Reel Lives: Poker Player And Writer Maria Konnikova On Playing Online, Podcasting With Nate Silver, And The Presidential Election
The ‘Biggest Bluff’ author talks about wearing many hats and trying to make the most of free time
8 min
Every gambler has a story to tell. And so does every person who chooses to make a living in this unique industry.
In our “Reel Lives” series, Casino Reports shines a spotlight on people working in the gaming business, from executives, to analysts, to media members and communications pros, and all points in between.
The subject in this interview: Maria Konnikova, the author of three New York Times bestsellers, including 2020’s The Biggest Bluff; the co-host, alongside Nate Silver, of the Risky Business podcast; and, since, 2017, a tournament poker player with a WSOP Circuit ring and a PokerStars Caribbean Adventure title to her credit.
Casino Reports (CR): Do you consider yourself a better writer or poker player, and why?
Maria Konnikova (MK): Definitely writer. Because it’s what I’ve been doing for basically my entire career — and much earlier than that, even, because it’s what I wanted to do my whole life. It’s the world where I feel most comfortable. And in the end, I think it’s my core identity.
That said, poker has obviously become a huge part of my life since I took it up for The Biggest Bluff. And I would have stopped playing if I didn’t feel like I was competitive, if I felt like I wasn’t learning. I do take it very, very seriously. I devote multiple hours every single week to studying, running simulations, doing all that fun stuff. I feel like it’s adding to my life and like I’m learning and growing, and I don’t see any reason why I would stop playing. So, yes, I think I’m a better writer than a poker player, but I’m doing my best to be as good a poker player as I can possibly be, given that I know there are people who devote everything to it. And I don’t, because I am someone who wears multiple hats. I’m a writer, journalist, podcaster, I’m an ambassador for the game, I do speaking — I have so many different parts of my life. But poker is a hugely important one.
CR: If you told the 18-year-old version of yourself what you’re doing now professionally, in terms of poker, what would 18-year-old Maria’s reaction be?
MK: “Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha.” Also, “What the f*ck is poker?” I mean, look, poker figures into a lot of fiction, I obviously knew what poker was at 18. But I didn’t know anyone who played poker. It was not at all in any way, shape, or form in my imagination. The 18-year-old me was finishing up my freshman year in college, or a sophomore in college, because I started college when I had just turned 17, and I don’t think poker was on my radar at all for any reason whatsoever. I really didn’t know anyone for whom poker was a part of their life. And this is true, a story that I’ve told before, that when I first met [poker mentor] Erik Seidel, I thought there were 54 cards in a deck, not 52. That is not an exaggeration. That absolutely happened. I will never live it down, but it’s the truth.
CR: Well, if you count a deck with two jokers, then it is 54.
MK: Exactly. That’s what Erik always jokes — that if the jokers are ever in the deck, I’m going to win the World Series.
CR: Do you enjoy online poker? And is online poker limiting, as someone with an expertise in psychology?
MK: I’m a PokerStars team pro, so I play on PokerStars online. I play when I’m in New Jersey, and I’ll also play when I’m abroad. And I play all jewelry events on WSOP, so — basically, I exclusively play on PokerStars unless jewelry is involved. I’m female, so, you know, jewelry appeals to me. If there are rings or bracelets to be had, I will absolutely go for those when I’m in Nevada, and I actually won my first ring this year, which was a lot of fun. And that was actually the first WSOP Circuit event I had ever played in my life. And then the second one I played, I got third place. So I’ve had a pretty good track record with the Circuit events.
So, do I enjoy playing online? I enjoy playing live more. But I enjoy the fact that online moves more quickly and that you actually learn quite a bit more just because of the sheer volume of hands. When I first started playing, Erik made sure that I played online every day. So I actually reverse-commuted from New York to New Jersey every day so that I could get hands in, because the experience, you can’t match it. In one day of playing online, I get more hands in than I get in, not literally a year of playing live poker, but something close to it. Pattern recognition, just feel for spots, different things like that you can only get online.
To the final part of your question, of course, I have a greater edge live than I do online, because I’m a psychologist. That’s what my Ph.D. is in. That’s what my training is in. And I’m also a journalist, so I’m someone who’s used to talking to people, reading people, getting their stories. And so when that’s taken away from me, when I have no contact, no visual, no feel to go on in that sense, my edge is diminished. And that’s where the edge of the people who really study 24/7 and live and breathe simulations — their edge is online, not live.
CR: You mentioned that one of the advantages of online is the speed of the hands. Is patience is ever an issue for you when you’re playing live poker?
MK: Not usually. I actually think that that’s probably one of my strong suits, that I am able to be quite patient. That said, I think patience is an issue for almost everyone, on some level. Have I ever played a hand that I really shouldn’t play just because I’ve been card dead for a while? Of course. Of course that happens, and you get into spots where, postflop, you’re like, sh*t, what do I do here? And the answer is, you should have never played and seen the flop, right? That’s why you’re in this spot where you have no idea what you’re doing. You should have just never been here to begin with. So, yes, of course, I get into those spots, but I would like to think I get into them less than some other people and that mostly I am a pretty patient person.
CR: Non-poker topic: The election betting odds in places where it’s permitted, as of this conversation we’re having at the end of July, they have Donald Trump about -145 and Kamala Harris about +125. If you had to bet one side or the other, whether based purely on value, or as an emotional hedge, or an emotional doubling down, whatever your reason, which side would you bet?
MK: I am 100 percent anti-Trump, I will do everything humanly possible to prevent Trump from coming to office. So let me just put that out there. I think that he’s someone who might bring the end to our democracy — at least he wants to, and he has made that intention pretty clear. But at this point, I think he’s ahead, and I think that betting on him would be the smart choice, in terms of who is actually going win. [Editor’s note: We checked in with Maria again one week after the interview, shortly before this article’s publication, after the odds had narrowed, and she added, “I’m more bullish on Kamala now, for sure. But there’s such a long way to go!”] And it’s a great emotional hedge too in the sense that at least I’ll make some money. But there are also some good arbitrage opportunities right now, because actually some of the prediction markets, the odds are different. And so, if I were actually going to bet, I would actually probably do some arbitrage.
CR: How do you like to spend free time away from work, away from writing, away from podcasting, away from playing poker? Do you have an any interesting hobbies or secret talents?
MK: I think my free time is pretty non-existent because of how many different projects I have going on, but that said, you know, I just enjoy living life. I know that sounds really silly. But I enjoy things where I can maximize time with people and have experiences. I will read for my own pleasure, when it’s not about something that I’m writing about or anything like that. I love hiking and being outdoors. I love good food. I love good wine. I love theater. I love music. So, I try to maximize those experiences, and I try to spend the free time I have with the people I love.
CR: Who gets the primary credit for conceiving your podcast Risky Business, you or Nate? And can you tell the story of how it came together?
MK: Nate and I have been friends for over a decade. We’re close friends. And we’ve been very public about that. It’s not like that’s a secret. And for a little over a year before Risky Business came out into the world, we’d just been exploring ways to collaborate, and I think I was the one who first suggested that a podcast might be the way to go — and that if we did something about risk, that could be fun. It happened over dinner at one of my favorite restaurants in New York, which is called Claud. It’s a French-ish wine bar in the East Village. And, we talked about it, and Nate was on board, but it took a long time to hammer it out and figure out exactly what it was going to be. And that was really a collaborative effort, as I think these things really should be. It’s totally a 50-50 creative partnership.
Reel Fast!
If someone options the movie rights to The Biggest Bluff, who would you recommend to play you?
What a funny question, because this actually has happened. I have to go for Natalie Portman, because I love her and, even though she’s older than I am, she’s Jewish as am I, which I think is very important. She also went to Harvard. She was a few years ahead of me, but we actually took psychology together. So I kind of know her. She was a psych major. I think in terms of someone who matches up with my profile, she would be perfect.
What was the first concert you ever went to?
Counting Crows.
Favorite form of gambling other than poker?
I don’t gamble. I’ve never played a casino game in my life. And I feel very negatively towards slots in particular. If people have fun, go for it. If you want to shoot craps, awesome. But it’s not my thing.
Since your podcast is called Risky Business … what’s your favorite Tom Cruise movie?
Top Gun. We’re going to go classic.
Favorite beverage — alcoholic, caffeinated, or otherwise?
In terms of alcoholic, I basically only drink wine — or hard alcohol after dinner, like bourbon type of things. But I would say red wine. Otherwise I just drink tea, English breakfast or green teas. I have lots of green teas that I love. The best green tea company I think in the United States that does very quick deliveries, even though their tea is from Japan, is called Kettl. So that’s what I would recommend for people who want good green tea. And otherwise I just drink water. I don’t drink any fruit drinks, I don’t drink any sodas, nothing like that.
Yes or no, a woman will make the final table in the Main Event again before 2030?
Yes.
And are you going to name that woman and say it’s Maria Konnikova?
Sure. Absolutely.
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You can keep up with Maria on Twitter/X, LinkedIn, or her recently launched Substack, but if she’s spending quality time with loved ones or enjoying a good glass of wine, don’t expect an immediate response to any comments or questions.
Previous installments of Reel Lives:
PokerGO’s Donnie Peters On Covering Poker, Online Expansion, Roulette, And ‘Rounders’
Sporttrade’s Arpita McGrath On AML, Exchange Wagering, And The Luxury Of Power Windows
Sharp Alpha Advisors’ Jordan Pascasio On Venture Capital, Innovation, And The Nova Knicks
