Daniel Negreanu Aims for Added Career Glory at Poker Masters

Daniel Negreanu’s legacy is in stone. $39 million in earnings and becoming the biggest poker ambassador in history are the first items on his resume. This week at the Poker Masters, Negreanu attempts to put another “feather in his cap” with the Event 2 final table serving as the starting point.

Last year’s Poker Masters proved to be a turning point for Negreanu. Outmatched by the younger generation of High Rollers around, Negreanu announced a commitment to learning the modern techniques of the game. The results showed earlier this year when Negreanu placed second in Super High Roller Bowl.

Deep stacked poker was the emphasis of Negreanu’s training. Poker Masters requires shove tactics and Negreanu admits this week does not make or break the year he spent in the lab.

“I don’t know if it’s more important to me,” Negreanu said. “I do feel more comfortable after putting into practice the things that I learned and had a good run in Super High Roller Bowl. If anything, I’m just more at ease and feeling more confident in what I’m doing is actually plus EV. To be honest, I spent about three months working hard. I worked on 100 big blinds deep. I didn’t really work on 20 or 30 so I still pretty much suck at that stuff and don’t actually enjoy it that much.”

Plus EV is the start of Poker Masters for Negreanu, who placed sixth in the $25,000 No Limit Hold’em Event 2. Seven tournaments comprise Poker Masters and Negreanu’s experience with variance creates an awareness that his results this week do not define the work he’s put into bettering his game.

Luck has been on Negreanu’s side for the better part of his career but a weeklong downswing is a strong possibility. Negreanu winning every flip he’s in this week doesn’t change the skill level he believes in.

“I feel like the poker world is completely clueless in how much luck is involved in these turbos,” Negreanu firmly stated. “Winning flips is so important. You can make someone look like a genius or a sucker. It would take such a long run for the real best players, not saying that I am one, to actually come out on top consistently.”

A key asset Negreanu holds over the Poker Masters field is mental ease to perform. He’s in the Hall of Fame and the only question that remains is how much more will he accomplish before removing himself from full-time play. Negreanu is competitive as ever. His Instagram story is a funhouse of updates from all-ins won to bad beats taken.

The Purple Jacket is another trophy for a titanic collection.

“I feel less pressure now more than ever,” Negreanu said. “There’s nothing I need to have to make my career feel complete. I’ve already done everything I’ve wanted to do except win the Main Event, which is tough. Yeah, winning the Purple Jacket would be awesome and another feather in the cap. I love little series and player of the year stuff.”

Subscribe to watch the Poker Masters $25,000 No Limit Hold’em final table live now on PokerGO, along with the rest of the highest stakes week of the year.