Great quote for beginners from Phil Ivey

[harryjr2p2]

Hey all, I just started listening to some of the previous "The Circuit" shows, and in show #136, they had Phil Ivey. In it, he spoke a very interesting line regarding getting into poker. He said (something like):

"If you're not willing to pull a $100 bill out of your wallet and burn it [to ashes], you shouldn't get serious about poker."

He went on to explain that you need at least some degree of detatchment from your money/chips if you want to play the best poker.

I don't know if the quote is his or someone else's, but I like the quote a lot. I personally think the best and most dangerous players play as if they money means nothing to them.

Thoughts? Feelings? Rants? Raves?

[Spy]

It's a good quote, but it's actually quite irrelevant for beginners. No player starts out at a level where this applies.

[Brain]

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It's a good quote, but it's actually quite irrelevant for beginners. No player starts out at a level where this applies.

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False. It's very easy to go through $100 in a live 3/6 game.

[Spy]

Eh, good call. I often operate under the assumption that everyone starts at the micros online because i've never had any B&M casinos nearby. I'll correct myself to say that for the vast majority of beginners on this forum, it's irrelevant.

[phydaux]

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It's a good quote, but it's actually quite irrelevant for beginners. No player starts out at a level where this applies.

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False. It's very easy to go through $100 in a live 3/6 game.

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True. Quite true. sigh....

[uDevil]

It's also true that if it doesn't hurt when you lose, then you can't play your best. I doubt Phil Ivey would be the god of poker if he thought of his bankroll as play money.

[Rook]

I don't like the quote. I think it's wrong on so many levels. It sounds sage like, and it is coming from one of the worlds best, but I still think it's wrong.

No beginner should feel comfortable "burning" money. You should understand that you will lose (probably a lot) when you start, but consider the lost money an investment. When you burn a hundred dollar bill, there is no return on that investment. It's gone. When you lose 100 dollars in poker, it's variance (or bad play), and you can regain that money with the remainder of your bankroll (which without that original 100 dollars would be smaller and less able to take the variance).

He meant the best, but nobody should be willing (beginner or not) to toss your money away. It's bad poker. If you think your are "burning" money as a beginner, use that 100 dollars to buy yourself a good Poker book.

[3Spirit]

English Low Life (the name of his column in Private Eye) Jeff Bernard famously said of horse racing that he might as well save himself the trouble by just getting up in the morning tearing up a bunch of £50 notes and flusing them down the loo!

But then again he wasn't really of the positive thinking school.

[Acein8ter]

It's true at upper levels that you need to be 'detached' from your chips/money. If your afraid to loose money, you'll never bluff or take chances. If that happens, people can read you like a book. - Never bluffs, and if he/she does, its for a small amount of money.

They can also bet to push you off your hand. They make a large bet (NL) and you'll always be thinking that your behind. I've noticed that really good players re-raise when they have the 3rd or 4th best hand. It starts getting into the 'meta' game.

[harryjr2p2]

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No beginner should feel comfortable "burning" money

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This is why he didn't say $1000 bill. It's a good point that being completely detatched from your money may not be good, in that it would encourage reckless play, but some detatchment will help you keep your mind off your stack when making tough decisions.

This would apply most to cash games. In tournaments, no matter the buy-in, your stack is your life, and when it's gone, that's it.

But that's my opinion, feel free to agree/disagree/call my mom a slug