He's like a little kid who never grew up.
Timothy Hawes, 47, of Wentworth Falls, is all set to test his wheeling and dealing skills in the Australian Monopoly Championships in Sydney on May 15.
The current Victorian champion (he claimed heritage as his father John lives there) loves to play the iconic family game with his wife and two kids on many a wet Mountains weekend.
He owns 30 different Monopoly sets and is teaching his daughter Amelia, 12, and son Ethan, 4, the tricks of the trade.
There are five strategies he plans to keep in mind when competing in the championships: buy as much as you can early in the game, complete a set, buy the railway stations, it's just a game, and play by the rules and have fun.
"My mantra is, you have to have the luck to go with the strategy, and the strategy to go with the luck," Mr Hawes said.
At the championships the aborist will compete in four rounds of the world's best loved board game to determine the Australian Monopoly champion.
He plans to do some sleuthing beforehand and study up on his opponents' tactics.
He has loved the game since age eight, and has been playing on the competition circuit since 1991. In 2000 Mr Hawes won the Australian champion title, which saw him travel to Toronto, Canada, to represent Australia against 49 other countries at the Monopoly World Championships.
"I have represented my country at the end of the day," Mr Hawes said.
If he wins the national championships this year, he pockets $26,000 and will represent Australia in Macau, China, in September.