David Einhorn, Founder and President of Greenlight Capital, sits down with Andrew “Foucault” Brokos, on his Thinking Poker Podcast, to talk about the similarities between investing and poker.
When the time comes, and we have to hand David Einhorn a poker nickname, it has to be the Robin Hood of Poker. I know that Barry Greenstein used to have tabs on the name, but given the fact that hasn’t nailed down a six-figure score since 2011, and in 2006 he switched his charitable donations from gross to net because he: ‘didn’t anticipate the growth and expense of tournament poker,’ I am sure he won’t mind.
It’s either that or we start calling Einhorn: Maid Marion.
The Robin Hood of Poker was recently invited to be the 108th guest/topic on Andrew “Foucault’ Brokos’s Thinking Poker Podcast and what a catch he was for the writer, coach and pro poker player.
Einhorn’s interview/discussion elevated poker to the front pages of the likes of CNN Money, Yahoo Finance, and Economic World, a trend that has been happening a lot throughout 2014, and long may it continue as we take our first stumbling steps into the unknown of 2015.
“The investing world is a little bit more multi-dimensional than poker.” Said Einhorn.
I figured as much.
In 1996, the Cornell University graduate founded Greenlight Capital with a $900,000 bankroll, and today his net worth is over £1.2 billion. Despite his success on Wall Street, the married father of three aint no Gordon Gecko. He is a board member of the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and the Robin Hood Foundation, and gives all of his poker winnings to charity.
In 2006, he finished 18th in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event, and gave the $659,730 purse to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and in 2012 he finished third in the inaugural $1m buy-in WSOP Big One for One Drop, and gave the $4.3m first prize to the education-focused non profit City Year.
“Poker is for fun; investing is the tougher sport.” Said Einhorn.
When you get the opportunity to listen to Einhorn speak you should take it. During the podcast the Greenlight Capital prez talks about the similarities between investing and poker. He talks about short-term luck, and the need to focus on long-term gains. He calls poker, and investing, a ‘puzzle,’ and likens holding cards in your hand to a set of company balance sheets.
As with all great men he is also extremely humble. When talking about his poker skills he bowed down to the fact that he knows there are times the pros have taken advantage of him, but he’s cool with that. It’s all a bit of fun.
If you want to listen to the Podcast in full then head over to the Thinking Poker website.
