Why Hate Hellmuth?
When I watch professional poker players play big events on television, one common theme always seems to arise. Hating Phil Hellmuth. For some reason, his combination of arrogance and skill grates the nerves of viewers and commentators and forces many to root against him. But why should we hate him?
The main problem people seem to have with Phil is that he is a bad loser. That, on the surface, is true. He swears and cusses and gets mad at whoever busts him just about every time it happens. But would you really be happy about an amateur getting lucky in a hand he or she should have lost? Would you be happy to lose thousands of dollars on a hand you know you should have won? Beyond his rants is Phil’s frustration with poker players making bad plays and using luck to beat him.
The truth is that Phil is a terrific poker player with all the credentials to back himself up. He has the most World Series bracelets, for now, of all-time with eleven and is just entering his mid-forties. He doesn’t have any personal problems with drugs or other substances like Stu Ungar and he doesn’t have financial problems like Mike the Mouth. He plays poker, wins money, and spends his money wisely without getting into any legal issues. Isn’t that the type of poker player you want to be?
And his “brat” personality is mostly the effect of networks asking him to be more bratty (according to him) because viewers enjoy hating on him.
So why do we hate him so much? For being good at poker? For being overcompetitive and a sore loser at times? The fact is that he is the most interesting character that poker has to offer right now, and we should hope for more Phil Hellmuth, not less.
Filed under: Texas Holdem
