My 5 Biggest Takeaways From A Week In Vegas at the WSOP
As you know, I just spent a week in Vegas for the World Series of Poker. I played in several events, got many interviews, and even got in a blood-feud with Norman Chad. I was on ESPN multiple times, met with some of the best poker players in the world, and spread the good word about Play MGM, which is your go-to app for poker and sports betting in New Jersey. I also became best friends with my pal Smitty! What a week! Here are my 5 biggest takeaways:
1) Norman Chad Stinks But The Future Of Poker Broadcasting Is Bright
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First takeaway- Norman Chad stinks. We all know this but it’s worth reiterating. He is just a miserable old man who the game of poker, and media, are moving away from. He is your typical blue checkmark brigade loser. I give him credit for what he did for poker over the last 15 years, but enough is enough. He’s not clever, he’s not original, and his act is tired and worn. And he’s holding back many more talented and better broadcasters who could help take poker to the level it needs to be at.
Who are those broadcasters? Guys like Jeff Platt, Nick Schulman, and Ali Nejad, and women such as Maria Ho and Jamie Kerstetter. Don’t tell Norm there are women broadcasting poker though!
Woof. That’s the guy who decides which jokes are ok or not? Okay…..
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2) Poker is Freakin’ Hard
Fedor Holz is one of the best tournament players who has ever lived. His results are absolutely ridiculous, which you can check out here. I use him as an example because he is playing in the same field as a guy like me. Fedor has studied every inch of the game. The math, the game theory, the tells, the math we don’t even know exists but he does, and even more theory. He knows more about tournament poker than maybe anyone. And that’s who we are competing against.
What I realized from this trip is as good as I might be (and please note, I am not good. I am better than the average/casual player, but compared to the pros I’m a fish), I have SO MUCH to learn. There were times at the table I knew I messed up or made mistakes in hands. You can’t play every hand perfect, but I need to get closer. I mean there are so many good players now, and even the bad ones (like me) are at least competent. I just want to clean up my leaks and get overall better at the game.
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3) The Food In Vegas Is Fantastic
This is some friendly advice- when you’re out in Vegas, go to one nice dinner. Don’t go to the buffet, don’t just grab a burger and fries, make a reservation and go to a nice restaurant. Last time I went to Sage at Aria and did the wine tasting menu, and I’m glad I did it. Expensive, but a great experience. Still not crazy about Fois Gras, but I’m glad I at least tried it.
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This last time I went to Sen of Japan, which is a very good sushi spot off the strip. Sidenote: Vegas is chalk full of amazing restaurants, but you need to leave the Strip. It’s really funny because a bunch of them will be in a random strip mall next to a CVS and a place to cash your checks. Sen is awesome. Get the fluke with truffle oil. Get everything. It’s great.
4) You Cannot Underestimate The Mental Toll Poker Takes On You
Yes, I just wanted to share that picture of me looking like I’m taking a poop at the table again. But seriously, you cannot underestimate the mental toll the game can take on you. There are so many factors going on at once- the money aspect, the need to concentrate for hours at a time, the knowing if you make one mistake you could be out, the boredom factor, and so much more. It is so easy to lose focus, get bored, and then punt the tournament. Plus general fatigue. A lot of people find it hard to sleep in Vegas. You don’t even have to go out and party, just being in the city can make it hard to get a good night’s sleep, and then you need to play 10-12 hours of poker the next day. It goes back to having a good meal- it’s really hard to eat well and exercise while out there, which doesn’t help with the fatigue factor.
I played all of day 1 of the Main, 10 hours of poker, and was wiped out by the end of it. Next year I am going to register late. 10 hours on day 1 is too many. You don’t need to play that deep of poker. Day 1 is mostly a formality, in fact, they even let you register at the beginning of day 2. I bagged under starting stack from day 1, and then had over double starting stack after the first level of day 2. Never again will I play every second of day 1, just not worth it.
5) Poker Is Close To Embracing The New Generation, Needs To Get There
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Going back to the first point, poker is close to embracing the new generation. It reminds me of ForePlay at first- first golf was hesitant, and then they made their presence felt, and now they are embraced. Same with poker. I mean, ESPN put me on TV 3 straight days. I’ve become close with a bunch of the top players. Shit, Daniel Negreanu was the first guest on my podcast. Moneymaker has been on. Hellmuth will be on. The best players in the world want to see the change..and it’s just a matter of time. PokerGo has made it more accessible than ever, and there are so many good, young players. We just need the highest of highest ups to embrace it and to start putting the new blood on TV instead of the same ol’ heads.
I love Hellmuth and think he’s actually great on TV, but I agree with the larger point. For example, this guy Alex Foxen. He’s been on a HELLLLL of a run recently
Would love to a guy like him get shine over someone like…Scotty Nguyen or whatever who we have seen the same schtick from over and over again. I think it’ll happen though. Definitely will happen. We need to make the game younger and more accessible to the mass audience. Poker fields are as big as ever, but they aren’t getting younger, which is a bit scary.
It was great to see my guy Richard Seymour get a ton of shine this year. He works hard on his game and will have a big win soon, you can count on that.
What’s awesome though is I get DMs every day saying they are getting re-interested in the game, which is awesome. Because it’s a great game. And if you want to get good at it, the recourses are readily available.
So those are my 5 biggest takeaways. Hope everyone enjoyed following along and hopefully we get to do it again soon.
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Thanks again to Play MGM for the trip.