How Chess Streamer Alexandra Botez Won Half a Million Playing Poker
Life Outside Poker is a podcast for PokerNews hosted by Connor Richards that seeks to pull back the curtain on poker players and allow viewers and listeners to get to know them on a personal level.
In the 26th episode, Connor speaks with chess streamer and GGPoker ambassador Alexandra Botez about learning chess and poker from her dad, getting into streaming at Stanford, dealing with online trolls, creating content with her sister Andrea Botez and the similarities between chess and poker.
Botez also talked about winning $456,900 in a legendary 2022 Hustler Casino Live stream that included Phil Hellmuth, Mr. Beast and Ninja, as well as signing on as a GGPoker ambassador and securing two career-high cashes at World Series of Poker (WSOP) Paradise (she finished 60th in the $10,000 GGMillion$ Championship for $22,190 before finishing 187th in the $25,000 Super Main Event for $67,300).
This interview was filmed at WSOP Paradise in the Bahamas in December 2024.
The Life Outside Poker podcast is available on major streaming platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud and iHeartRadio. You can also watch the interview with Alexandra Botez by heading to the PokerNews YouTube channel.
Be sure to follow Alexandra Botez and Connor Richards on X.
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Timestamps
| TIME | TOPIC |
|---|---|
| 0:00 | Intro |
| 0:43 | Learning chess from her dad |
| 2:52 | Studying international relations at Stanford |
| 3:08 | Chess streaming |
| 5:50 | Similarities between chess and poker |
| 7:17 | Getting into poker |
| 8:34 | Winning half a million in HCL Ludwig's Million Dollar Game |
| 9:39 | Different poker experiences |
| 11:22 | Playing chess at WSOP Paradise |
| 12:32 | Queen's Gambit |
| 13:57 | Women in chess |
| 16:33 | Dealing with trolls |
| 16:54 | WSOP Paradise |
| 19:18 | Book recommendation |
| 19:46 | Advice for younger self |
| 20:01 | Favorite life lesson from poker |
