Ready

It's only been six months since the 2021 World Series of Poker concluded, but the 2022 series is already underway. The WSOP is back to it's traditional place on the calendar during the peak of summer — it's late start last year a side effect of the pandemic. Thousands of poker players are already in Las Vegas braving the 110°F desert heat in search of gold bracelets, fortune and glory.

I'm sitting in seat 4C on Southwest flight 1247 to Las Vegas, daring to join them. My carry-on is overhead, stuffed with all the clothes I'll need for a two week excursion. My calendar is clear, my inbox down to zero. My wires sent, my daily schedule pre-planned and optimized for ideal tournament play.

My stomach tightens. What's my opening range under-the-gun at a 9-handed table when I'm down to 10 big blinds? What's my 3-bet bluff range from the button versus the cutoff when we're deep stacked? What are my aggregate check-raise percentages on paired flops? I have trouble searching my memory for the the answers, data coming back a corrupted stream of numbers and symbols.

What am I doing? I'm a fraud, unable to master a simple game. Suckered into a fantasy by ESPN montages and glossy magazine profiles. What gives me the audacity to devote so much time and energy to this quixotic pursuit?

I take a breath. Then I ricochet from one familiar place to another.

I think about the hundreds of hours of work I've done since my last days at the Rio. Studying poker simulations, memorizing charts and watching training videos. I replay all the times I've run deep in tournaments.

I'm a conqueror, a virtuoso, an assassin. I can read minds. I can see the future. I am the shark. And my full potential has yet to be unleashed.

Another breath.

The WSOP won't be easy this year. I'll have to make critical decisions in tricky spots against tough competition. My stamina and fortitude will be tested. Things won't go my way. I'll make mistakes. I'll lose again and again and again, forced to jump right back in and play my best.

I can't wait for tomorrow.