Maria Konnikova - poker beginner to champion

Maria Konnikova is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, The Confidence Game. Her new book, The Biggest Bluff, is out now. Maria started as a complete beginner in poker and while researching The Biggest Bluff, Maria became an international poker champion and the winner of over $300,000 in tournament earnings—and inadvertently turned into a professional poker player. She got mentored by Eric Seidel, Phil Galfond, and several other highly successful poker players and her rapid success is a testament to what can be achieved in poker with the right approach to studies, the right guidance, and a lot of dedication. Maria is also a regularly contributing writer for The New Yorker whose writing has won numerous awards.

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Timestamps:

00:00:00 Intro

00:01:20 Outsiders perspective

00:04:22 Mentored by Erik Seidel

00:05:59 Good at studying

00:07:04 Why get into poker?

00:09:17 Most complex parts of decision making in poker

00:11:53 Less certainty more inquiry

00:14:00 Time constraint

00:16:47 Always ask why players are doing what they're doing

00:18:11 Speaking several languages helps

00:21:27 Too much certainty

00:22:58 No expectations

00:24:07 Why the vast majority of poker players are male?

00:35:03 Resistance to accepting women in poker

00:36:38 Women - untapped poker market demographic

00:38:52 Trying to get new players into the game

00:40:25 Erik Seidel's method of teaching

00:44:03 Phil Galfond quote

00:44:44 Once the results started coming

00:46:27 Phil Galfond Challenge

00:47:22 Passion for poker

00:48:20 Winning the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure - Bahamas

00:53:14 Overcoming a big mistake at the beginning of the final table

00:54:44 Maria Konnikova - The Biggest Bluff