by: Get the Edge At Poker Magazine
Table Talk - Exclusive Interview with Vince Van Patten
Note: This article originally appeared in Get the Edge at Poker Magazine http://gettheedgeatpoker.com and on the website: http://www.1stoppoker.com. For a free copy of the magazine, visit http://www.freepokermagazine.com.
The former child actor and tennis pro discovered his passion for poker at age 13. With the encouragement of his father and gaming mentor, Dick (star of Eight is Enough), 17-year-old Vince was holding his own in Hollywood home games against the towns biggest power brokers. He is currently a writer-director-producer, a World Poker Tour Commentator, organizer of a rotating high-stakes ($1,000 buy-in) game in Beverly Hills, and our second-ranked celebrity player.
BAD BEATS
As an expert of poker and as an aficionado, I don't discuss my bad beats. Its boring. I only think about the overall picture. How am I doing? Am I enjoying it?
WHAT MAKES A GOOD PLAYER?
You have to have street smarts. You have to be suspicious. And youve got to be very deceptive. You also have to have a big ego and yet you have to take your ego completely out of the game.
WHAT MAKES A GREAT PLAYER?
If you can't shake off a loss, you'll never be truly successful. It's just like being a great tennis player. If you cant forget about your last bad shot, or that big break point you lost, you'll never be a champ.
PHILOSOPHY
Just when you think you're on a roll, you will get snapped and you will lose. It will humble you. You can go weeks without a win. In poker, when you're going bad, you better cut back or you will be a loser, just like in life. Lay low. And when you're going good, let it ride.
STYLE OF PLAY
I'm a table talker. I like to hear players talk, 'cause it gives me information. I mix up my game, but at the same time, I'm not afraid to pull the trigger. Which means I truly love to bluff, and I can bluff well. I'm an actor kind of poker player. I will throw lines out there, I will try to be very deceptive and use a lot of trickery and a lot of table talk to mix up my opponents. Sometimes they'll guess me right, but then I'll twist it on them.
DECIPEHERING TELLS
The basics are usually that strong means weak. When people act strong, they usually are weak. And the great players reverse that. You see mediocre players perk up when they're looking at good cards. You have to determine who's the actor and who's not an actor.
ESSENCE OF THE GAME
It's a game of true psychology, and it's not about your cards at all. It's about taking away pots from people that have better hands than you. That you don't have to have the best hand to win. That you're matching wits with people that you respect, and you keep score by playing for money.
DEFINITIVE POKER MOVIE
I have a film that's been in development for seven years, now in turnaround, but it wasn't the right picture. Rounders was a nice attempt, but it still didn't do the right job exactly. So, I think it's still out there. But it's something that really has to be touched by a great poker player, and I don't know whether it will ever get done. I got to give credit to Steve McQueen — the attitude he had as The Cincinnati Kid and the whole New Orleans feel of that film was quite excellent. So, I'm gonna go with The Cincinnati Kid as the best, even though it wasn't a great movie by any means.
As seen on http://www.1stoppoker.com.