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“Confidence
is the number one ingredient for success at the poker
table, no question about it.”
-
Daniel Negreanu
There
are many elements required to be successful in poker. In
fact, there are far too many to mention in an article of
this size. But one trait towers above the rest, and that
is confidence. Confidence is the defining
characteristic of the championship player, an intangible
element that can’t be taught, no matter how many books
one reads. A poker player without confidence is like a
bird with a broken wing, a flailing mess that is sure to
perish.
We’ve
all seen people playing scared. Sitting around for
hours, waiting for a big pair. When they finally do
enter a pot their hands shake uncontrollably, since it
has been so long since they got involved. It is a truly
transparent and pathetic sight.
The
confident player, on the other hand, is a joy to behold.
Stealing pots, making moves, playing any two cards as if
they were aces. Think of Phil Hellmuth or Gus Hansen at
the top of their game. It’s a beautiful thing indeed.
Nothing
begets confidence more than winning. Time and again in
poker we see a player take down a big tournament and
then respond by having another high finish within a very
short period of time. Consider these examples.
-
Phil
Hellmuth, Phil Ivey and Ted Forrest all winning 3
WSOP bracelets in the same year.
-
Gus
Hansen winning 3 WPT titles in the first 2 seasons
of the tour.
-
Hoyt
Corkins winning his first tournament in more than 10
years (The WPT World Poker Finals) and then placing
2nd in another WPT event less than 2
months later.
-
Dutch
pro Rob Hollink, after a mostly uninspired career,
winning the EPT Championship in March of 2005 and
finishing 5th in the WPT Championship the
very next month.
-
Amateur
Joe Pelton improbably taking down the WPT 2006
Legends of Poker Championship and then placing 3rd
in the WPT Festa Al Lago event just 56 days later.
-
Ram
“Crazy Horse” Vaswani winning the WPT Irish Open
in October of 2004 and then placing 2nd
in the EPT Scandinavian Open less than 3 months
later.
And
then, of course, there is Michael “The Grinder”
Mizrachi. The ridiculously talented young pro made 2 WPT
final tables within 10 days of each other in January of
2006. He proceeded to bag 1st and 2nd,
pocketing over $1.75 million. Not bad for a couple weeks
work.
So
what do these men have in common? Did they simply get
very lucky for a few months, perhaps after selling their
soul at the crossroads of the Bellagio? Hardly. What
these men had going for them is confidence, the kind
that only comes from winning a major poker tournament.
Tasting victory is an addictive thing, and those that
get there can’t wait to get back again. When
confidence and good play is mixed together it is a
powerful force and an elusive alchemy that often leads
to the winner’s circle. We should all be so lucky.
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