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POCKET ACES

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Maryann Guberman has been a writer and editor with many gaming publications, including Sports Form, Card Player, Poker World, Player's Panorama and Systems and Methods. She also has written and edited numerous books on gambling.

July 31, 2004

The Pursuit Knowledge

The beginning of knowledge is the discovery of something we do not understand.
-- Frank Herbert

Recently someone asked me how long it takes to become a good poker player. Straightforward enough, the question hung in the air like the smoke from a California wildfire before I requested additional information. How long have you been playing? What kind of record do you have? Have you read any books? Do you use software to practice? How much time do you devote to the game? Probably I was buying time, since I didn't have an immediate answer. Besides, an instantaneous response would indicate I hadn't given serious thought to a difficult question.

I caught myself before proceeding even though I've been asked the question many times. I know some people who appear to be naturals at poker. They are the ones who just seem have intimate understanding of the opponent and instinctively have a picture of how to play every two-card hand they see.

I know too there are people who have learned to play poker the way someone learns to read or write or understand complicated political questions. They study; they memorize; they practice; they begin to fathom the methodology of reasoning. These are the students who approach poker the way they would any other new venture by seeking wisdom from others and by putting that wisdom into practice.

In my circle of life I have met folks who have a great difficulty learning. Whenever the stop sign appeared to them in their early learning years the impact left a lasting impression. Some never understand that the word "can't" isn't a companion, while others accept the fact that there's a roadblock in front of them and they'll have to get around it.

Now, I do know a few folks who give up when faced with mastering a new skill -‹ they call themselves computer illiterates or mechanically deprived, or they use some other terms to put a comical tag on what they perceive as an inability to move forward. The truth about these people is that they can't do what they say they can't do! It's very unlikely these they will ever really learn to play poker.

There is no single prescription for learning how to play poker well -‹ no formula in a bottle -- and there's no timeline except for the one each individual sets for herself. The time-proven methods of learning backed by actual experience that is constantly supplemented by reading, watching, studying, memorizing and adapting will get the job done.

Possibly more important is to keep the channels open to potential understanding. Yes, you can learn and memorize the mechanics of poker and you'll probably win some money. But one day that cartoon light bulb will go off over your head and you will suddenly understand, you will know, the concepts will reveal themselves and you'll wonder why it took you so long to understand. That is the turning point.

On his personal Web site, Howard Lederer talks about his decision to spend his efforts in search of improving his no-limit hold'em skills. Here you have a polished ring game player who openly admits that he hasn't been successful at the lofty limits that often define success. His fifth-place finish in the World Series of Poker in 1987 was as close as he ever came to what he thinks of as achievement. So he promised himself a year's worth of devotion to tournament games.

Anyone who has the devotion and passion for the game will become a good poker player. In Lederer's case, it took a year to rise to the top of the tournament world. For me, it would take ages longer. For the rest of the world, it depends on the answers to the original questions asked while stalling for time: How long have you been playing? What kind of record do you have? Have you read any books> Do you use software to practice? How much time do you devote to the game?