Staying Present at the Table — Jason Su's Pre-WSOP Reminder
With the World Series of Poker on the horizon, author and mental-game coach Jason Su is pushing players to focus on a skill that has nothing to do with solver work or range construction: being fully present.
Su, best known for his book The Joy of Poker, argues that the ability to stay anchored in the moment is one of the most underrated — and most trainable — assets a tournament player can bring to Las Vegas.
Why Presence Matters More in Big Tournaments
Long WSOP days are a unique stress test. Hours of card-dead stretches, crushing bad beats, and the sheer noise of a packed convention floor all conspire to pull a player's attention away from the hand in front of them. Su's core point is that mental drift is the silent leak most players never bother to plug.
It's an angle worth taking seriously. Solvers can tell you the theoretically correct frequency to c-bet a particular board texture, but no algorithm replaces the split-second read that only comes from someone who is actually watching the table. Presence is the prerequisite for all other skills.
Practical Takeaway
A few things to consider ahead of any major series:
- Pre-session rituals — even a two-minute breathing exercise — can act as a reset button before you sit down.
- Between-hand resets matter as much as in-hand focus; the moment a hand ends is when the mind tends to wander.
- Off-felt recovery (sleep, nutrition, short walks) directly feeds back into how long you can sustain attention during a deep run.
None of this is glamorous, and it won't make for flashy training content — but Su's emphasis on the inner game is a useful counterweight to the industry's obsession with pure technical study.
For the full breakdown of Su's thinking and practical exercises, head over to the source.