I’m writing after getting back from EPT London, where I did relatively well. I had really been looking forward to that trip. I love London and had an idea I’d hang out a lot, play a lot of cash games, and go to some football matches as well. But I ended up playing in tournaments about 12 hours a day every single day, which I guess is the price you have to pay when you do decently well in tourneys.

I cashed in both the Main Event and the High Roller. I actually bubbled the final table of the High Roller, finishing 10th. I had my iPad with me while I was playing this time and took a lot of notes on my play, which was kind of useful for keeping track of what I was doing and what my opponents were doing, too.

After EPT London completed, I’d originally planned to take a trip to Thailand to vacation with my family. But I was unable to go thanks to this ongoing court case I’m involved with having to do with how Norway wants to tax my earnings.

It’s complicated — we’ve already gotten a favorable ruling in the case, but there are more steps to go through and as a result I’m having to stick relatively close to home until all of it gets resolved. Ultimately it’s good news the way all of that has gone so far, but I’m stuck in kind of a waiting mode for a while, anyway, as the details get sorted out.

At one point I had been contemplating going out to Las Vegas for the November Nine to rail my fellow countryman, Felix Stephensen. But as I say I’ll be staying here for now and not traveling so far away.

The plan for the rest of the year will be to take a few shorter trips here and there in between playing a few last events. I went to Malta here at the beginning of November for one event, now the only other big stop on the schedule for me will be EPT Prague in December.

I’m just being patient, then. It’s a little like playing in a tournament where I’m having to sit tight and fold some hands, so to speak, while I wait for spots to play again.

Johnny Lodden is a member of Team PokerStars Pro

Back to Top