Poker Veteran of 50 Years: 'Poker is more than a card game'

*Editor's note: New YouBet Poker contributor Harold Roth boasts 50 years of experience in high level Poker tournament play across New York, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Almost everyone has some familiarity with the game of poker, thanks in large part to the phenomenon of the World Series of Poker and its million-dollar payday. 

It’s thrilling to watch players making big bets, bluffing, and taking bad beats — all the while thinking to one’s self, “This is easy; I can do it.” But in reality, there is much more to poker than what you see on TV. It’s not just about the cards, or even the winning or the losing.

Playing poker at any level is a challenge and an exhilaration all in one. It is a game of chance and a game of skill. A game of strategy and decision-making. A game of patience and a game of luck. A game of risk and a game of major disappointment.

But let it be known — what it is not, is just a card game.

Poker transcends traditional card games like gin rummy and pinochle by virtue of the betting action, intense decision-making, and the personal interaction. It’s as much about the players as it is about the hands you play.

The best way to explain these contradictory qualities is to offer a comparison to sports everyone knows. For me, poker shares some distinct parallels to baseball and even Formula One auto racing.

Recognizing their similarities can be useful in visualizing the pathways to success in these sports and applying them to poker in order to grasp the nuances of the game and become a better player.

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Poker and Baseball

In baseball, it is the pitcher who best emulates the poker player. The pitcher delivers pitches in order to make the batter swing and miss, or hit the ball to a specific location.

Instead of pitches, the poker player uses their betting skills to keep their opponent off guard and guessing while applying constant pressure in an attempt to disguise the strength of their hand.

Over and over, there is that decisive moment when the ball leaves the pitcher’s hand or the chips are shoved into the pot … when your heart rate goes up as the anxiety of the action takes over. Will your strategy achieve its ultimate goal? Will your opponent take the bait?

Whether throwing a curveball, fastball, or changeup — or raising or making an all-in bet — it becomes obvious that the player who possesses the broadest arsenal of weapons (along with impeccable self-control) is more likely to succeed.

Poker and Formula 1 Racing

The parallel of poker with baseball makes perfect sense, but what about Formula One racing?

What can poker, a game that on the surface may seem slow and tedious, have in common with one of the fastest sports on the planet? Believe it or not, many people say the same thing about auto racing. “All they do is go round and round, chasing each other. Isn’t it boring?”

Both racing and poker require constant focus and concentration. Both need to have situational awareness and being ready for when that “aha!” moment arises. Yes, both go round and round, with intermittent bouts of excitement.

Both the Formula One driver and poker player must have total understanding of their capabilities while recognizing what their opponents are doing or planning.

More importantly, both require the skill of rapid decision-making, as things change very quickly. These decisions are as crucial to the outcome of every hand you play as they are to a driver racing at 200 miles per hour. What’s more, decisions need to be made over and over, and errors in judgment can be very detrimental to the outcome.

More alike than you would think, eh?

In almost any sport, risk-taking and pushing your skill set to the limit are key components to playing competitively. However, good decision-making is crucial to making winning happen at any level.