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Antonio.... what can I say? He is one of a kind, that
is for sure. I first met him at the World Series of
Poker in 2000. It was the first time for the both of
us. I give Antonio lots of credit for my current poker
career. When I first started playing cards all I could
think about was.... Wow, this is fun, I hope I can make
enough money so I can justify doing lots of it. Sad
to say, but at that time poker was not nearly as lucrative
as it is now.
Anyway, after the World Series of Poker in 2000, Antonio
and I stayed in touch. At the time, I was living in
New York City, my original stomping ground for poker
back in the day. (LOL... I wonder how that sounds to
the true old-timers? 1999 and 2000 being called “back
in the day,” but considering the current poker
landscape, it seems right to me.) Well, it was only
a matter of time before a guy like Antonio discovered
this city and I am honored to have been there for his
first adventures.
Antonio arrived and I was soon to learn how much this
guy loved spending money. The following story is not
an exaggeration. I swear it. He shows up in New York
City, 2000. The plan is for one or two nights of cards,
some chill time, and some going out. Seven nights in
all. Simple. What I did not know at the time was that
the 7,000 dollars he brought constituted his entire
net worth. This is what he told me and, at first, I
believed him, but I soon figured he was bullshitting
me when I saw how this guy spent his money. This guy
was full-out sick.... I mean, he wanted sushi delivered
for breakfast, a midday masseuse, the most lavish spots
for lunch. And dinner... No – dinner is the wrong
word... better to call it “The Event.” “The
Event” (dinner that is), would start with appetizer,
involve lots of drinks, lobster or steak – whatever
was the most extravagant thing on the menu.... desserts,
coffees... etc… and of course... if there happened
to be any girls around we were flipping their bill as
well.
Before dessert was over he had sussed out where the
hottest place was that night to blow even more money.
There was no way 7,000 bucks was his net worth.... just
no way!
I didn’t really notice that we were partying
like rock stars till the third or fourth day, and was
like… hey, fun... kinda like college... a continuous
party... only more bells and whistles.
By day four I was pretty sure that he must have meant
that the 7k he brought was what he brought... not his
entire net worth. I must have just misunderstood him.
So off we went... spending like animals... drinks for
the girls... no problem... limo to the next club...
whatever...
Anyway, coming home on our last night of partying he
was like... “Hmm… Wow. Phil, I think I spent
a lot this week.”
I echoed, “That’s right sir.” He
looked at his wad... crippled. The math supported his
suspicion... we had spent about 400 bucks a day, each.
He was down 2,800 bucks. I was like: OK, that was fun.
Back to the real world... He was like, “Uh oh....
I am going to have to get right back into action when
I get home. I need to get unstuck.”
Huh? What’s the rush? Poker’s not going
anywhere.
The rush was of course, that he had bills to pay. A
little while later he confirms that, in fact, it was
all true. He really only had 7k to his name. He knowingly
and willingly blew 40% of his net worth on making memories...
I mean, what was this guy thinking? I told him straight
up that he was destined for pure ruin if blowing 3k
when his net worth was 7k was going to be a part of
his normal repertoire. That night Antonio got a lesson
in standard deviation, win rate, and bankroll. How they
acted in concert, and why building your roll, not blowing
it, was important... at least till you had your first
100k squirreled away. And like a sponge, he absorbed.
“I guess I just need to make a ton of money if
I want to keep up this spending.”
And that he did.
Later, of course, he had his 1.4 million dollar uptick.
Now he could relax a bit. Anyway... that is really called
getting over the hump. I mean, with a million or so
lying around it is hard to spend 40% of that just on
partying. Well, maybe not. It is Antonio after all.
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