My Poker Role Model

The last 3 weeks have been busy outside of poker so the blog had to suffer. Okay, to be honest, the poker suffered too. I had too many nights where I either couldn't play or I could only play a short session. This weekend though I got in two fairly long sessions (about a 1200 hands total) and I have the bankroll back in black.

Last post I promised to write about my inspiration for playing poker with ambition. Dusty Schmidt is an onliine poker legend. He is a former high level (nearly PGA) golfer as well as a business man who took up online poker early in the last decade and has made around 3 million dollars in online cash games. He has recently written a book called "Treat your Poker Like a Business" and will soon publish an autobiography. I haven't gotten his book yet but I have read numerous interviews the man has given and his approach to poker seems simple but brilliant.

First, he isn't playing for ego. He has no interest in getting on tv or trying to stare down the likes of Phil Ivey. He searches for situations where he feels he has an edge and tries to exploit them. Also, he credits a lot of his approach to simple hard work and volume. He is reknown for his long sessions and multi-tableing. He tries in every way to run his poker like he used to run his family's business. He uses discipline, hard work and a focus on the bottom line. It sounds like common sense but before you dismiss his ideas with "everyone knows that stuff" ask yourself, are you getting what you want out of poker? If not you might reconsider your approach. Also, its one thing to "know" an idea, Its another thing altogether to have the focus to apply the idea all of the time. I really think that Dusty is a perfect example of the idea of "deliberate practice" that has gotten a lot of exposure thanks to writers like Malcolm Gladwell in his book "Outliers". The basic idea is that talent isn't something that you are born with, it is a skill that you develop through years of very focused hard work on your craft. The main component of "talent" is in most cases the opportunity to pursue your passion and most importantly your willingness to do the necessary work.

I'll leave you with two links. There is a wonderful thread where Dusty takes all questions at "cardschat.com" .

Also here is Dusty's site where you can read excerpts of his book. "dustyschmidt.net".

Until next time,

Good Variance to you.