Secrets of poker Poker

Be honest with yourself

Written by James Potter

This article first appeared in the Nov/Dec 2013 issue of World Gaming magazine.

WGM’s poker guru James Potter tells us the secrets and importance of being honest with yourself when evaluating your poker game and abilities.

There are two people in the world you should always be honest with. You probably think this is where I talk about your husband or wife and your mother. Well, you’re wrong; there are plenty of times you will need to tell a couple of “porky pies” there! The first person you really need to be honest with is your doctor. They are bound to secrecy and what’s the point in going to the doctor if you can’t tell him what is really wrong? But the second and most important person you have to be honest with is yourself. This is a problem that plagues thousands of poker players around the world.

I have no problem with putting on a show or creating an image when sitting at the poker table, but if you start to believe your own hype you will quickly find yourself in a world of hurt. Now, this sage little piece of advice isn’t something I learnt overnight. It took me years to figure out, resulted in me losing a lot of money and caused me far too many sleepless nights. The biggest challenge comes when you have played the game for some time and have progressed to a certain level but reach a point where no matter how hard you try, improvements come slower and you have to work harder than ever for them to happen. It’s a bit like losing weight – when you first start you lose a lot quickly but those last few kilos require extra work to drop.

When I was playing poker full time, I would have loved to have played in The Big Game at the Bellagio – the well-known high stakes cash game played in “Bobby’s Room” with limits around the US$2,000/$4,000 mark. I remember watching the likes of Phil Ivey, Jennifer Harman, Chip Reese, Johnny Chan, Patrik Antonius and David Benyamine playing this game and wishing I could play as well. So why didn’t I? Apart from the fact that I didn’t have the bankroll to cover playing in that game I had one huge problem: I wasn’t anywhere near as good as these guys! Not only that, I was never going to be as good as these guys when it came to high stakes cash play. Their ability was just on a different level to mine.

Personally, I figured I could beat any red chip (up to US$10/$20) No Limit Hold’em or Pot Limit Hold’em game live. Online, US$5/$10 was about where I felt comfortable. I worked out my limitations and if you want to be successful you will have to do the same. It can take years to figure this out and plenty of tough sessions along the way but at some stage you will come to a point where your ability prevents you going any further.

On the other hand, tournaments were a totally different ball game for me. At my best, I never felt out of my depth at a tournament table. I played against the very best in the world in some of the biggest tournaments around and always knew I could dominate most and hold my own against all. Yes, there was the occasional player who stunned me with their brilliance, but I always knew I was at least roughly in their league. This is an important lesson to learn as well – not only should you be mindful of your weaknesses, you also have to be honest in appraising your strengths. It is only when you combine your knowledge of both that you truly understand your worth at the poker table.

Honest self-evaluation is paramount for any poker player. It gives you the ability to work on areas you need to work on and it gives you the confidence to be at your best when you are at the table. It is amazing how much taller you stand when you are honest with yourself. It is far from easy for people to be honest with themselves. Most players tend to overrate their abilities and there are some, albeit far fewer, that actually underrate their talents. Both are a curse and both will hold back your development as a player.

I love poker because it is a true test of human strength and emotion. It magnifies our best and worst traits as individuals and at times can bring the high and mighty crashing right back down to earth. This is the challenge we as poker players crave but our success is measured in the long term by our wins and losses, so if you do overrate your abilities your bankroll will soon tell you how it really is. Success is achievable to all of us provided we have the courage to honestly appraise our abilities. Good luck in your search.