Hot Aussie Chick is part time poker pro, musician, model, a published writer & radio personality. All of this equates to the hottest poker topics, stories and poker strategy! Add mum (mom) and fantastic girlfriend that has an in-depth interest in casino gaming, sports, nature, health, spirituality and animals and you have some interesting life stories & one heck of a journey to follow!
There have been many people talking about poker as a sport in recent times. These discussions are primarily due to the new World Team Poker. World Team Poker (WTP) is a new concept in poker where countries choose a team and of course team captains where they compete against the rest of the world to see which country has the World Team Poker Champions. This new concept runs kind of like the olympic games with countries such as Australia, Israel, United States, Italy, China and more all competeting to see who is the best.
With even things like patchwork quilting we can compete to see who is the best. We can score teams around the world as the best patch work quilters. We could play games like monopoly and see which countries match up as the best. Is there anything which sets poker aside from other activities and card games that makes it a sport or is it "Just another cardgame"?
I consider poker a sport for many reasons. I believe it is a game that you could participate in as part of the olympic games. Poker is like most sports, it takes a lot of preparation to be able to play an A-Grade game. Poker takes a lot of stamina, skill, focus, concentration, poker is a game that can be played at an elite level and when it is shouldn't be taken lightly.
When people are chosen for poker teams it is obvious that the team coaches or leaders / captains choose the best players at their disposal. These players have proven themselves time and time again alike olympic swimmers, throwers, runners, and table tennis players.
Poker can take a lot out of a persons physical body. Competing at the olympic games as a poker player day after day is sure to be no easy task, it is not for the amateur or light hearted. Players have little sleep in large tournaments such as the WSOP, EPT, Aussie Millions. They eat when they can and have few breaks. Tournament play can go on for hours and hours and hours. These things cause weight loss and sleep deprivation and these show that poker can be a very physical sport. In saying this I am not talking a sit and go or a cash game where you can stand up and leave at any time you desire, I mean a deepstack tournament with a multitude of players.
Poker pays money, trophies and endorsements and is therefore in the same category as many sports that participants can win medals in. A professional sprinter also recieves these things, money for wins and places, they get paid out for their win, they recieve endorsements from shoe companies and take home trophys too! How many people that play card games such as solataire, hearts or the like recieve anything near what a poker player does; one who would take down the EPT at any given location?
I am really glad to be seeing World Team Poker ready and set to go.
World Team Poker features a unique concept of team poker with the thrill of international competition between top professional poker players from countries throughout the world battling it out for “Pride, Passion, Country.” World Team Poker’s season will culminate in a World Team Poker Championship Event in the tradition of the Super Bowl, NBA Finals, or Baseballs World Series, where the teams will compete for the ultimate title: World Team Poker Champions!
With this statement made by World Team Poker Executives and it distributed throughout press worldwide; need I say that many people in the world agree with me that Poker IS a sport!
Congrats to WTP for making this statement beyond "just words" and good luck to participants and to each and every countries poker teams that are involved. Sorry to say though; I am going for the Aussies all the way! Go Aussies, bring home the first ever trophy from World Team Poker xoxo
We are always trying to save a buck no matter what we are doing. Hitting the poker tournament circle or taking a long distance trip to the casino we must do the same. Save a buck in every way possible! We can all go poker tournament tracking and hit the casinos based on our budget and save pennies no matter what they buy-ins, location or participants.
When travelling to our daily jobs, many of us car pool to save costs. To head to the casino the same method can be used. Don’t be shy to gather a full car of poker mates for the ride and split the costs equally! Pre-plan the trip in advance and get the numbers. You can also grab some last minute flight deals at budget price saving hundreds of dollars. There are also daily flight booking times where the same applies.
On arrival at your destination the same you can also save bucks! All you need is a place to crash (sleep) 6 players can easily share a $120 a night motel room crammed or not! Take a sleeping bag and be happy to sleep on the floor or even share a double bed with someone you rather wouldn’t! Maybe a friend already has a motel room and wants to buddy share? Network; look around at who is doing what.
Food and drinks can be a HUGE expense when travelling. We would all rather use our money more wisely at a Omaha or Texas Hold’em poker table! Pre-prepare and pack an esky. Ensure to pack food that doesn’t need to be cooked such as fruit, sandwiches and cold meat and salads. To save on mini bar costs take your own alcohol if you plan to drink. A 750ml bottle of spirits for less then $30 is a heck of a lot cheaper then 3 drinks from the mini bar. (This is of course if you plan to drink). You can empty the mini bar refridgerator on arrival placing the items in a safe spot and fill it with your own stuff.
Before you even hit the table you will be hundreds in front; and in front is what all poker players want to be! I hope my handy travel tips help those who are stepping out of the world of online poker into travel that they had never previously expected possible!
How do I know this? I have done it and are not ashamed to say so! Especially in my early days of being a poker journo! Save, save, save!
The last post on poker and genetics being “Do out genetics contribute to our mental skills and abilities in poker?” had quite a response. Those that responded included poker professionals, poker personalities, a person that has a PhD in criminology and of course the average poker player. A discussion was also aired on WTF Poker with Hannah Elisabeth discussing how her poker genetics date back to before anyone contemplating contribution were born.
The answers given by most people were pretty much the same as what I had also determined prior to the article and start of this study. Most people who contributed to the study agreed that poker mental skills and abilities arise from both genetic makeup as well as hearing poker as a second language.
I will place the opinions that were written in this follow up on Part 1A prior to delving in deeper to which parts of our poker game and poker brain are passed on through our genetics and which parts are passed on from poker as a second language and any other factors which may contribute.
WATERHORSE believes:
“I believe with money behind you and the right training and attitude you can become a great poker player. You will need money behind you if you want to be great. Can't do it on fresh air.”
In saying this he also taught his step daughter how to play poker at the ripe old age of 11 and also how to hustle LOL. “Bekki played crap our 1st game like I told her to. And while she was getting us a drink I made I private bet with him that I could teach her this game and before the week she would win him heads up. £100 bet he accepted without a 2nd thought. We played another game which I dropped out leaving them both heads up. Keith thinking she still needed to learn the game wasn’t worried until she had busted him down to a chip n a chair.”
It is unknown if Bekki has a background of poker players in her family, it is known that waterhorse is obviously a great teacher and that Beckki picked up quickly from listening to him talk poker as a second language.
MCITY42NY comments:
"I only wish I got interested in NL holdem a long time ago, all my uncles and cousins and relatives have been playing stud for years and it didn’t interest me, but the pile of money on the table did. I didn’t even know about holdem until a couple years ago. I have the perfect mental skills, abilities and genetics for the game, and love to learn more and more about it. I learned Holdem feb09 in a home game and soon as I got a taste I knew poker was for me. Now all I need is to build a bankroll."
It is apparent that MCITY42NY has poker in his blood but was not exposed to poker lingo – or also called poker as a second language. In saying this, he has knocked out 2587 bounties learning the game so genetics is obviously playing a part in his game; as well as an awesome teacher which appears to be himself!
LoganWon who has a PhD in criminology states:
“Science has proven that people have a genetic hardwiring that is passed down from ones parents and grandparents. Most people do not realize that you only get 1/4 of your DNA from each parent. The other 50% is split 4 ways between your grandparents. My dad was a great poker player and so was his dad. My grandfather on my mom’s side was very good also. So I got 75% good DNA to be a card player."
"If anyone is at the WSOP this year, wear SC gear and we can talk. I already have my buy-in money ready!” I asked directly: “Do you think it was just DNA that contributed to your mental skills and abilities or do you think it was poker "talk" also Logan? I guess it came hand in hand if poker was played that much in your family!”
“While working on my PhD in Criminology I sharpened my skills concerning taking motivation into account. You are always asking the question, "Why would somebody do this or that?" Being around people talking about cards also helped a lot.”
This makes it evident that Logan is also a person that has been passed a high percentage of poker genes but that also that talking poker helps a lot. Again this brings me to dissecting the human brain to determine which parts of our game are from what part of our “genetic makeup and also upbringing”.
CAKSTX believes:
“Yes DNA and IQ topped with family card games as a kid ,equals good math skills ,top with great reading abilities can make for a monster on a no limit table ,but u have to learn the patience and well timed aggression on your own like many other life lessons. With that being said my dad and I and whom ever else was home played hearts every night after dinner finding who had the Q of spades became easy for me, and I use those skills along with 20 years of door 2 door sales exp. to my advantage in life.”
It now becomes evident that some skills come from neither genetics nor poker as a second language. I hadn’t thought of this before and thank CAKSTX for pointing this out.
Buyacka9 stated:
“yep poker is in the genes per say and it’s also a learned behaviour, my dad was a big gambler, he played every card game know to man, dominoes, warry (an island game), shot dice, bet on horses, boxing ect ect. I lived with him from age 0-13 and saw all the gambling. I started living with my mom age 13-19 and she always told me she didn’t want me to be a gambler like my dad, I stayed away for years, 2 years ago my friend "mike" show me how to shoot dice, I never learnt because I grew up in Miami and saw ppl get killed on the corner shooting dice so I didn’t even wanna learn. After my boy taught me I was a natural, then almost 2 years ago I taught myself how to play poker since I always watch it on sports centre and never knew what was going on, and now I have my dad style and he don’t even know I play poker.”
Indeed Buacka9 can play poker too! He has 4070 people he has knocked out of tourneys on one site alone.
WATERHORSE has 6193 bounty knockouts, LoganWon has 3,375. Indeed these people all play and are qualified to participate via comments about their own life on what they believe, specifically those who have been around a lot longer than most players. I thank all of the SpadeClub community that have contributed and those who found my article interesting and commented on or offline.
Hannah Elisabeth from WTF Poker has poker in her genes from well before any of our lives started and again; discussed it on air with me. She alike me agrees that genetics and poker as a second language both input to our mental skills and abilities using Annie Duke as the perfect example. Add in factor number 3 being other outside of the family influences such as “CASTX’s” door to door sales job. Factor number 4 is clearly one’s own learning and research in the game and you have a poker player made up of four clear factors.
Genetics
Poker as a second language
Outside family influences
Self teaching, research and playing the game!
So it seems that everyone does agree that our genetic makeup to some extent contributes to our mental skills and abilities as a poker player. There are obviously other contributing factors. I guess the next step is to work out “Just how much mental skill and ability comes from each of the four factors” and also “What parts of the brain are used for the game of poker” to do such a thing.
To determine precisely which parts of the brain does contribute we would have to do a multitude of brain function scans (in short) whilst people play poker to see which parts are activated. I think we can safely take a stab in the dark though and pin point these next post based on different sections of the brain that have been studied for other research purposes. This will of course not be accurate but will lead us in the right direction. Again; one would need a ton of funds to research this in-depth alike a research institute would. Any contributions via comments and emails again; are appreciated and a big thanks to those that have already said their piece! I will plod along and slowly but surely get my answers.
Next question- Part 2a - What parts of the brain are used for the game of poker? This will help us determine “How much mental skill and ability come from each of the four factors?”
As mentioned in my blog post “Your Poker Career”, there are many different career bases in the poker industry besides the obvious; being a player. One of these bases is the journalism side. For those of you who know me, journalism has been a big part of my poker career.
Without journalists poker wouldn’t be as big as it is today! For the record, the job of a journo is NOT an easy one either! Players think it is a marathon to sit and play poker for 12 hours, indeed they are correct. Let’s think of the marathon the journalists run though! Oh my! For that entire 12 hours, the journalists are also using both their mind and body.
I covered two tournaments at Star City Casino once, with the aid of an assistant / photographer only. We had both poker tournaments running at once and although the players were exhausted I was almost dead! Chip counting, all in reports, knock out reports, photography. In reality I and my assistant indeed ran a marathon. I wish I had a step counter on that day! I think I walked around 20kms – probably more!
Remember that there are post tourney reports to do so the tournament doesnt end for a journalist with the last person standing. There are also things such as interviews to take care of!
If you broadcast on radio or TV alike myself you also have that to arrange. Giving results and run downs via voice recording is not as easy as it sounds. It can be very stressful and let's face it; remembering it all off the top of your head can be more then difficult. Some journalists prefer to do this and this only while others avoid this type of work at all costs.
Anyway, journalism is another area in the poker world that people can step into. Remember there are many areas of journalism, from the basic chip counting positions to the live broadcasting and publication writing. Regardless of your schooling level, if you know poker, are good at English and maths – you can fit into the poker journalism base somewhere.
There are some great venues, parties and functions that journalists get to attend which is the bright side of the job, on the other hand - partying is kept to a minimum if you are working and reporting the function.
If you are interested in a position in poker journalism of any kind check around the big online news sites to see what’s happening from time to time, they sometimes need chip counters (as an example) for tourneys which may be in your area and this is one way for you to get a foot in the door!
Fondly known as the A-Z of poker by my favorite people, I live and breathe the card game. I am what one would call a veteran that has helped push poker throughout Australia with my writing, radio personality and social mingling. Furthermore I have helped increase and support women in poker, I am a huge advocate working closely with the worlds leading woman poker publications, ambassadors and front runners.
Above and beyond poker I am a mum (mom), lover of animals & nature; advocating for those without voices, a business woman, an educated Australian that questions everything and has a deep understanding of the earth & its minerals.
Add the love of V8 supercars, motorbikes, AFL, alcoholic beverages, the great outdoors and being a girly girl and you have what can only be described as a HotAusChick or, Danielle Adams-Benham.
