Staying On Top

I grew up completely obsessed over sports and the spirit of competition. I remember eagerly opening the Sports section of the newspaper every morning over my bowl of cereal to indulge in the stats, standings, articles of what was happening in the sports world. Players who were dominating obviously were receiving a lot of media attention, and icons such as Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Cal Ripken, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird were considered my idols. When it came to playing baseball, football, or basketball (although the latter would eventually become my obsession and ultimately the source of my online moniker), I played as hard as I could to win always. I hated losing but loved the feeling of competing intensely, and failure to win would be a pretty upsetting experience for me. I played pool with my grandfather on the table we got for Christmas one year in our living room nearly every day, as well as my 5 card draw on our mahjong table. We would then watch the Bulls play at night, and celebrate or (rarely) grimace at every play. One thing about me I tend to have a very addictive personality. When I start developing an interest in something, it usually consumes every thought on my mind and I am completely immersed in all its facets.
The truth is, I unrealistically wanted to play in the MLB or the NBA as a kid. I didn’t know how difficult or downright impossible it was for someone like me, an average guy with average physical abilities of average height. Eventually I practiced enough basketball to become a pretty decent player, but I could’ve never competed at any level higher than high school. When I discovered poker, I immediately associated the same familiar feelings of competitiveness and strategy that I had with sports. As I started taking it more seriously and the friends who had introduced it to me slowly lost interest in the game, I realized how much I didn’t know, and how much work needed to be done to play at a high level.
The point of all this really just has to do with the title of this blog post: staying on top. My dad instilled in me the values of consistency and stability from a young age, so I never had any of these random degen urges that some players have to take huge shots in games they weren’t familiar with or engage in erratic play. My idol, Michael Jordan, absolutely dominated the league for well over a decade while he was playing, and continued his high level of play and intensity all the way to his retirement (the 2nd one, which I consider to be his real one), where he left on top. Then you look at some of these other players who have a good season or two, but slowly disappear from the spotlight. Their play becomes inconsistent, they get lazy during the offseason, or they allow the next guy to work hard enough to replace them in their starting role. The next thing you know, only a few years later, they end up warming the bench the entire game, disappearing into oblivion. Or, they are waived or not re-signed to another contract that would’ve guaranteed them millions had they simply put in the effort to stay on top of their game, and forced to declare bankruptcy or perhaps try and play overseas. As you could probably see where I’m going with all of this rambling, I see so many parallels with the game of poker and sports, and this is no exception. There are so many regs who supposedly play the game for a living, but they are barely putting in any volume, or go through stretches where they are jumping all over the place in limits in hopes of running hot in a game they aren’t rolled for. They get lazy and complacent with their game, which in turn becomes stagnant, and not surprisingly, they lapse behind and struggle to beat the ever-changing games of today. Then, some of them try to start training sites because they can’t make money from playing anymore!
I have little to no respect for the games of most “coaches” from training sites (with the exception of a select few obviously), or tournament players, or live pros. I hold those who take for granted their dream job of getting to play a game from home to make incredible money in less regard. How can players expect to stay a factor when they barely put any hands in? Nobody is good enough to magically develop their game and hone their craft while sitting idly on your ass or vacationing for extended periods of time. I am so thankful now for my parents drilling in my mind the importance of never becoming complacent, and for always wanting to strive for more, and remain consistent and steady at whatever I do. Though they never would have imagined their son to have chosen the path that he has, they still fully support me 100%.
I think 2008 was an eye-opening year for me, and I learned a lot. In 2009 I started really crushing the mid-stakes games, but this year I’ve developed a whole new set of tools for keeping up with the games of today. This doesn’t mean I’m patting myself on the back, and now it’s time to sit back and relax. I have much to look forward to in improving my game, and will continue to do so always.