Earlier this year, Jason JCarverSomerville (pictured), now a PokerStarspro, began 70 straight days of live-streaming online poker on Twitch. We caught up with him on Day #60 of his campaign. You can catch him on Twitchseven hours a day live from Canada. However, now that he’s just a week away from Day #70, what will happen next? And what does he see as the future of the game on Twitch? Read how Somerville has pioneered poker on Twitch.

PocketFives: Thank you for joining us. How have you been enjoying playing poker on Twitch?

Jason Somerville: It has been going great. I’m happy with how it has gone. Things have taken a different feel than I thought, but it’s my first time doing a dedicated season. I haven’t played this much poker against good players in years. I’ve basically been playing poker in Nevada until now, so this is a whole new world.

I’m up $30,000 over the last 60 days. We’ve had two million unique viewers come through the show in the last 60 days. My goal is to break a quarter of a billion minutes consumed by the end of May. I’m at 160 million right now, so to do that would be insane.

PocketFives: You mentioned the show has a different feel than you anticipated. What do you mean by that?

Jason Somerville: When I was in Nevada, I was streaming four or five days a week. I was by myself. I was alone streaming on WSOP.com and testing things to see what would work. I didn’t have a lot of time to plan or plot before the PokerStars deal came together. There had already been guys like PokerStaples streaming while I was negotiating, so I was eager to jump in.

I thought I’d have more time to pivot and see what was going on, but I’ve had to get used to riding the flow every day and focusing on making each show the best it can be. I didn’t think it would be exactly like this, but I’m proud of what I’ve done.

PocketFives: You streaming regularly has seemed to cause other players like Daniel Negreanu(pictured) and Griffin Flush_EntityBenger to do the same. What do you think of those guys starting to stream?

Jason Somerville: There are a lot of people who will watch Twitch and I think it’s nothing but awesome to see my poker brethren embrace the platform. Twitch is a great base to interact with users. It’s amazing for poker as both an entertainment and educational engine. It’s awesome to see other people acknowledge that. It can only be good for me to have Daniel Tweet about his Twitch stream 15 times a day. Hopefully some of his fans can find me.

PocketFives: What is the future of poker on Twitch?

Jason Somerville: Poker is a much better fit for the internet than TV. Poker tournaments breathe in a longer space. It’s hard to fit in a tournament into an hour TV broadcast, which is even shorter after commercials. Poker is a lot better fit on the internet.

There is a recipe for successful gaming on Twitch and poker resonates well with a big segment of the Twitch audience. If you’re a professional gamer, you’re playing your heart out, grinding, and improving your skill. You’ll maybe get a sponsorship deal. In poker, if you out-think your opponent, you’re getting paid cash. Cash is how we keep score in poker and I think that has resonated well with the Twitch crowd. Poker has a vast appeal to people that has almost been forgotten.

PocketFives: We have heard you talk several times about eventually ending up in New Jersey. Are you confident that will happen?

Jason Somerville: I think I’m intentional and hopeful when I say I want to end up in New Jersey, but I don’t know anything more than you guys do. Uncle Baazov doesn’t give me the info, but there’s no reason Stars can’t be deployed in New Jersey.

I have a lot of experience working with regulated online poker sites since I was with Ultimate Poker. I know the New Jersey market well too. I lived in New York all my life and New Jersey is one state over. I would love to be deployed to New Jersey. I’m a willing soldier. If Stars has a place there, I can bring the newfound enthusiasm and excitement to New Jersey. I think we’ll drive thousands of players on Twitch to PokerStars. However, I still don’t know anything more than you about when Stars will enter the state.

PocketFives: Do you think you’ll lose much momentum moving away from your daily scheduleon Twitch given you’re headed to Las Vegas and elsewhere?

Jason Somerville: I had to have a conversation with myself where I realize that if I left streaming to go the WSOP, I might lose momentum and let other people with streams close the gap. At heart, I am a poker player who streams, not a streamer who plays poker. I love the WSOP; I love the summer. My results have always come during the summer.

There’s a chance I might lose some of the momentum I’ve built, but I’m excited to go to the WSOP, to bring back stories and hand histories and hopefully another bracelet. I’m as interesting as I am because I’ve been immersed in the poker world for the last 10 years. I don’t think I’d be a happy person if I streamed six days a week for the next year. I wanted to do this in seasons so people would know when I’m on and where to find me.

I’ve sold something like 500 Run it Up hoodies. The Run it Up legion lives and I want to fight the battles with them in person. It’s more than just an online thing. I want to make sure I’m doing the best I can to keep me happy and passionate and that, to me, is playing in the WSOP this year.

Visit Jason Somerville’s Twitch channel.

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