WSOP 2015 + Where I Am

Hello all! I just checked my blog and noticed I haven’t written in 2015. Oops, time really flies. This entry comes from a house I’m renting with my boys Mike Katz, Jesse Yaginuma, and Adam Geyer in Las Vegas. This marks the tenth consecutive summer I’ve spent in the desert playing the World Series of Poker (WSOP). I usually report here for around seven weeks and play 65+ hour weeks of tournament poker. We are just getting underway.

The summer is always magical in the sense that I get to spend it competing in something that I love to do. The World Series of Poker is an experience. People come from all over the world and from all walks of life to play in tournaments and cash games. There is action around the clock. In addition I get to hang out with an amazing group of friends during my downtime. I have countless memories from summers in Vegas with friends: watching NBA Finals, going to the movies, dinners, nightclubs, being poolside, gym trips, bowling, and just hanging around the house laughing until early hours of the morning.

Something I love about the Series so much is that I can completely dive into my poker tournament experiences and be present everyday. I’ve played several hundred live poker tournaments over the course of the last ten years now, so it is an environment in which I’m very comfortable. No tournament is ever the same and I play with different players everyday. There are endless social dynamics to be observed. I feel I’ve gotten a great education on people given I’m exposed to so many different types at the table. Every human emotion can be witnessed at the poker table. When a poker player sits at the table he or she is not only risking money. One’s ego is ever-present and at risk of being bruised. I’m always interested by what it takes for mine to rear its ugly head. And I’m fascinated to watch how it plays out in others at the table.

Earlier tonight I cashed in the largest poker tournament of all-time in terms of entries. I finished 1428^th out of the 22000+ entries in a tournament billed as “Colossus”. I will be playing 30+ more tournaments before I depart Las Vegas in mid-July.

I’ve mentioned before about how much time I devote to personal development. I’ve been increasingly taking steps to become more present and to get out of my head. I guess we all spend time lost in thought? I’ve found that true happiness for me just means being in whatever it is I’m doing. I struggled in the past with vulnerability as I inexplicably cared too much what other people thought. Perhaps that is what caused much of my mental fog. I’ve increasingly allowed myself to be vulnerable with family and friends and in my poker career and feel it has been a remarkable success. I’ve entered a cool phase in which I’m just going to be me as I pursue the art of not giving a fuck.

My 30^th birthday is next week. I look back on my twenties and smile. I visited 30+ countries and have memories that will never leave me. I’ve been running a business all the while and have found security mentally, financially, emotionally and spiritually. I’ve been surrounded by the most beautiful, loving, supportive family and awesome friends. It’s been a really fun ride, and I’m ready to see what the next decade holds. 

The truth is I have no idea what the next decade will hold. I’m coming out of a yearlong committed relationship with a girl named Justine. I travel so much that our relationship involved us seeing each other in different places worldwide, hanging for a weekend or a week or more, and then having to be separate for a month or more. By no means was it conventional. She’s such a special girl, and I’m really glad we had the opportunity to learn and grow from each other.

I’m sure many of you can identify with the pain and uncertainty immediately following a breakup. I dealt but was able to reasonably quickly get through thanks to healthy living and surrounding myself with family and friends.

Female intimacy is of course something that I want in my life, though I’m a little unsure in what capacity. I am learning that connectedness is so important in my personal happiness. I’m going to continue to be me and live an honest life. I am confident things will fall into place that way. Las Vegas in the summer is an okay place to start.

I expect I'll spend time this fall attempting to transition from playing poker full-time. The game will always be a part of my life, but I'm looking for a break from the constant travel. Also as Zen as I think I am when it comes to the handling the emotional swings of the game, I'm still not. I'm excited for the opportunity to do some different things. I'm open to hearing about any cool opportunities that you guys are getting into. I bring passion and hard work into everything with which I'm involved.

That’s all for now as I have to be awake early in the morning for another tournament. Thanks for reading. As always I’m available to talk about anything via email: [email protected]. I can be followed on twitter @shannonshorr.