Learning Experiences of Expert Poker Players (LEEPP): Diverse ‘Coaching Cube’ Inputs

Various transferable skills – mathematical, tactical, strategic, emotional, information encryption, etc. have been demonstrated to have significant drivers of the performance of skilled poker players. The relatively little that is deliberated about learning in poker has been relegated to the learning of basic concepts/ skills (ABCs) by novice poker players, and how this learning helps them outperform a field of other novices. Unfortunately, little is understood about how expert poker players learn/ acquire these skills as well as the nature of the coaching input if any, that enables/ supports this learning. This study investigates – through interviews of twelve expert poker players (EPPs) – their learning experiences. The elements of the coaching cube that are employed in order to support/ enhance these learning experiences are further examined. EPPs appear to have gone through significant double and triple-loop learning experiences. They also employ a diverse combination of coaching cube dimensions, both skill/ behavior andperformance based (what?), second led by peer/mentor and self (who?), and finally coaching is based on both activity and awareness (how?). This is perhaps the first study to examine the learning dimension of EPPs which through the transferable skills and coaching channels has strong relevance for training in business and management. This is also the first study to examine EPPs in the India context.