Finest-selling creator, podcast host, and now World Sequence of Poker bracelet winner – Maria Konnikova is on a roll.
The Russian-born, Massachusetts-raised Konnikova received her begin as a TV producer for the Charlie Rose Present and as a author for Scientific American whereas additionally commonly contributing to The New Yorker. The Harvard and Columbia educated Konnikova earned her Ph.D. in psychology and her books Mastermind: How To Suppose Like Sherlock Holmes and The Confidence Recreation frequented bestseller and award lists.
Konnikova’s introduction to sport principle sparked an curiosity in poker that led to tutoring from Poker Corridor of Famer and 10-time bracelet winner Erik Seidel. By 2017 she had jumped into the sport headfirst, and 12 months later made headlines by profitable a PokerStars Caribbean Journey title.
A PokerStars ambassador function adopted together with extra good finishes. That included a runner-up exhibiting on the Asian Pacific Poker Tour and a number of deep runs within the WSOP and PCA important occasions. Her 2020 guide The Largest Bluff chronicled her improvement as a participant from newbie to high-stakes tournaments.
Her 2024 marketing campaign has been her most profitable, nevertheless, beginning with a WSOP Circuit ring in January on-line for $57,532. Then after cashing at EPT Paris, she completed second in an EPT Monte Carlo facet occasion in Could for one more $56,160. In September, she took fifth within the EPT Barcelona thriller bounty occasion, banking $141,858.
A month later, Konnikova earned her first bracelet and $68,478, taking down the $888 buy-in Loopy Eights occasion on-line.
Most not too long ago, she made a deep run within the NAPT Las Vegas important occasion at Resorts World, including one other $39,550 to place her over $1 million in profession earnings. Card Participant caught up together with her on the November sequence to speak about her huge 12 months, coping with criticism, dishonest within the sport, and balancing poker and podcasting.
Most wouldn’t assume that the New York literary scene is strictly a hub of poker curiosity, so Konnikova definitely stood out when she started discovering card-playing success in 2018. However having a bestselling creator definitely introduced some added media consideration to the sport. Konnikova first turned interested by poker and the psychological facets of the sport whereas researching her 2016 guide.
Below the tutelage of Seidel, this author turned poker participant was coming into occasions after by no means having performed the sport earlier than and having no actual curiosity in card taking part in or casinos in any respect. However like many, Konnikova quickly discovered the sport engrossing from a psychological standpoint – strategically and emotionally – and cherished the challenges concerned with making choices, studying opponents, and competing with among the finest.
That included her latest on-line bracelet win, which got here at a ultimate desk that included 2013 WSOP important occasion winner Ryan Riess, Poker Corridor of Famer Kathy Liebert, and poker podcaster Jeff Gross.
“It was fairly superior,” mentioned Konnikova. “It’s not one thing you possibly can ever predict will occur. There are some unimaginable gamers who’ve by no means gained a bracelet, so it was actually very particular to have the ability to obtain that.”
Konnikova was taking part in the occasion from her house in Nevada after having simply flown in from New York. The expertise was a bit surreal but grueling after wrapping up the win at about 3:45 a.m.
“I used to be exhausted,” she recalled. “It’s a kind of issues the place I used to be like, ‘Okay, simply make it to the ultimate desk.’ After which I used to be like, ‘Okay, simply make it to heads-up.’ After which I used to be like, ‘Okay, I actually hope I can shut it out as a result of it could actually suck to be heads-up and lose the bracelet.” Then I gained.”
“Everybody I knew was asleep aside from my mother and father, who have been on trip in Paris, in order that they have been really up. They have been actually, actually completely satisfied. My mother and father are so ridiculously supportive. Then I texted Erik Seidel in order that he’d know, however he was sleeping.”
Her mother and father assist her play, however Konnikova says they don’t actually perceive the poker scene fairly but. Nevertheless, they’ve embraced the competitors facet and commonly comply with together with Konnikova – win or lose.
“They love following. In reality, they comply with it even after I bust. They’re like, ‘Oh, we’re rooting for the opposite Maria.’ I’m Like, ‘No, after I bust the event is over. After I bust, you cease rooting,’” she says laughing. “However they’re allowed to root for the opposite Maria.”
Why, howdy! Look what simply got here within the mail. pic.twitter.com/I1wP6Qm99u
— Maria Konnikova (@mkonnikova) November 22, 2024
There was no glass of champagne or victory cocktail after the win. Her husband was sleeping and he or she woke him up briefly to share the excellent news – however then instructed him to return to sleep.
The victory was soured a bit, nevertheless, after Konnikova was criticized by WSOP commentator Norman Chad for using the event’s re-entry choice. Chad would later admit that his anger in regards to the proliferation of re-entry tournaments was misplaced and expressed remorse that “she was collateral harm.”
Trying again, Konnikova was nonetheless a bit baffled as to why Chad selected to make use of her because the goal for his personal beef about re-entry occasions. She additionally factors out that his criticism centered on an occasion that didn’t really enable for limitless re-entries.
“Everybody re-enters,” she says. “And he’s like, ‘Nicely, I’m in opposition to limitless reentry.’ I used to be like, ‘Dude, this was three re-entry max. This isn’t a vast re-entry occasion.’ The occasion that I final-tabled at EPT Barcelona, the thriller bounty the place I received fifth, was limitless re-entry however I solely fired one bullet. I don’t make the principles. I feel he singled me out, and no matter his motivation, the truth that he selected solely the second feminine to win an open occasion within the final two years sort of says every little thing.”
Is profitable a dwell bracelet subsequent on her checklist?
“I’ll take one other one on-line. I’ll take it dwell. I’ll take it with re-entries. I’ll take it in a freezeout. I’m not choosy.”
Past poker, writing and media are nonetheless huge elements of Konnikova’s life. She is at present writing a guide about dishonest and believes that poker faces some severe points on this regard. The final couple years have seen poker professionals accused of multi-accounting, use of real-time help (RTA), ghosting, and different types of dishonest on-line.
Different extra high-tech dishonest strategies have additionally made information not too long ago, together with a significant Siberian bot operation getting uncovered and two males arrested in France for utilizing tiny cameras hidden of their cell telephones to trace playing cards in dwell poker and blackjack video games.
Konnikova is now dedicated to exposing cheaters and attempting to root it out of the sport as a lot as doable.
“There’s undoubtedly dishonest in poker, and I can’t draw back from it as a result of I feel it’s so vital for the integrity and the long-term way forward for the sport to deliver unhealthy actors out,” she says. “To be completely sincere, I feel there must be a zero-tolerance coverage. It sucks that individuals like Ali Imsirovic, who’s a recognized cheater, remains to be allowed to play on the WSOP. What the precise fuck?”
One other medium can be occupying extra of her time. In Could, she and fellow poker participant, author, and founding father of the FiveThirtyEight polling evaluation web site Nate Silver launched the Dangerous Enterprise podcast from Malcolm Gladwell’s Pushkin Industries and iHeartMedia. The pair of poker lovers have $1.6 million in dwell event winnings between them, and the present focuses on the decision-making course of concerned with poker, politics, and different elements of life.
The expertise has been a labor of affection for Konnikova, even when taking part in in a poker event throughout an election offered some time-constraint points that actually required some juggling. (She even discovered the time to leap into commentary with Jeff Gross for the ultimate desk of the GGPoker Tremendous Million$.)
The 40-year-old credit her poker interior circle for serving to to know the sport at such a excessive stage. Together with Seidel, a few of her mentors and coaches embody Phil Galfond, Nick Petrangelo, and Isaac Haxton. She can be an in depth buddy of Farah Galfond.
“I’m very fortunate that I’ve some unimaginable minds who’re keen to share with me,” she says. “I feel that’s so vital. I don’t take it with no consideration.”
After a “gentle launch” of the NAPT occasion in Las Vegas in 2023, PokerStars beefed up the schedule much more this 12 months for the second journey to Resorts World. The PokerStars Large Recreation dwell money sport was additionally on the menu and allowed gamers to audition for the present’s “unfastened cannons,” who’re staked in a sport in opposition to prime professionals and different celebrities, which included four-time Tremendous Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski.
Ultimately, London’s Nick Marchington scored the win in the principle occasion for $765,200 topping a area of 895 entries. Konnikova was certainly one of them, ending 14th for $39,550. General, she was happy to not solely be again on board as a PokerStars crew professional, but in addition to typically see the model bringing dwell occasions again to the U.S.
As a poker creator and journalist, Konnikova is accustomed to asking questions and interviewing others. However now as a poker star in her personal proper, that dynamic has modified fairly a bit. She now has to take care of common interview requests, media appearances, social media movies, and different trappings that may include being a model consultant.
As she continues her quest for extra success within the sport, what’s it like seeing the tables turned and changing into the interview topic?
“You embrace it. As a result of I really feel very strongly about being an excellent ambassador for poker, for ladies – however for the sport rather more broadly,” she says. “To me, it’s past gender. I feel it’s simply such an extremely highly effective drive for good and I would like folks to see what poker really is, versus what individuals who don’t know a lot about it see it as being within the media. Despite the fact that I’m naturally introverted and would relatively be sort of the one behind the scenes, I feel it’s actually vital to talk out as a result of I’ve a voice to do this.”
Photographs courtesy of PokerStars – Manuel Kovsca, Rachel Kay Winter, and Danny Maxwell
