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Is Poker Really Gambling

Marty Derbyshire

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In any particular hand, it is 99%+ luck between two decent players who know basic strategy. However, that one percent makes it so that the better player will win over the long run with probability approaching 100%, given you play sufficiently many.

When five-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner Jason Mercierappeared on the the Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz on ESPN last month, he was introduced as a 'poker junkie' and asked point blank if he had gambling problem.

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By the time the interview wrapped up, two things about the mainstream sports media were clear: Most knew very little about poker, and for hosts Dan Le Batard and Jon 'Stugotz' Weiner at least, the perception is that poker players are more akin to problem gamblers than professionals.

Keith Whyte, the executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, says the problem may lie in the fact that the difference between the two isn't exactly clear.

'It's a fascinating question,' Whyte told PokerNews. 'On a standard psychological diagnostic test, I think most professionals would meet every criteria to be considered a problem gambler. It's just really hard to separate a heavy recreational gambler, or a pro, from someone who has a problem.

'I've given some standard tests to a few professional players, well-known pros, WSOP bracelet winners. I can't give you their names for privacy reasons, but I can say they all graded out as serious problem gamblers. My one take away, after talking with a lot of poker pros and poker companies over the years, is that the one difference, the thing that separates a professional from a problem gambler, is control.'

Whyte admits that diagnosing a gambling problem is not an exact science, but basically, a pro can set limits, stick to them and practice good bankroll management tactics, while a problem gambler can't seem to stop and has difficulty managing their time and money.

'Someone with a problem gets so caught up playing, they miss their daughter's field hockey game, or if they do show up, they're on the phone playing or thinking and talking about playing,' Whyte said. 'It's hard to quantify and distinguish between pro and a problem, but I think the pro who does not have a problem has outside interests and takes part in activities outside of the game. It may be their job, but they have some control over the amount of time they spend doing it; and they are able to maintain relationships outside of it, go to other activities and see the sun once in a while.

'Some pro players could be playing 18 hours a day, and for them, it may not be a problem. On the psychological diagnostic test they'll meet most of the criteria for problem gambling, or honestly, all of it, but I still think someone can be a pro and not be a problem gambler. It really is an individual thing.'

With more than $13 million in online cashes and counting, Chris Moorman is online tournament poker's all-time leading money winner. In an interview with PokerNews last month discussing the origins of his career, he stopped short of calling his interest in the game an addiction because it's his job, but he did say he felt like he was hooked on the game immediately and it became an obsession for him.

With this kind of obsession often considered a precursor for success in so many aspects of life today, including poker, Whyte agreed it's another hard line to draw.

'It's like the kind of thing that makes a professional athlete the best at what they do,' he said. 'That focus and ability to forget losses or play through pain. A lot of people have a tough time understanding how a professional poker player can play through losing $10,000 or $50,000. That's the pain they are playing through. They push, and push, and push, and it's that work ethic that helps people succeed in all areas of life. In poker, the vast majority of successful players have that work ethic and some call it an obsession. Animal bascule et roulette. Certainly the folks that fall into gambling addiction have it as well. The thing is, it's hard to tell a healthy obsession from an unhealthy obsession.

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'I've talked to Daniel Negreanu about this before, and I know he often talks about the intersection between professional gambling and problem gambling, and the big thing here, and I hate to bastardize the lyrics of Kenny Rogers and The Gambler, but the that's the big thing: Knowing when to walk away.'

But walking away from the poker table on a downswing, setting time and money limits and sticking to them or exercising proper bankroll management, are only half the battle for a poker professional, with casino games, sports betting, prop bets and other forms of gambling surrounding the lifestyle.

'There are players that are stone cold at poker and they stick to their limits and practice the best bankroll management they can while playing poker,' Whyte explained. 'Then when it comes to craps, sports betting, side bets and prop bets, they have no bankroll management strategy at all. It all goes out the window and there are no limits. It's a fascinating phenomenon. They are great poker players, who are ice cold when it comes to poker, but with other games they don't have the same discipline and that's where they have a problem. Then there are people that are just the opposite. They may be stone cold sports bettors and they suddenly go crazy on poker.'

When he looks around poker's tournament and cash game circuit, Whyte says the classic signs of problem gambling are everywhere.

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'There are a lot of problem gamblers that will tell you how great they are at the game with a straight face, even though they are living out of their car on the circuit in California going from card club to card club,' he said. 'They are a great pro; they just have a temporary