The Terms: Start with $500 and build a substantial poker bankroll over within one year. You may only play live games in casinos and poker rooms; no online or home games.
My conclusion, reported in my last column “Location, Location,” leads me to return to Las Vegas to grind out a living playing poker.
While watching the recent WSOP events, I had the privilege of spending two days talking with John “No Tells” Evanoff, IT Manager of the Red Earth Casino, Salton Sea Beach, 40-year poker veteran, poet, novelist, and historical writer on Reno, Nevada, who played the Casino Employee Event.
We discussed a few aspects of the $500 Poker Challenge, including how to play your “A” game, the intricacies of learning how to win, and how to get in your poker practice while simultaneously dealing with normal life, and the potential problem of losing your entire bankroll as you travel the yellow brick road to winning.
Evanoff offers valuable insights to keep in mind as you learn how to make a living playing poker. As he told me, “If you look at gambling as a whole, you eventually perceive that poker is a totally different game from all the others found on casino floors.
“The reason is simple: Poker not only requires an expert knowledge of the game gained from books and from playing hundreds of thousands of hands, but also knowing the subtleties of human nature and finding your own natural spark of intuition.
“You must consciously pursue higher and higher levels of experience to discover and understand this form of perception. After more than 40 years of working and breathing casino gaming, I can tell you from experience that you will never learn a thing from a casino.
“You must learn from the people who play poker for a living, but they will tell you nothing to your face, because they are only after your bucks.
“There are, of course, exceptions, and the books on my shelves do reveal some of the formidable secrets of the game, but you must sit across from the best to get better.
“Math, reading and a high IQ alone do not guarantee consistent winning. To succeed and know how to win, you must understand failure at its most evil and distasteful.”
Thank you, John “No Tells” Evanoff, for your insight and instruction.
Hot Off The Press: Dany Joe Georges, owner of Gitana Restaurant, Burbank California, seventh-place winner at the 2008 WSOP $1,500 no-limit hold’em event, has agreed to coach me for the $500 Poker Challenge.
Dany Georges is, by the way, the co-captain of World Team Poker’s Team Lebanon, which also includes co-captain Freddy Deeb and team members Joe Awada, Mark Betor, and Shannon Elizabeth.
World Team Poker’s Inaugural Event at the Golden Nugget will air on Fox Sports Network (FSN) for three consecutive Sunday nights beginning September 5 and will return beginning January 23, 2011, with ten new episodes.
Dany and I share this poker goal: to be winners in cash games and tournament play. He will review my results for accuracy, review readers’ feedback and give coaching as needed.
I invite you to take the $500 Poker Challenge with me and report your results!
John “The Scientist” Hayes hosts Ask the Scientist, a live call-in poker instruction show on www.hpstv.tv at the Hollywood Poker School in Hollywood Park Casino. Contact: scientist@hpstv.tv.
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