This was really a great book. Phil’s personal perspective on poker events that I’d already lived through by watching on television was fascinating. I really learned a lot about Phil’s poker life. He also tells a lot of amusing day-in-the-life stories not having to do with poker. As for the 2 biggest Hellmuth criticisms: 1) inappropriate outbursts and 2) EGO, I learned a lot about these issues as well. Many of these outbursts have been downright mean and uncalled for. I think Phil has an involuntary response to things that don’t make sense to him. He would never call a hand for a lot of money with 10-4 off suit, and for the life of him, he can’t understand why anyone else would either. Where a robot would just short circuit, Phil instead starts steaming faster than a dry ice sculpture in the Nevada desert. And who knows - it’s possible there is a premeditated component to these outbursts, to shame someone who isn’t playing smart poker (and warn onlookers) in order to discourage amateur play in a professional event? Phil’s chances in a tournament are much better against a roomful of players near his level than in a field of clueless contestants and he knows that. To put it in simplest terms: If he’s a 3 to 1 favorite against some goofball, then that’s a good thing, but he’s also smart enough to know if he runs into 4 of those goofballs in the same tournament, that’s not a good thing.
With regard to the ego issue, I have a different take than most, including Phil himself. Personally, I think Phil is the best tournament player of all time. Maybe 6 or 7 years from now we might be having that conversation about Daniel or 15 years from now, maybe Jason – but right now it’s Phil for sure. And yes Phil recaps his brilliant play without missing a detail but he also doesn’t hesitate to discuss his faults and failures nor does he hesitate to give credit to other players for their great accomplishments. Given these 2 facts, I don’t really see Phil’s horn blowing as an ego thing. I think he is quick to call attention to any great accomplishment and he won’t dial down his account of a fact simply because it involves something he himself did. In any event, many people who know Phil talk about what a nice and honest guy he is (including Daniel in the foreword) and I think that’s true and a lot of his positive side comes out in the stories he tells. If he continues to play hard and play smart, then he truly deserves 10 more bracelets. And his wife deserves a medal.
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