When PokerStars launched Energy Path in mid-2023, it gave gamers a low-stakes option to qualify for large poker occasions. For many, it was a enjoyable further. For Matt Harniman, it turned the spine of his profession.
The 36-year-old from London has spent the previous two years grinding his option to the highest of the Energy Path leaderboard.
He’s earned extra passes than anybody: 2 Gold, 30 Silver, and 60 Bronze. That is greater than $100,000!
These numbers don’t simply make him essentially the most profitable Energy Path participant thus far and so they inform the story of somebody who turned a aspect function right into a severe grind.
From $1 Shootouts to Day by day Routine
Harniman began small, enjoying hundreds of $1 Step 1 shootouts. He labored his approach up, constructing his sport and refining his strategy alongside the way in which.
Now, Energy Path is a part of his day by day routine. He performs a number of qualifiers a day, typically even on his cellphone whereas strolling.
“I began with a $500 deposit and performed the $1 16-player shootouts in all probability 6,000 instances,” Harniman advised the PokerStars Weblog. Over time, he developed a routine that noticed him frequently stockpile Step 4 tickets, treating the ladder not as a novelty, however as his day job.
EPT Barcelona Bundles & 7 Silver Go Packages Out there on Energy Path
What units Harniman aside isn’t simply quantity. It’s how he makes use of his passes. Whereas others chase stay occasions, Harniman performs the lengthy sport. He converts most of his Silver and Gold passes into on-line match bundles, permitting him to play larger occasions with out risking giant chunks of his bankroll.
“Money is available in waves,” he mentioned. “Quite a lot of my success simply comes from displaying up every single day.”
He additionally seems to be for edges the place others won’t. For instance, when he is aware of he’s about to win a satellite tv for pc seat, he’ll register for the occasion utilizing a ticket so he can take the seat prize in match {dollars} as a substitute. It’s small choices like these that assist him keep in motion and keep worthwhile.
Harniman nonetheless loves stay poker. He used a Silver Go to attend the 2025 Irish Open, a cease he’d all the time needed to play. He’s planning to journey extra for stay occasions when the bankroll permits. However he’s not dashing. He performs together with his personal cash and desires to develop issues sustainably.
Past poker, he’s additionally planning for the long run. Harniman hopes to in the future grow to be a monetary advisor, a path that strains up nicely with the planning and construction he’s constructed round his grind.
Energy Path’s Two-12 months Milestone
Energy Path has grown rapidly in its first two years. As of July 5, 2025:
280 Gold Passes have been awarded4,800 Silver Passes28,500 Bronze PassesMore than 370,000 match cashes trackedOver $13.5 million in whole prizes given outMore than 100,000 gamers have taken half
