GTO Poker Theories -Talent Stacking

The biggest winners in poker or life are not always the most talented, they are the ones with the most talents - a small but significant difference.

One of the real gifts poker has given me is that it has been a great jumping off point to learn things from other disciplines like economics, AI, psychology and Game Theory. So here is a series of articles where I bring some of the most interesting things I have learned from other subjects outside of poker which are applicable in this game we know and love.

Talent stacking, also known as skill stacking or the polymath approach, is the concept of combining multiple skills or areas of expertise to create a unique competitive advantage. It is not about being the best in any single domain but rather about building a diverse set of complementary skills that, when combined, can lead to extraordinary outcomes.

A famous example of talent stacking is the life and career of Leonardo da Vinci. As a painter, inventor, scientist, and writer, da Vinci exemplified the power of bringing together diverse areas of knowledge to create groundbreaking works. His unparalleled ability to observe, analyze, and synthesize information from multiple disciplines enabled him to produce iconic masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, as well as contribute significantly to fields such as anatomy, engineering, and hydrodynamics.

I think a great more recent example of this is Joe Rogan, who has the biggest podcast in the world which commands billions (not millions) of views. Rogan is a stand-up comedian, podcaster, and UFC commentator. He is not the best interviewer in the world (but to his credit he pioneered the long-form format that really gave his subjects the time to speak), he is not an amazing comedian and I presume he is not the best UFC commentator either. But he is pretty good at all these things and combined with a bit of business sense and good timing, he has married these talents to become the biggest podcaster in the world. 

Sponsorship & Game Selection

It's hard to ignore talent stacking in poker. The game is such that we don't know how to tell who the truly best players are and the winner of a single event, especially the Main Event, is no guarantee of who the elite competitors are. The best players in the world do not always make the most money in poker and some relatively average players do very well out of it. 

Most sponsored poker players are a good example of talent stackers, few of them are in the conversation about the 'best in the world'. If you take somebody like Lex Veldhuis he is a good poker player, a good teacher, an entertaining streamer, he has a good vision for the game and a sense of cultivating community, and he is a good ambassador for PokerStars. That's why he has been able to become one of the biggest names in the game, compared to somebody like David Peters who is one of the best of all time, but who prefers to quietly play the game and little else. 

Another example of talent stacking comes in the form of game selection. There is a reason why elite players like the aforementioned David Peters are not invited to those games - he is unlikely to give away much edge and is quiet at the table. Compare that to somebody like Rampage who is fun to watch, willing to gamble, and brings with him a fanbase from his YouTube channel. There are plenty of better players than Rampage, but he has the right ingredients that earn him a seat and a chance to make more money than superior players.

There is more than one way to skin a cat in poker, it's not always about having the best graph it is sometimes about having a lot of small talents that compound when they are brought together. 

What theories from outside of poker have helped your game? Let us know in the comments.

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