A ROOKIE poker player who has never faced real-life opponents has qualified for a $10million Las Vegas contest.
Stuart Beaton, 36, won entry to the biggest game in the World Series of Poker by playing online.
His prize was a $10,000 buy-in to the game plus flights and accommodation for a week in Las Vegas, paid for by website PokerStars.com.
Last night, he admitted: 'I'm scared stiff about the challenge but I'm going to enjoy it and I'll play to win.'
He learned the intricacies of Texas Hold 'Em in just six months of online games.
But poker experts warn playing against opponents face-to-face is the real challenge. Stuart, of East Kilbride, Lanarkshire, said: 'I've spoken to some top players and they tell me to play my game.
'My problem is that I don't have a game in the conventional sense.'
The IT operator will fly to America on Saturday with girlfriend Tracy Ferguson, 29.
He said: 'Tracy wasn't too keen at first about me spending hours playing poker but she is getting a fancy holiday out of it, so she isn't complaining.'
Stuart, whose story was on Sky News, has won several hundred dollars online.
His Las Vegas contest involves 600 players, who will be whittled down to a final nine after five days of play