Do you think some people are born with a gift for playing poker, like in other sports

I don't think specifically for playing poker. However, there are people who are born to have the most important mental characteristics to play. However, with study and training it is possible to match them.
Poker is discipline, prudence and courage. Getting the proportions right is what's hard...

You may not be born to play poker but perhaps you have been born not to play poker. If you don't have a competitive spirit, a gambling drive and analytical mind then no amount of learning or training will make you a good poker player.

Im not sure about a gift, but some have a certain skill luck thats needed, like the pros..

Claudiunm said:

I don't think specifically for playing poker. However, there are people who are born to have the most important mental characteristics to play. However, with study and training it is possible to match them.
Poker is discipline, prudence and courage. Getting the proportions right is what's hard...

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RDHartsoe said:

The short answer would be yes, most assuredly. Some people just have the ability to read the situations as they arise. That ability can make that player hard to play against because they seem to have a second sense when a tough spot comes about.

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Agreed, a strong mind is needed, this gets developed through training and experience.

No gift

No gift just endless hours of hard earned training is how one earns the title good poker player. Capo1014

Yes, I believe that there are people born with the gift of playing poker, I see people like that at the poker tables during tournaments. There are very few of them, but it is always a pleasure to play with them, if we talk about professional poker players, it will be Daniel Negrianu.

I think it all depends on us. If you have a dream and you are ready to work to achieve it, then without a doubt you will achieve the goal. Obviously, there are many talented people, but in my opinion, 90% of success depends on your willingness to work hard and persistently.

The first thing is if you are good in counting cards and have no problems with math then you have a big plus then all others.

Second is if you train your brain to become a good poker player then you will be a good poker player in a few years,
so nothing comes without practise and training.

I think what most people SEE as talent, is actually the combination of effort and drive. Sidney Crosy became a great hockey player because he spent almost every minute of every day playing or thinking hockey. Musicians become great through unimaginable hours of practice and performing. Its no different with poker. If you can't combine effort with your hunger, you're unlikely to be great. (I certainly don't have the time to be great, ATM!)
Of course, on top of this there are loads of qualities or characteristics a person could have that will make their chances for greatness higher. If you are almost innumerate, for example, you might struggle with the maths and statistics of poker. However, you can possibly get around this by employing certain tools or techniques (e.g. counting outs, using a HUD...etc.).
Patience is a virtue a poker player can hardly do without, for example. A lack of patience will get a lot of people in hot water (me included)...playing hands they have no business playing and being in growing pots they should have avoided from the get-go....but they played because they got bored and couldn't wait for a better opportunity to come along.

But in the end -- fundamentally -- I think telling someone they have talent is a bit of an insult. It almost says "you're just lucky you have this ability", rather than acknowledging the ability came at a price. The talent was bought and paid for by years of hard graft. Better to say -- wow, you worked hard to get where you are -- than to praise someone's talent.
Cheers,
ObbleeXY

This is actually a deep scientific subject.
And there's lots of study about it.

Have y'all heard of the nature or nurture dilema?

What I found out is that one feeds the other in an ongoing cycle.

Yes

Yes I believe that some are born with the gift of playing poker, but with a lot of dedication you become a good or great player

The first thing that came to my mind for this question was Stu Ungar.

Yes, because some ppl are really good at calling out BS, and that comes in handy when u trying to call bluffs.

Of course some people have really good talent for reads and odds

i think if youre good at math and disipline you have an advantage (both at which I suck!) LOL

Hmmmm sort of, some people seem to be able to pick up the basic concepts quicker and have a better understanding of hand ranges but without alot of work and study there natural talent seems to go only so far. This is just what I've heard from countless pros being interviewed and podcasts ECT. Although I think that's only relevant these days, in the early days of poker sickos like Stu Unger seemed to be on another level.

No.

AllinIgor said:

I've been thinking recently about the large number of players that have emerged in recent years, and how good they are. I know this is because of the great boom of online poker, the quick lit information, anyway, things we all know, however, I was curious if you guys believe that there are people who are born with this supernatural talent.
I believe not, that learning comes with many years of study, but some say that in addition to the study, there are people who really seem to have been born for poker.
What's your opinion?

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Yes, it is a feature and talent of intelligence that few people have.
I think we can describe them as smart. Yes, they are smart, as in school. There are some students who excel in their studies, especially in science subjects. They do not need to make an effort to understand the lesson or the teacher, and they always get the highest points in the school, city and country.

People are born with gift for playing poker, just like in other sports.
But, the process of learning, practice and development make perfection.

If you had to have a gift for everything, we would not play a sport, poker and such! Practice and insistence makes perfect

An interesting point in your thread title...I believe poker is not a sport, but a game.

No，i don't. I think you can train that mentality.

You learned it but for each thing some people are gifted, more intelligent, patient

In my opinion, it is a matter of knowledge and acquired techniques. Every sport needs a lot of training to be a winner. As poker is a metal sport, you have to play a lot to learn by practice how to beat hands as much as possible. This is my opinion.

Absolutely not. Some people are 'born' with a gift to learn faster but poker is a learned game through and through.

Some people are less oblivious and good at reading people but this is a learned ability as well.

Talented people are products of awareness, effort, and repetition and with that you can create your own luck.