How Upswing Member Andrea Sager Made a WSOP Final Table

Andrea Sager purchased an Upswing Poker Lab membership in December 2023. Six months later, she found herself at the final table in the $1,000 Ladies Championship at the 2024 World Series of Poker.

Sager finished ninth for a $14,242 payday, the biggest cash of her career so far. The timing of that result is no coincidence, as Sager focused many hours studying the Tournament Starter Pack track in the Upswing Lab.

We caught up with Sager shortly after the Ladies Championship final table appearance. Here’s a look, in Sager’s own words, at what drew her to poker, why she chose the Upswing Lab as her study source, and what’s next in her poker pursuits:

When did you start playing poker, and what drew you to the game?

So I grew up playing poker. My parents always hosted home games, and I can’t remember a time when I didn’t play poker. I joke and tell people I came out of the womb playing poker. But then I married a man that didn’t want me to play poker, so I stopped playing when I was about 21.

Eventually, I realized that marriage wasn’t going to work, so I started playing again in 2020 after an eight-year break. 

What made you start taking poker more seriously in the last couple of years?

When I began playing poker again at 28, I started playing because I was fresh out of my marriage, had no friends, and I had no idea what to do with myself. I was trying to find myself again, and the only thing I knew to do was play poker.

Funny enough, I actually bought the poker club where I played. After getting burned out and selling the club, I took a few months off of poker and began playing again. I was mainly a cash player up until that point, but I finally decided I wanted to take poker more seriously and actually learn how to master the game and try to win some tournaments. 

In 2023, my friends dragged me out to the WSOP to play the first Gladiator event, and I cashed. I was seriously hooked on tournaments after that first WSOP cash. After summer 2023, I knew I had to invest in some training material if I wanted to get better. 

How did you find the Upswing Lab, and what made you sign up for Upswing vs. some of the other poker training courses out there?

Living in Houston, I heard about the Lodge, and I started following Doug Polk. Eventually, I learned about Upswing and the Lab by following Doug. December 2023 is when I finally signed up for the Lab and started going through the material. 

Which Upswing courses/modules did you study to prepare for the WSOP this year?

I never had any kind of strategy when it came to poker, so I really took in everything from the Tournament Starter Pack module. I haven’t even made it through everything in that module, and I have barely touched any of the other modules. The WSOP tuneup portion has been most helpful to me. 

I’m sure anyone who registers for a WSOP event visualizes themselves at the final table. How did the real-life experience of doing that compare to the “dream” of doing it?

Quite frankly, it was very anticlimactic! I started the day 2nd in chips and finished in 9th, so in the moment it was a bit disappointing. However, it was definitely one of the coolest experiences I’ve had to date.

As a kid, I used to dream of playing in the WSOP. I would show up to softball tournaments growing up after pulling an all-nighter playing poker and my coaches would be pissed. I remember spending Friday nights at the skating rink in middle school and then going with my brother to play poker at his friends’ house, who were all in college, and we would always watch the WSOP and talk about playing in it one day.

I was also the little girl in high school going to all the underground poker rooms around Houston, which I had no business doing as a 16-year-old! Even though I wanted a higher finish, it was a surreal moment to realize I was finally living out my childhood dream. 

Any particular hands/moments that stand out from your run in the Ladies Championship?

Besides the last hand. Because we all remember the big losing hands. I honestly was just proud of playing very solid poker for most of the three days. I never had a “huge” turning point hand.

I steadily gained chips and did a good job of staying in the top 25%, which is typically my goal. It was also cool to take out some heavy hitters, which was a great confidence booster.

What are your poker goals for the next 2-5 years?

My goal is to continue to be a student of the game and continue playing the best poker possible. I’ve always considered myself an amateur poker player. However, these days most of my time is spent playing or studying. I’m lucky enough to own businesses that allow me to spend my time as I wish, so I’m going to continue living out my childhood poker dreams. 

Who is your favorite Upswing coach?

I’m not sure if I have a favorite coach yet. However, the most helpful material I’ve gone through so far is by Aaron Barone and Gary Blackwood. 

Do you have any advice for players out there who would love to one day make a WSOP final table?

Never stop being a student of the game. Some players believe studying is pointless and only playing to get experience is going to help them get better. You have to give yourself the best chance possible to be successful. If you’re not doing some sort of studying away from the tables, it’s going to be much harder to live out those poker dreams.