As a fan of technological doo-dads, gizmos, and gadgets, I subscribe to WIRED magazine, so imagine my surprise when I received the latest edition in the mail (yes, I read it in paper format) and found a short piece on 2014 World Series of Poker Main Event Champion Martin Jacobson. It is not an article about technology, though online poker is mentioned, but rather an enjoyable side bar that could give even non-poker players a few tips on how to compete more effectively in an endeavor.
The article is short, taking up less than a page of real estate, simply providing a few answers from Jacobson about how he prepared for the 2014 WSOP Main Event. The top half of the page is dominated by a stylized cartoon drawing of Jacobson sitting behind stacks of chips, hands folded with his index fingers up to his lips in a closed-eyed, meditative pose. His legs defy the human body’s limitations, crossed above his head like he was performing in Cirque du Soleil act on the Las Vegas Strip, rather than trying to win a poker tournament at the Rio.
Jacobson’s first tip was to practice with real people. He felt he needed to get as many reps in as possible with actual high-quality poker players, so he organized a Skype group of 30 poker-playing friends, as well as their poker-playing friends. They played an “online sim” together, reviewing the action afterward, discussing tricky hands, and the like. It is unclear in the article whether they were playing in a real online poker room or actually using poker simulation software so that real money would not be at risk. No matter, though, as it was the study and collaboration that mattered.
The Champ didn’t stop there, though, when it came to preparation. According to the piece’s author, Elise Craig, “Jacobson studies news coverage of past events and videos of each player, compiling detailed profiles that outlined individual styles, like bluff frequency, willingness to take risks, and how likely someone was to fold.”
He presumably did this during the layoff between July and November when he knew who his eight opponents at the final table would be. He then put his poker buddies to work, assembling a “scout team” of sorts, assigning each to portray and play like one of his opponents during the simulations.
As anyone could see from watching the ESPN telecast of the Main Event final table, Martin Jacobson appeared to be one of the minority breed of poker players who was actually in fantastic physical shape. His fitness was not just for general health reasons, but was also part of his poker training plan. Because of the physical gruel a long poker tournament, particularly just the final table portion of the Main Event, can take on one’s body and mind, Jacobson worked out, meditated, and practiced yoga. “Poker is a constant form of stress,” he said. “Meditation calms your nervous system and helps you focus.”
And finally, it should come as no surprise that he worked on eliminating any tells. He didn’t have any physical tells of which he was aware, but a friend let him know that he tended to act faster when he had a good hand, so he made sure he kept that in mind on the big day.
Since his $10 million win, Martin Jacobson has not done a whole lot on the live tournament circuit, but he hasn’t needed to. He has eight cashes since last November, one in the six-figure range. He has cashed once at this year’s World Series of Poker.
