“You can’t lose what you don’t put in the middle”, Mike McDermott says in the ‘90s poker flick Rounders. “But you can’t win much either.”

These words neatly sum up the agony and jubilation of poker playing. Actually, they kind of sum up the conditions for living in general. You’ve got to give a little to get a little.
Of course, in the harsh world of poker, it can extend to losing so much money that you’ll be in debt ‘til your dying day, as well as it can extend to you leading the slick life of a multi millionaire.
I don’t think I will ever do either. I am a shy better, a so-so poker player and I have no real illusions of grandeur. However, I am fascinated by the phenomenon as such. Since 1970, three men have won the World Series of Poker Championship twice each. A fourth man has won it three times. Why is that?

How, on a planet full of poker players covering all ages and nationalities, is it possible that the same guy can end up with the championship even two times?

At some point, I think you have to forget about the luck part. Obviously, all gambling is about luck or chance to a certain extent. But there is a whole other side to it too, that I find worth exploring. Being a top notch poker player isn’t just about mastering all the techniques.
Far from it. In addition to being skilled at the game I reckon that you have to have quite a sharp sense for math in order to calculate the odds. You have to be able to read even the slightest change in another players expression and you need to have a killer memory. You need to be bold enough to improvise, yet controlled enough to not get careless. And if you have dodged all the other pitfalls, then you still have the lifestyle issue to deal with. In the world of professional poker playing, there is undeniably some drinking going on. Late nights and the need to stay focused might call for something even stronger. Stu Ungar, who according to most people is the undefeated champion, died already at the age of 45 from heavy drug abuse.

Nonetheless, I think that poker can be a fun and rewarding pleasure. As a matter of a fact, I’ll devote this blog to looking into it. Welcome.