Sometimes, someone somewhere out there on the wide expanse of the internet has an instantaneously recognizable and undeniable je ne sais quoi. That person for me is a man who poker players call TableSelection (or “TS”). He flaunts a Cookie Monster avatar, goes by the handle @ClearTradeoffs on Twitter/X, and plays high stakes heads-up poker under a name I absolutely adore, TILTMENOT.
I couldn’t tell you which his initial posts caught my eye, but what I can tell you is that he immediately ensnared me with his storytelling and poker experiences. I’ve been swooning as a fellow writer and poker enthusiast ever since, and was fortunate enough to interview him about his experiences.
As one of the top online players in his specialty from over a decade ago, he is reentering the arena once again with a Rocky-like determination to test his grit. Below are his reflections on his experiences in business, poker, love, and what makes a life worth living.
A Terror on the Felt Opens Up
We in the Poker Community know that table selection is a core skill of yours, hence your Twitter/X name. But why “Clear Tradeoffs,” and what was a clear and pivotal tradeoff for you?
Funny story: when I started my account about six months ago, I intended it to be mostly about finance, markets, and entrepreneurship. My poker past was supposed to be the credential. Thinking through tradeoffs was a big part of how I made decisions, so the name fit.
Walking away from poker was probably the clearest one. I gave up the game I’d built my life around and made room for everything that came after it.
However, apparently you can take the man out of poker, but you can’t take poker out of the man. Look where we ended up after all this time.
What do you hope to experience in your return to poker?
It would be pretty awesome to come out of this experiment victorious. I’m not as hung up on the money anymore. I want to prove to myself that, even with all the new tools and how much the game has changed, a forty-eight-year-old can still beat online poker.
I may be delusional, lol. Time will tell.
What did it feel like to be set financially for life at 42?
Honestly, it was a bit of “now what?” I’d always chased a number. It sounds cliché, but eventually the numbers just become digits on a screen. The financial comfort didn’t change my happiness the way I thought it would.
When you don’t have that security, the survival instinct gives you a kind of motivation that’s hard to replicate once you do.
Do you consider yourself an introvert in all aspects of your life, or do you like making money from gamblers without having to personally interact with them?
I’m definitely an introvert. I don’t particularly enjoy talking to people, talking about myself, or hearing about others. I know that’s probably not the best way to go through life, but I am who I am. Online poker was a godsend for me.
Poker’s Undeniable Call Like a Siren’s Song
You are a "heads-up specialist." What exactly does that mean for those of us who have only played full-ring games, and how did you discover that’s where you thrive as a competitor?
Heads-up means playing one-on-one poker. For me, it started with game selection. I quickly realized that the best return against a weaker player came from getting them heads-up, rather than sharing that opportunity with a whole table of other professional players.
Early on, there wasn’t much competition for those games, so it was smooth sailing for a while. Over the last ten years or so, it became king of the hill. If you wanted the games, you had to battle the top guys. My results heads-up have always been better than my results in ring games, so that became my specialty.
What format of heads-up do you like the most and why? Is it different from the one in which you’ve had the most consistently positive results?
Pot Limit Omaha (PLO), hands down. I played it for the last ten years of my career, so that’s the game I feel most at home in. It’s also where most of my later heads-up experience and results came from.
What was the longest session you ever played, and how, if at all, did it test you compared with your normal-length sessions?
The longest session I’ve ever played was probably around thirty hours in a live game in Los Angeles. I haven’t played much live poker in my life, but I got into some private games after moving out here. Nothing too crazy by high-stakes poker standards. I’m pretty sure I ended up losing quite a bit, too.
Why did you retire from poker in 2021?
I was losing my edge at the highest stakes and bleeding money. I hired Elliott Roe to sharpen my game, but around our fifth session he told me something I wasn’t ready to hear: “You built your career on table selection. Maybe it’s time to select a new table.”
That wasn’t what I’d paid him for, but he was right. Left to myself, I probably would’ve kept battling, convincing myself that I still had it while it ate away at my bankroll and my mental headspace. Instead, I walked away. I built businesses, got better at allocating capital, met my wife, and rebuilt my life. Quitting was the most profitable decision I ever made.
In February 2026, you shared that “I got rich making decisions under pressure. Now I’m trying not to get poor making them without it.” Are you returning to poker to fight against mentally atrophying, or are you addicted to pressurized situations?
A bit of both, really. Being on Poker Twitter lit something up in me again. I honestly thought I’d never come back. I hadn’t even followed the game in almost six years. I didn’t even know what CoinPoker was.
Now it feels like I have something to work toward again. There’s a sense of purpose in it, and I’m pumped.
For someone who admires you and wants to try heads-up, what advice do you have for them?
I’ve written about this before, and I think natural talent matters more than people want to admit. In heads-up, I’d put innate gifts above studying. Sorry, that’s probably not what people want to hear.
First, figure out whether you’re actually cut out for it. Be honest with yourself. If it isn’t your game, don’t be stubborn about it. Pull the plug.
Mindset Matters, Even for (Cookie) Monsters on the Felt
In April 2026, you reflected that fatherhood and being a fully present parent prevented you from maintaining your former cold-blooded heads-up killer mindset. Now that your son is ten years old, how has your mindset changed and why?
That’s completely true. Playing at the top level takes your undivided attention. Online heads-up edges are tiny, and the competition is brutal. If you’re giving it less than your full focus, you’re putting yourself in a bad spot.
Once you have a family, there are more important things in life than poker. It becomes harder to execute the way you once did. My son is ten now and much more independent, which gives me more room to focus on the game again. But being his dad still comes first.
Ten years ago you were “eating cold pasta out of a saucepan at 4 AM between poker sessions.” Now you enjoy “homemade sourdough fettuccine on a Sunday afternoon.” What do you miss from those early days, and what are you most grateful for now?
Ha, I definitely don’t miss the cold pasta. But I do miss how exciting things felt when I had less. Going on a trip was a big deal, regardless of the hotel or where I sat on the plane. When money was scarce, I appreciated those things differently.
These days, I’m grateful for my family and the life we’ve built. Sunday afternoon at home is pretty good.
In May 2026, you shared that “online poker can have brutal downswings. Having people around you who actually understand what you’re going through matters more than you think. I never had that.” Do you have that network now and, if not, how are you going to create it for your mental health?
My wife is that person for me. She’s the only one, and she’s more than enough.
What type of tilt is the most dangerous in your opinion, and why?
Winning tilt, for me, is the most dangerous tilt. When you win consistently for a long stretch, you start feeling entitled to it. Then variance turns against you, and you have a much harder time accepting it or adjusting. That can get to be very self-destructive.
Like me, I know you hate the term “bumhunter.” Is it because it’s disrespectful to the weaker opponent, unnecessarily cruel to homeless individuals, or another reason?
For me, it’s the hypocrisy. Poker is about finding an edge and playing where you have one. Every pro playing for profit does that, including the top guys everyone idolizes.
A stronger player has a bigger pool of opponents he can beat, so he has to avoid fewer games. That doesn’t make him less of a game selector. Calling someone a bumhunter is usually just a way of saying you’re higher up the food chain. Everyone is someone’s bum.
How, if at all, has your year-long stint serving in the military affected your personal and professional life?
It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. Honestly, it almost broke me. Whenever life or poker gets really shitty, I think back to it. Things can be a hell of a lot worse. That perspective has stayed with me.
What was it like falling in love and marrying again?
I honestly never thought I would. But when you know, you know. She’s my person, and I’ve never felt better about my life than I do now.
That’s why I tell people not to assume they’re too late for something. There’s always still time.
How does your wife feel about your return to poker?
That’s been the best part. I was worried about her reaction because, for most of my life, the people around me were against poker. She’s been incredibly supportive and a huge help. I’m lucky to have her.
Conclusion
If you’re not chronically online like I am, you might have missed @ClearTradeoffs posts in the past. I hope this article has convinced you to check out this veteran of the felt as he attempts his comeback tour with a fervor while candidly chronicling his journey.
I, for one, will be watching and reading with bated breath.