It’s quite possible you’ve never heard of Matt “Harn1” Harniman. His Hendon Mob page lists just four cashes … over six years ago … and his most significant online score was victory in a $215 Sunday Supersonic for $11,500.
But don’t let this seemingly unimpressive resume fool you.
The unassuming Londoner has forged his poker career in a very specific niche – PokerStars Power Paths – and his results there have been literally gobsmacking. He currently has well over 100 Power Path passes sitting on his PokerStars account including two Gold and over 30 Silver Passes. No surprise that PokerStars wrote a whole blog piece about Matt last summer, dubbing him the “Greatest Power Path Player of All Time.”
Matt is a cautious player; he keeps a close eye on his bankroll and is never tempted to splurge on nosebleed buy-ins. He rarely plays live events (even though he has enough Passes to give him a grand old time on the international circuit) and is very focused on his plans to forge a new career as a financial advisor.
However, last year, after persistent nudging from his mates, he dipped into his cache of Silver Passes and used his Emerald Edition pass – which comes with a free ticket into the Mini Irish Open – to head to the festival for the first time.
Did he cash? No.
Did he have an amazing time? Yes!
Is he coming again? Hell yeah!
At last year’s festival, Matt fired two (free) bullets into the Main Event but without success. However, he did thoroughly enjoy the Craic Den (and an outing to the Guinness factory)! He said: “Yeah, the poker itself didn’t exactly go to plan! In my first bullet, Niall Farrell knocked me out. We’d literally just joked about turning the event into an all-in shootout so we could spend more time in The Craic Den — and before I knew it, that’s exactly what happened.” He fared no better with his second bullet or in the Mini Irish Open but is still thrilled he got to attend the event for free.
He said: “One of the best things about the Emerald Edition Silver Pass is that the buy-ins are already taken care of, so I can just turn up in Dublin and focus on having the craic. This year I’ll be sticking mainly to the events covered by the Emerald Pass package — the Main Event and the Mini Irish Open plus I’ll use the €350 ticket for the Liam Flood Memorial 6-Max Turbo on the last day.
“Thanks to the Irish Open for the extra value €250 Mini ticket. It’s a lovely gesture and a great extra incentive to redeem a Silver Pass – even though the event is already worth it on its own!”
The 36-year-old also has sage advice for would-be Power Path qualifiers. He added: “The important thing is to be adaptable. Each step of Power Path plays very differently, and you have to adjust your approach accordingly. In Step 3, I’m probably one of the tightest players in the field, whereas in Step 4 I’m much more aggressive. In particular, I think it’s important not to overvalue a Bronze Pass at the bubble — being willing to take calculated risks there is often what gives you the stack you need to push on for a Silver.”
Matt plans to attend a lot more live events in 2026 and will be leveraging his Silver Passes to that end. He said: “Festivals like the Irish Open are exactly the kind of events I want to make time for! After Dublin, the PokerStars Open Main Event in Monte-Carlo is the next one I have my eye on.”
The Emerald Edition Silver Pass is now live on PokerStars. Check out the PokerStars Power Path page for more info, along with the schedule for PokerStars’ online satellites.
