Third Man Walking

With the coronavirus upon us, a special episode about the classic poker movie Rounders, which you can watch again today, alone, at home

Your correspondent plays the Main Event of the World Series of Poker for the first time.0:00 Introduction0:57 Why does everyone think they run bad in tournaments?3:30 WSOP update8:36 The Main Event9:57 Day 211:45 Day 314:19 Hand review: Casino Royale

Your correspondent discusses cash games vs. tournaments, whether cash-game players really are better than tournament players, and the allure of winning life-changing money as he heads to Las Vegas to compete in the World Series of Poker.0:37 Introduction1:12 Aspirations in poker2:46 Why the World Series of Poker presents opportunities for mid-level pros6:10 Cash-game pros vs. tournament pros11:27 Session review: Four days of tournaments in Las Vegas22:33 Ugh, the Rio

Why does poker keep getting harder? Are our opponents improving as quickly as they used to? And what factors will determine whether live poker remains beatable in the years to come? Also included in this episode of Third Man Walking: a review of a no-limit session in which your correspondent plays two big hands with pocket tens at two very different stakes.0:00 Introduction2:56 The Pareto Principle8:33 The threat of an economic downturn9:49 Session review: $5/$10/$20 NLHE and $5/$5 NLHE18:37 Why

Your correspondent outlines his path to becoming a professional poker player and describes the challenges of playing for a living. He also looks back on a wild -- and complicated -- session of $5/$5 NLHE.0:00 Introduction0:22 What top pros are (or might be) like2:35 My start in cash-game poker7:22 Moving up in stakes8:54 Struggling and recovering13:30 Difficulties of playing for a living15:50 Session review: $5/$5 No-Limit Hold-Em32:25 What does the pro do?

Variance in poker, and especially in poker tournaments, can be maddening. This episode investigates the effects of variance in tournaments (where variance is insane) and cash games (where it can be milder). Your correspondent also reviews a recent $5/$10/$20 No-Limit Hold-Em cash game session.0:00 Introduction0:40 Jonathan Duhamel vs. Matt Affleck7:53 Variance in tournaments9:50 Tournament economics13:30 Markup16:55 Tournament delusion20:34 Session review: $5/$10/$20 NLH32:10 Variance in cash

Episode 2 of Third Man Walking explores the dark, anarchic underbelly of the poker world, including the alleged poker cheating scam involving Mike Postle and Stones Gambling Hall.0:00 Introduction0:33 Is poker good for us?2:57 Degenning7:30 Misogyny10:40 Session review: 5/10 NLHE21:47 Poker outside casinos22:30 Scamming and stealing26:16 Cheating / Mike Postle31:13 Problem gambling33:20 What's good about poker

In the first episode of Third Man Walking, we discuss how it feels to play poker for a living, and why professional poker players are best described not as sharks, but as cockroaches. We also review a $5/$10 cash game session in which our correspondent wins over $7000.0:00 Introduction1:36 Frustrating session review5:15 Waiting for our chance8:41 Rules and basic strategy14:30 Winning session review30:02 Conclusion