Eric Baldwin continues his interview on The Showdown with Jon Friedberg in this Part 2 of Episode 7.
If you missed it, be sure to watch The Showdown – Episode 7, Part 1.
Friedberg asked Baldwin what mental training he continues to go through, as Baldwin stated the game is always changing and you have to keep up with it.
Baldwin replied, “Well, part of it is, when you go on auto-pilot, the game becomes less enjoyable. You quit challenging yourself and it’s not as fun. As far as how to I continue to train myself, you’re right, as far as No Limit Hold’em Tournaments, I very rarely feel like I don’t know what I’m supposed to do in a situation. Most of the books don’t have anything new to offer. Most of the learning comes from group discussion with friends and talking about specific hands. We’re trying to push the edge.”
Friedberg then brings up the subject about Baldwin and his emerging status as a household name in poker. Because Baldwin was a bit of a “late bloomer” he doesn’t have the recognition that some other players have, although Baldwin is considered to be one of the best tournament pros in the world.
His response to that was, “It’s nice and I’d be lying if I said I never thought ‘wow, if I had only done this in 05 or something I would be a household name’ but I really can’t complain about how things are going. I’ve seen a lot of those household names and those are the kind of guys I’m talking about with the games passing them by… I think it hit them really hard and there’s a lot of value in doing the hard way.”
The two go on to discuss topics on the big name pros and how success can easily go to someone’s head. On top of that they talk about the new two year deal that Baldwin just inked with UB.com and how Phil Hellmuth and Annie Duke are gone, but Prahlad Friedman is in.
“With Annie and Phil leaving, it’s tough, I’m sad to see them go. Obviously, two huge names and talents like that are people that you want to be on your time. But, but business is business and I wish them a ton of success in whatever they choose to do now. But now, it’s time to move forward.”
You can follow Eric Baldwin on Twitter @basebaldy to catch his personal updates.
Friedberg concludes his show reminding users to send in their thoughts about deal-making in live tournaments. You can send in your opinion via Twitter @JonFriedberg or through email at jonfriedberg@gmail.com.
