I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Gus Hansen isn't a top pro and is more of an action maniac. There is some brilliance to his play, but it is overshadowed by his propensity to gamble and action up.
This might seem like sour grapes to some because I haven't ever won a big tournament or played on High Stakes Poker. I know the consensus is that he is a world class poker player because he has won a lot of cash in tournaments and has a very good TV presence and profile.
A few things you might not know about Gus, just a few months ago he was broke as could be (actually worse than broke, because he owed a bundle) and didn't have a pot to piss in. He has won millions and went broke several times. (more on this later)
Here is my analysis of Gus:
Positive Points:- Extremely good at reading players and analyzing their likely hand ranges, and using aggression to push players off of pots.
- Aggression - This one element even at lower limit games by bad players can make up for a lot of mistakes. Gus is definitely aggressive and this pure aggression factor covers up a lot of mistakes and flaws in his game.
- Ability to stay in Action - Because of his high profile and past record of winning tournaments Gus is able to "Stay in Action" by borrowing money when he goes broke and by having "Backers". Backers are people who put people into tournaments for a % of the win.
Negative Points:- Propensity to Gamble. You just can't be a winner in the long run when you constantly take the worst of it and gamble up to much. There is a perfect example of this in the poker video section - Gus Hansen - Extremely Loose All in Call. .
There is just no way that anyone with half a brain can think this is a good play. Watch the video. It's not like he made a bad read and moved all in and got called. He is the donkey calling off a ton more chips with ten high preflop. This isn't an isolated incident, Gus makes a lot of bad plays like this. - Bankroll Management - How can you win so much money and be broke?? Only one reason (OK, maybe more) Playing to high for your bankroll and ego come to mind.
- Debts - Similar to bankroll management, but slightly different. The word in Vegas is that even after his big score with the 2nd place finish in WPT Championship, it just barely got him out of the hole with the money he owed. Thats pretty bad, when you win 2 million and don't get much.
To me, the top pros are the guys with the most money, and the ones that hang onto it. The best players in the world love to see Gus in action and winning tournaments because they know he will most likely lose it in the high stakes games.
Just because you've won 5 million or whatever doesn't make you a great player, especially if you've lost it all, it just makes you a gambler. Personally, I'd rather be a poker player with a moderate amount of money than a gambler who is constantly broke.
Let the flaming and discussion continue.
Jason
