Scott Clements went into the dinner break with a comfortable lead and in excellent position to win his third WSOP bracelet. PokerNews' Pamela Maldonado caught up with Clements to discuss his chase for the bracelet trifecta.
PokerNews: Your last bracelet achievement was in 2007 and came close to adding another in Omaha events twice in 2009. How important is it to you to win a bracelet in a no-limit hold��em tournament?
Clements: Every bracelet is important. It��s my goal for me to win the $50,000 Players Championship before I die. That is the one bracelet I have my heart set on, but all the rest, whether no-limit or Omaha or even another game, they��re all of the same importance.
We heard a rumor that back in February you said you wouldn��t cut your hair until you win a bracelet. We see your hair is getting a bit long, is that bet still in place?
It wasn��t actually until I win a bracelet. It was that I wouldn��t cut my hair until I have a $100,000 score. As of today, I��ve reached that dollar amount. Third place is guaranteed at least $185,000 so as of today I��ll get to cut it. Maybe now I��ll wait and see if I can win a bracelet first.
How do feel about your game at the final table?
I am very happy. Simply put, I like my spot. I feel so comfortable with where I am, with my competitors, with my chip stack, I just overall am happy with where I��m sitting. Benny is a very good player and Levi seems to be playing well too, but I��m just confident right now.
Is there any key hand or pivotal moment that helped lead you to where you��re at right now?
Early in the tournament I had pocket queens versus Chris Moorman��s ace-king. I had a lot of chips but he was maybe chip leader at the time. It was of course a big flip but I won that flip which put me up toward the top. That jolt really helped give me the freedom for the rest of the tournament. From that point, there weren��t really any spots where my stack got low. It��s been a good run since.
If you were to win the bracelet tonight, how will you celebrate?
I will spend the morning with my wife and kids. I��ll be playing in the $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. event at noon tomorrow also. If I bust the H.O.R.S.E, then I might play in the heads-up event, but I definitely won��t miss the noon event. I love H.O.R.S.E.