Do you need to be a Gamblerholic to be Great?

[Ray Of Light]

I am refering to profitable poker players who regularly play in the really large games, like 500/1000 and above, who are playing for such slight profit edges, against the very best competition, day in day out.

With the willingness to put in time and effort, most poker players can become good poker players. Basic math, game theory knowledge and discipline will see you make money in the long run at the low to mid limit levels. But what is it that differentiates a typically good poker player, from a great poker player?

One thing I have noticed about the very best High Limit poker players, is that they seem to be gamblerholics (please note that this is a generalisation, and I am most likely very wrong in my assumption).

In various interviews, Daniel Negreanu and Jennifer Harmon have often spoken about how they would regularly play way above their bankrolls early in their professional poker careers, Phil Ivey admits that he is not very good with money and whatever money he has 'if he has it he will gamble with it', Johnny Chan has been interviewed speaking about how for the first couple of years that he played poker he was a steady big money loser, regularly dropping 2k a night (money he could not afford). Doyle Brunson has said that to play big money poker, the money you are betting with has to mean absolutely nothing to you, otherwise you will freeze up in the middle of a hand. And we all know about Stu Ungar's attraction to prop bet on anything, often gambling way more than he could afford. Even legendary poker players like Nick The Greek, who won and lost millions during his lifetime, was left almost pennyless by the end of it.

It seems to me that to be a GREAT poker player, basic math, theory and discipline simply aren't enough. You need to have some serious gamble in you to make the money consistantly in those big bet games. The edge you have in those games simply isn't enough for you to just sit back and wait for good cards.

Thoughts?