When Maria Konnikova took up poker for the first time in 2017, she wasn’t in it for the money. Instead, the author and New Yorker writer — who also has a Ph.D. In psychology — learned the game as research for her latest book, The Biggest Bluff, which comes out later this year. Within months, though, she was winning — big. Jun 15, 2020 Maria Konnikova is a New York Times bestselling author and contributor to The New Yorker with a doctorate in psychology. She decided to learn how to play poker to better understand the role of. The Biggest Bluff by Maria Konnikova details her journey from a writer who knows nothing about poker to winning big tournaments as a poker player and all the lessons she learned along the way. The biggest bluff of all, she learned, is that skill is enough.
13:4517 Jan
(Photo: WSOP.com)
Maria Konnikova, a writer who immersed herself in the world of poker just to research her upcoming book, recently won the PCA National for $84,600. Her story got into the “non-poker” news media as well, Newsweek has published a piece about her recently.
The Russian-American Konnikova has an A.B. diploma in creative writing and psychology from Harvard and a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University. She has released two books so far - How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes (2013) and The Confidence Game (2016), both non-fiction - and is currently working on a third one which will be about the great game of poker.
MARIA KONNIKOVA, an author and Ph.D in psychology had a run of bad luck, but oddly found that poker was the perfect vehicle for her to explore her interest chance, skill, and human behavior. I had never played live poker before,” said Maria Konnikova when asked about the early days of her poker career. Shortly after, she started winning big. She played her first high-stakes game at the renowned PokerStars Championship in Monte Carlo, where she finished in second place.
That is why in early 2017 Konnikova decided to hit the tables and learn all she can about poker. She chose 8-time WSOP bracelet winner Erik Seidel to be her mentor - it seems the learning curve has been successful.
Even before the Caribbean Adventure, Konnikova has added some impressive scores to her tally in live tournaments: she racked up 3 ITM finishes in the PokerStars Championship in Monte Carlo, and cashed in the WSOP 3 times in the summer.
But it was the $1,500 PCA National that brought her the real breakthrough. She managed to come in first in the 200+ player field, ahead of such seasoned pros like Chris Moorman, the player who has won more money on online tournaments than any other player. She got paid $84,600 for her victory, then snatched one more ITM finish before the PCA was over, a 42nd place for $22,020 in the $10K Main Event.
At the very beginning of her poker journey, she talked to PokerNews.com about her new endeavor. Newsweek used this interview for quotes in their article.
'I was interested in the question of skill vs. chance in life, and how much of my life do I control(...) And I’ve decided to use No-limit Hold’em specifically as a metaphor for life.' - she said. 'I’ve learned, first of all, that poker is an even better metaphor for life than I thought.'
Maria Konnikova Poker Player
She elaborated on how very similar skills are useful at the poker table and in real life situations, be it reading people or controlling emotions. She also talked about how a woman’s experience may differ from a man’s during a game; she feels women are more likely to have insults directed at them on the felt.
Newsweek themselves has talked to Konnikova last year about the insults she had to suffer as a female poker player, especially in the low-level live games.
Maria Konnikova Wife
The writer turned poker player also spoke about how she came into the poker world wondering whether she can use her knowledge of psychology to make up for what she lacks in GTO plays or just sheer poker experience. So far she learned that focus is the number one factor in poker success in her opinion; she believes that is where she can have an edge against other players who often get distracted by their phone or simply get up from the table in live games, giving up crucial information.
Maria Konnikova Poker Coach
Konnikova will have more opportunities to study the professional poker scene, as she is planning to go “from Monte Carlo to Monte Carlo” with PokerStars, meaning she will be present at all the big PS series events until the 2018 Monte Carlo PokerStars Championships where her poker journey began last year.