I wanted to take part in the German Championships at Seven Card Stud but I had to struggle through the qualifications. I chose the satellite tournament in Wiesbaden as I had always felt comfortable there. My intuition proved correct and I managed to qualify. In December I went to Berlin and plunged into the finals. I was able to prevail against 600 players and won the first big title of my career: German Poker Champion at Seven Card Stud. By the way I was the first man to win the title as women had won both the previous two championships. The defending champion, Karla Eisinger, resisted to the best of her powers and the tournament became, not only because of her, a nail-biting affair.