Former Athletes Who Became Bluffers

There are guys who became masters of their own craft; for example, sports. Diego Maradona, Michael Schumacher, Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, and Roger Federer are athletes who are now treated as gods in their own disciplines. Then, there are guys who did everything to fulfill their dreams, only to get crushed by events that are out of their control. Good thing their spirits remained intact, and they managed to find another avenue to channel their competitiveness. One person that epitomizes this story is Jan Vang Sorensen. The 58-year old former football player seemed to have found his niche in the Danish Superliga. However, his affair with his favourite sport came to an end when he suffered from a knee injury, forcing him to retire at an early age of 30. The condition of his body never came back to its top form, which made him decide to hang his jersey. Lucky for him, his mindset wasn’t affected. He found new bread and butter in a sport that doesn’t require physicality. In poker, he somehow found a new calling. Sorensen is now one of the most successful athletes turned bluffers.

Sorensen learned the card game during his club’s road games. He played 7-card stud with his teammates. In his post-football career, Sorensen turned to the card game and started playing it professionally in the early 1990s. He was able to make it to several national championships early in his poker career. His biggest break came in 1995 when he clinched a money finish at the World Series of Poker. In 1998, he won the limit 7-card stud in Dortmund to bring home at least USD 80,000. As of today, he already has two bracelets and twelve money finishes in the WSOP. He may not have succeeded in his first love which is football, but his triumph in poker is something worth looking at. Poker is not an easy sport; it is not all about luck. Like football, it takes a massive amount of mental strength. You need to have the best strategies to be able to rule a poker table. With the way Sorensen performed in his poker games, he deserves to be invited at the Partypoker Premier League VI that will happen in London this March. That may be too ambitious, but still, his poker mastery is something his colleagues in the pitch will be very envious of. His optimism is something that aspirants could get an inspiration from.

Jan_Sorensen_2005

For athletes, life doesn’t stop once they hung their jerseys and put their shoes on the racks. Great athletes are not exactly defined by the achievements they had during their prime. A person can remain the great player that he was if he continues to work hard and become a good example.

Ref: Sponsored Post | Advertorial

Today's Top Articles:

Scroll to Top