[judgesmails]

I think where some educated stats and math guys, like the poster's father, go wrong - is they assume complete and equal information among all contestants in poker.

They don't, or can't, account for the fact that some players know when it is correct to chase a weak draw or raise a strong draw and some don't. They don't account for some players adjusting to their opponents play and others not. Or for the times when good players are not playing their best, for whatever reason. There are so many seemingly intangible elements that can lead to an edge for a poker player that it is impossible for a statistician or mathemetician to quantify it. Therefore some may dismiss the possibility of anyone beating the game.