After PokerNews broke the news that Phil Hellmuth was set to release an autobiography in 2017 Lee Davy explains why he won’t read it and what autobiographies he would like to read instead.
Long before the Internet came along, one of the most popular ways of improving your poker game was to read a book.
Only one poker book has ever reached the New York Times Bestseller list, and it’s Play Poker Like The Pros by Phil Hellmuth. I know. I know. It’s not the best. However, I recently did lots of research into the benefits of poker books and a lot of top professionals cite this piece as very influential and their gateway into poker.
D&B Publishing is hoping that Hellmuth still has the appeal he once did after persuading him to finish his long-awaited autobiography, Poker Brat. The life story of the most successful poker player in the history of the World Series of Poker (WSOP) will be in a bookstore near you sometime in 2017; one assumes to coincide with the greatest poker festival in the world.
Only I am not one of the people in the ‘long awaited’ line.
There Are a Lot of Great Autobiographies to be Written, But is Hellmuth’s One of Them?
When I did my research on the impact that poker books have in the community, it was evident that the autobiography section is amassing some serious cobwebs.
In recent times, only the Devilfish and Vicky Coren-Mitchell have written anything worth reading in that department, and I can’t for the life of me see Phil Hellmuth’s book getting into that company.
He will sell a lot of books.
He is Phil Hellmuth.
But one of the things about Hellmuth is his protection of who he really is. I have had the opportunity to sit down and interview him on numerous occasions, and when I manage to get one foot into the door, he quickly slams it shut again.
I can’t imagine turning the pages of his new book and reading raw emotion. He has an ego to protect, and protect it he will, at all costs. Sometimes I get the impression that Phil Hellmuth gets confused between the Hellmuth away from the tables and his personae on it, so I can’t imagine any clarity coming across in his ink.
If Not Hellmuth, Then Who?
I would love to get into the mind of this group of seven and their deadly sins.
1# Vanessa Selbst
Selbst is a fascinating character and her appearance on the Brian Koppelman podcast left me hungry to learn more about the most successful female poker player ever. I get the impression she has overcome a lot of adversity in life, and I would like to read about how those experiences turned her into the fearless poker player you see on the felt today.
2# Chino Rheem
Chino Rheem has the talent, but time and time again, he lets himself down. Rheem could have been one of the all-time greats, but there is something inside his mind that leads to self-destruction, and I want to know what it is.
3# Daniel Cates
I have had the pleasure to spend time with Daniel on several occasions including bumping into him in the same restaurant night after night in Vegas during the World Series of Poker (WSOP).
When he talks to me, I switch off. I go all Walter Mitty; only I am not skateboarding down an Icelandic road. I am wondering what on earth is going on inside his head and I don’t think I am alone. Watching the world go by through the eyes of the Jungle must be a fascinating experience.
4# Chris Moorman
I couldn’t wait to see the movie The Suicide Squad, and it turned out to be a pile of pants. I feel the same way about Chris Moorman’s new book, and he had better not let me down.
I am not interested in how he won over $13m playing online poker. I want to know how he managed to create one of the largest stables in the world, and completely screw it up, losing millions in the process. Fortunately, there was a happy ending for Moorman. He met a woman, and she sorted him out like all women do.
5# Greg Merson
One minute Greg Merson was a drug addict struggling with the most basic things, and the next he was the WSOP Main Event Champion, and the timeline between the two wasn’t that far apart.
That’s a mind-blowing transformation, and I want to learn all about it.
6# Chris Ferguson
You could learn a lot from this man’s autobiography – how to become a WSOP Champion, how NOT to run one of the most successful online poker rooms of all time, and how to decapitate baby carrots with the ace of spades.
I also want to learn what goes through a man’s mind that possesses him to return to the poker tables after becoming public enemy number one. Seriously, just retire and play online from your little island. He must be one of the only people in the world who you could kick in the balls, and he would smile at you.
7# Erick Lindgren
When I worked on the railways, I was once paid £100 by mistake. It shocked my morality to the core.
Should I tell them?
Should I keep it?
Would I burn in hell?
Erick Lindgren received a $2m wire transfer from Full Tilt, for services rendered, and received another $2m by mistake a week later. What I would have given to be a fly on the wall during that conversation.
Mr Lindgren: “Honey, Full Tilt have just wired me some money by mistake, should I pay it back?”
Mrs Lindgren: “How much?”
Mr Lindgren: “Two million bucks.”
Mrs Lindgren: “Wait and see if they notice it’s missing and we will go from there.”
So, those are my picks for autobiographies. Chris Moorman has beaten me to the punch and will be at Aspers in Stratford this weekend where he will be talking to the press about his new book.
The rest?
They may never happen, but I can dream.
What do you think about my selections?
Who’s autobiography would you give a kidney to read?
