A lot of authentic wisdom can be encountered at poker tables. After all, some of the most iconic players in the industry have spent a literal lifetime reading opponents and navigating the subtle complexities of poker. Thankfully, these legends have shared their insights with several quotes for you to live (and play) by. Read on!
“No matter how much you may want to think of Holdém as a card game played by people, in many respects it is even more valid to think of it as a game about people that happens to be played with cards.” Phil Hellmuth
How a person plays poker can reveal a lot about who they are as a person. Chances are if you’re meek or bold in the game, you approach life with the same mindset. That’s why some clever players adopt the strategy of not playing the cards but playing the people playing the cards. When you know the person sitting across from you at the poker table intimately, it makes predicting their moves so much easier. That’s when you transition from being a good player to one with seemly divine-like powers of prediction.
“It never hurts for potential opponents to think you’re more than a little stupid and can hardly count all the money in your hip pocket, much less hold on to it.” Amarillo Slim
This piece of advice comes from a Poker Hall of Fame inductee and basically, he’s telling us that if someone thinks you’re an easy mark…let them! While some may get offended or hot-headed at the notion that others think they’re stupid, Amarillo Slim just viewed it as an opportunity. There’s no greater mistake than underestimating the enemy and when all is said and done, you may have more money in that hip pocket when you walk away from the tables.
“When a man with money meets a man with experience, the man with experience leaves with money and the man with money leaves with experience.” Unknown
Anyone who’s ever been a poker rookie can feel this quote in their bones. Bundles of cash without a drop of life experience is not a winning combination - not at the tables or in the outside world! Any newbie who comes to an advanced poker game with pockets full of cash and no meaningful skills is about to learn an expensive lesson. On the flip side, even when you’re down on your luck in the cash flow department, with a head full of knowledge you can always pull yourself back to salvation. Such is true in poker and life!
“Poker is a fascinating, wonderful, intricate adventure on the high seas of human nature.” David A. Daniel
Poker tends to push people into high-stress situations that they otherwise wouldn't find themselves in. Thus, it has a great knack for revealing the inner workings of those who play it. Even the players who are riding high on a win exhibit something of the inner soul in how they manage their hot streak. If you ever want to study someone’s true character, take them to the tables, put some cash on the line and ride the highs and lows of the game with them.
“A faint heart never filled a spade flush.” Unknown
Poker is a game of bold moves. Thus, it makes sense that only the truly daring, those who take life by the horns, can master it. If you’re reading this thinking, “that’s not me”, then don’t worry. Poker is the perfect arena to train those skills. Being brave is a skill like any other and practice is needed before it becomes second nature. Once you're more comfortable being brave, you’ll soon see yourself stepping up in other areas of your life away from the cards.
“I learned playing poker that you never count your winnings because that’s when you start to lose.” ~ Kenneth Langone
Skill building is paramount to securing a long-lasting poker career. Still, never forget that no matter how good you are, you can be humbled by a stroke of bad luck. The minute you think you know it all, poker luck has a way of shifting dramatically, leaving you more lost (and broke) than ever. What’s more, you have to have a love for the game to stay in for a lifetime. Once you find yourself only focusing on the number of wins you’ve secured, you’ve lost.
Once you're more comfortable being brave, you’ll soon see yourself stepping up in other areas of your life away from the cards.
“I learned playing poker that you never count your winnings because that’s when you start to lose.” ~ Kenneth Langone
“Life, like poker, has an element of risk. It shouldn’t be avoided. It should be faced.” ~ Edward Norton
As humans, we walk about the world calculating risks daily. Whether it’s crossing the road, chopping vegetables or petting a stranger’s dog, we’re taking a risk be it big or small. Yet, in order to get the most out of life sometimes a more daring leap of faith is needed. That can be terrifying when faced with. Thus, many people buckle under the pressure. However, poker is the perfect melting pot of risk and reward to train yourself to steel your nerves. After all, it’s only once you dare to play big, you get to win big!
“Just play every hand, you can’t miss them all.” ~ Sammy Farha
The best way to ensure you always lose is to never get in the game. We don’t know about playing EVERY hand you’re dealt in poker. I mean, sometimes your hand is just a dud and your priority should be folding. Still, you never know what opportunities lie ahead of you when you get involved in both the game and life. While luck won't always flow in your favour, you have a better chance if you at least attempt to play.