Poker Player Lydia Blair

On this week's episode, Brad is joined by Pro Poker Player, Lydia Blair and she starts by letting Brad know she learned to play poker at 12, courtesy of her uncle, who believed Texas Hold’em was a more valuable life skill than, say, geometry. Growing up in Texas, where legal poker lives in shadowy private clubs with more rules than a Baptist bake sale, she found her groove in amateur leagues—basically fight clubs with chips and less blood. Lydia prefers live poker over online because she trusts people’s twitchy eyebrows more than internet bots. While the poker world still has a serious dude imbalance, Lydia’s been helping tilt the gender scales—one raised eyebrow and well-timed bluff at a time. She’s played in everything from low-stakes bar tourneys to the World Series of Poker, where even the best players lose more often than they win (but look cool doing it). Then came Million Dollar Secret on Netflix, where Lydia—dubbed the “mom friend” of the cast—faced psychological evaluations, cutthroat alliances, and surprisingly decent craft services. She prepped like a pro, studying negotiation tactics and body language as if the prize were national security clearance. The reality show was tightly controlled, full of unspoken rules, unspoken tension, and very spoken drama. Lydia learned that age dynamics matter, elimination is savage, and talking about poker winnings makes people ask for loans. Whether reading a bluff or a backstab, Lydia knows the game is always about people—and she's playing to win, even if the prize is just peace and quiet.

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