and donate to others the no show part was laughable like parker has an obligation to steam for us im thankful he does

and to support staples and talk about someone not streaming is funny also since youre a jaime fan can u tell me when this stream boat is going to start for him ? i always see perkins and gross streaming but not jaime

Tonkaaaa such a boss, been railing his 6 max hypers before he even streamed <3

Streamers owe you nothing. For many of us it's -EV to stream as it is a distraction, and there may be a higher EV use of our time. Also, you probably don't get his sense of humor, I think he was trolling with the Ellen thing.

Hes in a huge downswing right now.

hard to stream and be motivated when your constantly getting r3kt at the tables and berated for 'slacking'. Same thing happened with Staples last year about a year and a half into streaming. The cool thing about twitch is you get the good,the bad, and the ugly. Even carver doesn't show the same amount of enthusiasm that he used to. Poker is a brutal game to play without 3-5k trolls watching and barking at every light 3b or hero fold.

Hope tonka gets through whatever is bugging him as hes prob my fav all around streamer.

Lolled

Lol. Imagine blom streaming PLO high stakes tho.. mindblowing..

Do you really think it's -EV for tonka though? He doesn't have money like Doug or Sommerville. I don't know exactly how much he makes monthly/yearly, but surely income without variance in addition to building his "brand" and selling merchandise and getting a sponsorship from 888 cannot seriously be -EV.

It's probably +EV for Tonka at this point, but he certainly gives up some focus to stream.

Delightful.

Another week Tonkaaaap decides to not bother streaming. Apparently his Swedish girlfriend is visiting him in Toronto so I can sympathize with him wanting to spend every precious moment with her. On the other hand, he can easily fire up the stream and include her as it would make for a more interesting stream. Cecilia Lin + Nanonoko & Elky + Jenny m/f combo makes watching poker waaaaay more enjoyable plus the eye candy factor!

I'm going to give @BParis some major props. I think he's the hardest working Twitch streamer right now. Bar none, he's the most consistent in terms of putting in the streaming hours as well as being a fundamentally solid poker player with over 10 Million dollars in tournament winnings. His unfortunate drawback is the his "draw factor" and no I'm not talking in poker terms. I mean he doesn't have instantaneous appeal like top Twitchers possess to draw a large audience. Matter of fact, I'd rather donate and subscribe to a poker streamer whose in it for the long run than hit & runners, sporadic streamers and those clearly in it for short term gain

It just goes to show how difficult it is play at a high poker level and have to deal with all the added distractions while streaming. Seems like most eventually succumb to the burning out factor. All the more credit to lesser known streamers like BParis, AllinPav, Buehlero, Innerpsy.

Not taking a shot at Parker Talbot, but just an observation from an avid Twitch community member/ casual poker player. Wish Tonkaaap all the best, but what lies ahead for his stream, nobody knows

Nobody knows?

As I posted over a month ago, this stream is dead in the water.

Parker would rather do anything other than stream. Good luck to him. It does make the timing of 888's decision to sign him look disastrous though.

Imo not a smart move to bring your gf to the stream when you are allready struggling with motivation(?) and ds. Allready have to deal wit the trolling and put a live girl there and it's full mayhem after that. But I will say that when he first started streaming and Tim was behind him was a major part of the stream. And obv Tim's gf and other random dudes.

This is something that rubs me the wrong way. Yeah he cashed for 10m yeah he is up over 1m in profits but the past 2-3 years hes been basically breaking even after 40k mtts. Imo you don't need to brag your past winnings if you're winning these days.



I agree. He came in red hot getting the big audience and winning the thrilla etc. Now the real battle begins if he wants to be a mtt pro who streams and does other stuff like live commentary or just another mtt grinder like the rest of us.

He did bring in his gf onto the stream once and you can tell the poor girl is clearly uncomfortable there.

Plus now that Moldran is back it all hardly matters anymore

DISH!

Tonka is the best streamer so far in my oppinion. He talk about hands and give most info to learn and get better at poker.

Tonkaaaa made day 2 o the 2k

If compare Tonka and Lex Veldhuis, whose stream would you recommend to watch?