Is poker skill just intelligence?

[CountDuckula]

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It's just a made up number.

The point being a lot of intelligent people fail at poker because they don't put in the hours, blow their roll at craps, or play drunk/coked up, etc.

It takes intelligence to know the right decision, and character to actually make the right decision...

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Uh...what?

Intelligent people wouldnt play craps as anything more than a social event because they know the odds are always against them.

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Wrong; plenty of people who know better do it anyway. Maybe they crave the excitement, or they have some other emotional need that shooting craps (or drinking or doping themselves up) fulfills. Or so they think, anyway.


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And there are plenty of people with awful character who are great at the game, ie Phil Hellmuth. He's arrogant, he doesnt know how to talk to people, he's basically got the character of a 5 year old boy, yet he is still easily one of the best players.

I think your analysis is way off.

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You're confusing character with the ability to manage interpersonal relations. Not the same thing. The poster was using the term in the sense of strength of will/purpose, determination, and/or resolve. Someone can have those traits, and still be a complete jerk.

-Mike

There was some interesting chat between Barry Greenstein and an observer at the WCOOP last night: Barry had mentioned that the first time he saw Phil Ivey play, he knew Ivey had a "natural talent." (Might not be the exact words, but that was the gist - that there was something special there.)

The observer asked if, among the hundreds of internet-schooled young players Barry had played against, there was anyone else that had that same level of talent. Barry said flat out, "no."

Then a discussion ensued about what level one could consistently win at with only learned skills and perseverence. Problem is, I totally forgot what Barry's answer was. Wasn't all that high, though.