Poker has evolved more in the past ten years than in the hundred before them.
Solvers changed everything.
Before solvers, poker strategy was an art passed among a small group of elite pros testing new ideas in live and online games. Concepts spread through a kind of telephone game — starting in high-stakes online MTTs and cash games, then filtering down through training sites, streams, casinos, and eventually to local home games.
By the time they reached the masses, the message had changed.
Players started doing 'solver-approved' things like betting small on certain board textures without really understanding why. Solvers showed that small bets had their place, but they also showed when to check, when to overbet, and when to fold.
Many players took one part of that equation and applied it everywhere. It’s wrong, but still better than how people played before.
So yes, the game has gotten tougher, but it’s also full of new edges. The more players rely on machine heuristics instead of real thinking, the more valuable true understanding becomes.
Today, plenty of people know what to do, but very few understand why. That becomes a problem when they face unfamiliar spots or situations too complex for a solver to solve.
Alec Torelli: Poker might have gotten harder, but there are plenty of new edges to exploit.What I wish I knew earlier
I’ve made just about every mistake you can make. I’ve chased losses, played when tilted, ignored bankroll management, and let my ego call the shots.
If I could go back, I’d tell my younger self two things: meditate and trust your intuition more.
I used to justify every decision by logic — my hourly rate, EV, variance — but rarely by intention. I played when I 'should,' not when I felt aligned. That word, 'should,' has caused me more pain than any bad beat ever could.
Now, when I catch myself saying 'should,' I replace it with 'intend' or 'prefer.' It sounds simple, but it’s a completely different way of living.
My truth has been this – when I act out of alignment with my spirit, it always catches up to me.
The habits that changed everything
For me, it’s meditation and living a healthy lifestyle. Working out keeps my body sharp; mindfulness and diet keep my mind clear.
Poker is an emotional game. I believe we need something that grounds us between the noise, variance, and chaos.
Meditation helps me respond instead of react, and training keeps me calm under pressure. Both give me confidence that I can do hard things, and habits I stick with build resilience and certainty that I can see things through.
Those habits are the difference between burning out and lasting twenty years in this game.
Alec Torelli learned from Brian Rast, and the two pros are now part of the same team at Phenom Poker.The power of community
Poker can be lonely. For years, I heard students say they were stuck not because they lacked skill, but because they didn’t have anyone to talk strategy with. Nobody around them was taking the game as seriously as they were.
That’s what we set out to change at Conscious Poker — to bring back social learning. I learned the same way – from the community I built early in my career, with guys like Andrew Robl, Brian Rast, Tom Dwan, Doyle Brunson and many elite players in Macau. Those conversations made me the player I am today.
Phenom Poker takes that idea even further. It’s not just community; it’s aligned community. Everyone’s an owner. Everyone benefits when the platform grows.
I’ve seen it firsthand: players recruiting others, building guides, even spending their own money to bring new users on board — not because they were told to, but because they wanted to. That’s ownership.
And that’s why I believe the future of poker isn’t just digital. It’s collective ownership. Beyond Phenom, I’m passionate about the model we are building. Making everyone an owner shares the pie at a time in history where wealth inequality is at all-time highs and is a more meritocratic system. My hope is we can prove out the model and help pave the way for others to adopt it too.
The biggest lesson
There’s no finish line. No amount of money, trophies, or external validation will fix what’s unresolved inside you.
I learned that the hard way. I made a million dollars before I was old enough to drink — and lost it just as fast. I’ve seen the highest highs and lowest lows this game can offer.
What I’ve realized is that our external world is just a reflection of our internal one. I love poker because it brings out the best in me. If I want to win consistently, I have to continue working on myself. I need more patience to act with discipline at the table. I need to check my ego to continue to study and improve, even after 20 years. I need to meditate daily to stay present and locked in for 14-hour sessions.
That’s the real game.
I don’t measure myself against others, but against who I was yesterday. If I can bring the best, most grounded, loving version of myself to every hand, conversation, and moment, that’s success.
Alec Torelli is a poker pro, an ambassador for Phenom Poker, and the founder of Conscious Poker, home of The Winning Poker System.
