The Greatest Gambling Poker Sayings of All Time

This is a collection of not only quotes by poker players, or about the game of poker, but also some quotes from famous people in other fields -from politics to chess-that apply perfectly to the game of poker.

“Nobody is always a winner, and anybody who says he is, is either a liar or doesn’t play poker.”

~Amarillo Slim~

“Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.”

~Unknown~

“I’ve often thought, if I got really hungry for a good milk shake, how much would I pay for one? People will pay a hundred dollars for a bottle of wine; to me that’s not worth it. But I’m not going to say it is foolish or wrong to spend that kind of money, if that’s what you want. So if a guy wants to bet twenty or thirty thousand dollars in a poker game, that is his privilege.”

~Jack Binion~

“There are few things that are so unpardonably neglected in our country as poker. The upper class knows very little about it. Now and then you find ambassadors who have sort of a general knowledge of the game, but the ignorance of the people is fearful. Why, I have known clergymen, good men, kind-hearted, liberal, sincere, and all that, who did not know the meaning of a “flush”. It is enough to make one ashamed of the species.”

~Mark Twain~

“I must complain the cards are ill shuffled till I have a good hand.”

~Jonathan Swift~

“It’s hard work. Gambling. Playing poker. Don’t let anyone tell you different. Think about what it’s like sitting at a poker table with people whose only goal is to cut your throat, take your money, and leave you out back talking to yourself about what went wrong inside. That probably sounds harsh. But that’s the way it is at the poker table. If you don’t believe me, then you’re the lamb that’s going off to the slaughter.”

~Stu Unger, three-time WSOP Champion~

“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”

~Napoleon Bonaparte~

“Victory goes to the player who makes the next to last mistake.”

~Savielly Grigorievitch Tartakower~

“I find that the harder I work the more luck I seem to have.”

~Thomas Jefferson~

“The difference between involvement and commitment is like a ham and eggs breakfast: The chicken was involved– the pig was committed.”

~Unknown~

“Acting on a good idea is better than just having one.”

~Robert Half~

“Chaos is born from order” “The fight is chaotic yet one is not subject to chaos”

~Sun Tzu~

The Tao of Deception states:

When able, manifest inability

When active, manifest inactivity

When near, manifest far

When far, manifest near

Thus when he seeks advantage, lure him

When he is in chaos, take him

When he is substantial, prepare against him

When he is strong, avoid him

When he is wrathful, harass him

Attack when he is unprepared

Emerge where does not expect