T H E M E N TA L G A M E O F P O K E R
yet. Without uncertainty, there is no risk. Without risk, there is nothing to gain in poker, no edge to create, and no profit to be made.
B A R R Y ’ S TA K E
B e Fe a rl e s s Like I v ey Players often have a desire to be fearless, just like how they perceive Phil Ivey— an entity devoid of all fear with the ability to invoke fear in others. Trying to be fearless like Ivey without actually removing the very real fears you have is a results-oriented way of thinking about the mental game. You see the sum of his mental game parts, but not how he got there. It’s no different than wanting to have as much money or to be as good of a player. You see the end result and think it can be yours without actually earning it. Unfortunately, the mind is powerful enough to convince you that it’s possible, but not powerful enough to instantly make it a reality.
Incomplete Information You no doubt have heard poker referred to as a game of incomplete information. The skill in poker comes from creating certainty where there were previously unknowns. You have no idea what hole cards your opponent has been dealt, but you have the ability to put them on ranges, retrace previous hands with them, and pick up on their tells to fill in that missing information. You don’t know the strength of your opponent after playing one hand with them; but if you regularly watch training sites, post on forums, and work on your game, you can learn how to quickly assess their game. Hypothetically, let’s say there are 10 technical unknowns in any given poker hand. A fish can only fill in one or two of the unknown variables in a hand, whereas a professional player can fill in seven. A professional’s 158