「I’d like boxers and martial artists to try it too」said singer and actor GACKT, when talking about 「Texas Hold’em」, one of the many types of pokers that he plays as a personal hobby.

　AbemaTV’s original program 「Wholly produced by GACKT! Heads Up Poker “One-on-one” Yamada Takayuki VS Tsukamoto Takashi」, which will be broadcast on September 23, is a program that he was involved in producing. GACKT will be observing the poker showdown between actors Yamada Takayuki and Tsukamoto Takashi, but at the next opportunity, he looks forward to having boxers and martial artistes take part.

　The best part of Texas Hold’em is trying to read your opponents’ cards by looking at the way they bet their chips, their expressions and behaviours, and then deciding whether you want to challenge them or back down. With this strategically-rich psychological battle, how much one can draw out with expressive ability and tactics makes the difference between winning and losing.「It’s because actors are filled with expressive ability. Using that expressiveness, they can convince their opponent to back down from the challenge. I think they are players who are exciting to play against」 he explained.

　Aside from expressive ability, another trait that players can demonstrate their strength in poker with is their aura, or coercive pressure that businessmen and successful individuals wear. 「It’s not the play itself, instead, if people think that this person is scary, they won’t be able to do anything to him anymore. Even though they’re supposed to be winning, they won’t be able to get ahead, and will become unable to make accurate judgements. It’s a person who makes others think that they shouldn’t go up against or get entangled with. On the contrary, if everyone looks at you and thinks 『This guy seems fine』, you’ll end up getting challenged by all kinds of people, and they’ll be ganging up on you like hyenas, leaving nothing left」. Aiming at someone down on their luck is the cardinal rule in competition. If you’re able to overwhelm your opponent with something akin to ambition, it’ll be difficult for you to lose in the long run.

　GACKT looks forward to having boxers and martial artists who will be undaunted by strong opponents and furthermore know how to work with tactics in a game.「Although martial artists only have their bodies as their main feature, they also have a lot of strategic areas. Even the smallest movement can become a tactic. It’s just that video can’t catch it, and even in person, you’ll be so far away that you can’t see it」. Diverting the line of sight just a little, putting force into the shoulder muscles for just a moment. Even with those tiny movements, if they can make their opponent think that they’re preparing for the next attack, in terms of applying pressure, it’s a success.「I would definitely like competing athletes to take part too. They might be able to see what they previously couldn’t tell was lacking in them. For example, like how being completely aggressive all the time won’t work, or that they don’t have enough strategy, and such」he said, adding that it would be useful for martial artists as well to improve their skills.

　GACKT, who has been drawn in by the charm of poker since around 6 years ago, says that poker shouldn’t be given the image of a gambling activity, that it’s not about how much money is involved, but instead, looking at poker as a game that involves strategy and tactics, it is something that allows a person to feel chagrin that they would rarely feel in daily life, and also experience the joy of overcoming that. Already, the second poker program has been visualised, and would probably materialise as an unconventional confrontation with an actor VS a martial artist.

Source: abematimes.com

Translation: GACKT ITALIA Team

Translation © GACKT ITALIA