#40 Philosophical Friday: Poker Addiction or Obsession?

Today’s guest on CPG is a living legend in the poker and sports betting world who is a treasure trove of amazing, amazing stories… The one and only Steve “The Bald Eagle” Zolotow.Steve’s path to CPG was pretty unique. I was doing my monthly webinar for Poker Coaching when I got a question from “Stephen Zolotow”... whose name I totally butchered because my brain was way too slow in making the connection…It was so slow, in fact, that the first question I asked was, “Oh, are you related to Steve Zolowtow?” Oof.When I finally gathered my wits, I awkwardly asked him out on a date while on the job, he gave me his digits, and the rest, as they say, is history.Steve’s career in the skilled gambling arena has now spanned 50 (!!) years and he has routinely found himself smack dab in the middle of some of the most iconic periods of time in all of gambling lore.Here’s a little taste to whet your appetite:Steve was a member of the famous Mayfair Club that used to be the favorite haunt of poker legends Erik Seidel, Stuey Ungar, Howard Lederer, Jason Lester, and Paul Magriel.Steve was the first to meet a CalTech analytics wizard who would go on to change the course of the entire sports betting industry.Today’s show with Steve Z will eventually be a two-parter (Maybe even more if I can convince him to keep coming back on) because locked away in his mind are way, way too many amazing poker stories to unravel in only a couple short hours.So strap in to your seat and prepare yourself to go on an adventure through the well-lived life of a poker icon… This is Steve Zolotow on Chasing Poker Greatness.To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

25 Aug 20211h 37min

Today's episode features hand breakdowns of two hands posted in Greatness Village. Hand #1 was submitted by Coach Thomas, the other resident coach in GV. Hand #2 was submitted by Charlie, a GV member who regularly plays in the biggest streamed games in Texas. If you would also like one of your hands analyzed on Tactical Tuesday, join the Chasing Poker Greatness community today!To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

24 Aug 202140min

Today’s guest on CPG is one of the most prolific CPG guests and, of course, one of my personal favorites, the always incredible Carlos Welch.And because I know Carlos is so great, today’s show is a very special one indeed because the man has recently claimed some brand-spanking-new hardware:He scooped Event 8 in the 2021 WSOP Online poker series for $124k and claimed his first WSOP gold bracelet.If you’re new to CPG or somehow missed the earlier episodes with Carlos (Which, if you did … you’ll be serving yourself well by going back and checking them out after this), he’s well-known in the world of poker for being the dude who plays and coaches poker professionally while living out of his Prius.The thing I respect and envy about Carlos is his fearlessness in living life on exactly his terms.In 2011 an Australian hospice care worker named Bronnie Ware published a book called “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying”.Number 1 on the list is, “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me”.I can tell you with confidence that Carlos will not have that regret.And because I love you so much, I spent like 20 minutesdigging up this beautiful tweet from WaitButWhy.com founder Tim Urban:“If you went back in time before your birth you’d be terrified to do anything, because you’d know that even the smallest nudges to the present can have major impacts on the future.Applied to today, a reminder that how you live each day really does matter. It changes the future.”If you’re not yet living a life that’s true to yourself, today is an excellent day to get that ball rolling.Now in today’s conversation with Carlos Welch, you’re going to learn:The clever way Carlos structures his poker aspirations.All of his thoughts and feelings while reflecting on his WSOP score.The heart-melting plan Carlos has for spending his newly acquired prize money.And much, MUCH more!Before you dive in, today’s episode with Carlos Welch is sponsored by me, Coach Brad Wilson.In 2020 I was teetering on the verge of pulling the plug on the CPG project. I worked 60 hour weeks and averaged about $6/hr.Before throwing in the towel, I decided to grit my teeth, face my largest inner fear, and throw every ounce of my being into creating the best poker courses I could. If they were awful, and you hated them, so be it… at least I could say I went down swinging.As it turned out, creating those courses upgraded my own poker game immensely, were so beloved by my Villagers I now have a list of 50 or so customers who instantly buy anything I offer, and are the reason why the Chasing Poker Greatness podcast is still going strong.So what makes my courses so different from everything else on the market?I sell plug and play, winning poker strategies in very specific spots that anyone of any skill level can memorize and use.So if you’d like to both support what I do at CPG while also massively upgrading your poker game, visit https://chasingpokergreatness.com/coursesThe spots covered at ChasingPokerGreatness.com/courses so far are:Preflop strategyCbetting vs. fish on the flop, turn, and river in single raised pots.And obliterating the poor souls who donkbet into you on the flop, turn, or river.More spots are coming soon and the offerings will always be updated at ChasingPokerGreatness.com/courses.So without any further ado I bring to you friend, coach, trailblazer, and now CHAMPION Carlos Welch!To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

20 Aug 20211h

Today’s guest on CPG is Justin Saliba, who just took down the $5,300 High Roller WSOP online event for a tidy little $253k as well as a gold bracelet.Justin first came onto my radar less than a year ago as my PokerCoaching.com liaison and I’d love to tell you I knew all about his immense poker talent straight away, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.As a matter of fact we barely even discussed poker because, for some silly reason, I just assumed he was some dude who scheduled and planned stuff for me.Hilariously, I’ve called him multiple times out of the blue whenever I’ve had any kind of tech issues for a live PC webinar or play & explain. I like to imagine he was in the zone playing a full slate of high stakes MTT’s only to be interrupted by yours truly because I couldn't figure out whether my audio’s working on my own.Ah, lovely ignorance. Good times.The truth of the matter is that, despite only pursuing poker in earnest for a few years, Justin is a rising star in the poker world.Mark my words, his recent WSOP victory is going to be the very first of many.In today’s episode with Justin Saliba, you’re going to learn:How Justin’s original life pursuit ending up creating a vacuum only poker has been able to fill.Why so many people who work closely with Jonathan Little genuinely love the man.The hilarious story behind the biggest event Justin has played in his poker career thus far, an enormous $50,000 buy-in high-roller in Florida.And much, MUCH more!Before you dive in, today’s episode with Justin Saliba is sponsored by me, Coach Brad Wilson.In 2020 I was teetering on the verge of pulling the plug on the CPG project. I worked 60 hour weeks and averaged about $6/hr.Before throwing in the towel, I decided to grit my teeth, face my largest inner fear, and throw every ounce of my being into creating the best poker courses I could. If they were awful, everybody made fun of them, and you hated them so be it… at least I could say I went down swinging.As it turned out, creating those courses upgraded my own poker game immensely, were so beloved by my Villagers I now have a list of 50 or so customers who instantly buy anything I offer, and they are the reason why the Chasing Poker Greatness podcast is still going strong.So what makes my courses so different from everything else on the market?I sell plug and play, winning poker strategies in very specific spots that anyone of any skill level can memorize and use.So if you’d like to support what I do at CPG while also massively upgrading your poker game in specific spots, visit https://chasingpokergreatness.com/coursesThe spots covered at ChasingPokerGreatness.com/courses so far are:Preflop strategyCbetting vs. fish on the flop, turn, and river in single raised pots.And obliterating the poor souls who dare to donkbet into you on the flop, turn, or river.More spots are coming soon and the offerings will always be updated at ChasingPokerGreatness.com/courses.Now, without any further ado, I bring to you PokerCoaching’s own future star of poker, Justin Saliba.To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

18 Aug 20211h 31min

On this week's episode, Coach Brad and Jon will be providing an overview of the non-technical skills necessary to compete at a high level. These are the skills that CPG's Elites work to improve on a daily basis and comprise of the core blocks of the Elites program.To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

17 Aug 202144min

Today’s guest on Chasing Poker Greatness is an elite cash game combatant who’s also a world-class poker coach, Patrick Howard.Pat is the younger brother of Poker Detox founder and one of my personal favorite CPG guests of all-time, Nick Howard.In my personal opinion, Poker Detox is the gold standard of staking groups. The way they’ve been able to scale and effectively/efficiently coach up pretty much any player to becoming a consistent winning cash game player is next-level impressive.You may not know this, but Pat has been incredibly influential in Poker Detox’s sustained success as their behind-the-scenes strategy architect. The first course Pat created was “Ether” which generated 6-figures+ in sales on the public market and was the springboard to “Mobius” … the mandatory private course all Detox members treat like their personal money-printing poker bible.On my personal mental list of the most influential and impactful coaches in all of poker, Patrick Howard is easily in my top 3. With that said, today is all about Patrick’s twisty, turn’y origin story into the world of poker.In today’s episode with Patrick Howard, you’re going to learn:- Why $6 is all that separated Pat’s massive success from soul-crushing failure.- A submitted question from rabid CPG podcast listener Nick H. inquiring about Pat’s thoughts on aliens.- The power of finding simplicity on the other side of complexity.- And much, MUCH more!And before you dive into today’s show, I’d like to say a few words on behalf of the sponsor of CPG… me!If you love the podcast and wanna support my content creation habit, there are a few real easy things you can do:Firstly if you’ve never had an account on poker platform Bovada and you live in the USA: Head to freenuffle.com where you can follow a few simple instructions (It only takes a few minutes, I pinky promise), get free access to $199 course Neutralize Flop Leads, and do your part in keeping this train a rolling.Secondly you can head to CPGMerch.com where you can buy a Chasing Poker Greatness branded hat or shirt and rep your favorite poker podcast in your favorite local cardroom.And finally, you can head to GreatnessVillage.com where you can opt-in to the CPG newsletter and level-up your poker network by plugging into a community that includes a mix of hobbyistis looking to take control of their poker destiny, hungry aspiring poker pros, and elite cash game crushers.Those links are freenuffle.com, CPGMerch.com, and GreatnessVillage.comAnd now, without any further ado, I bring to you the brilliant and wise-beyond-his-years Patrick Howard.To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

13 Aug 20211h 35min

Felipe “Mojave” Ramos is one of the biggest names and brightest stars in the world of poker. He’s a GG Poker ambassador with $2.6 million in lifetime live MTT cashes.And in his native Brazil, he’s a poker megastar who’s constantly striving to give back to both his country and his community.You’re probably getting sick of hearing me say this basically every week but, the reality is, the poker world is chock-full of amazing souls and Felipe is no exception.Despite never having met or really interacted before this conversation, I felt an instant connection with Felipe. It’s hard to put into words, but I just immediately sensed this was a special cat who personifies greatness as a human being.But don’t just take my word for it… In a few moments you’ll get to judge for yourself.In today’s conversation with Felipe “Mojave” Ramos, you’re going to learn:The one thing in your control that can make or break your entire poker career.What Felipe believes poker is at its core.The amazing Mojave poker origin story.And much, MUCH more!And before you dive into today’s show, I’d like to say a few words on behalf of the sponsor of CPG… me!If you love the podcast and wanna support my content creation addiction, there are a few real easy things you can do:Firstly if you’ve never had an account on poker platform Bovada and you live in the USA: Head to freenuffle.com where you can follow a few simple instructions (It only takes a few minutes, I pinky promise), get free access to $199 course Neutralize Flop Leads, and do your part in keeping this train a rolling.Secondly you can head to CPGMerch.com where you can buy a Chasing Poker Greatness branded hat or shirt and rep your favorite poker podcast in your favorite local cardroom.And finally, you can head to GreatnessVillage.com where you can opt-in to the CPG newsletter and level-up your poker network by plugging into a community that includes a mix of hobbyistis looking to take control of their poker destiny, hungry aspiring poker pros, and elite cash game crushers.Those links are freenuffle.com, CPGMerch.com, and GreatnessVillage.comNow without any further ado I bring to you Twitch superstar, GG Poker ambassador, and one of Brazil’s favorite sons… Felipe “Mojave” Ramos!To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

11 Aug 20211h 52min

On this week's episode Coach Brad and Jon break down two hands from $5/$10 online where Jon decided to turn a pair (or pairs) into bluffs. Is it ever good to turn pairs into bluffs? If yes, what would be an appropriate situation? Press play to find out Coach Brad's thoughts on these questions!To learn more about the Free Nuffle promotion, visit: https://chasingpokergreatness.com/free-nuffle-promotionNew CPG Cash Game Courses!Preflop Bootcamp: https://bit.ly/Preflop-BootcampFish in a Barrel: http://bit.ly/fish-in-a-barrelNeutralize Flop Leads: https://bit.ly/2OkN8Yt

10 Aug 202142min