Since the World Series of Poker came to a close in November, poker fans haven’t seen much of Daniel Negreanu. Negreanu had a fantastic WSOP in 2021 with 18 cashes, seven top-ten finishes and a third-place finish in the Player of the Year standings. Live poker tournaments took a hit in December with the post-WSOP lull combining with the worldwide outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID-19. But as top poker pros have been returning to the felt in live events such as the Venetian Deepstack tournaments and the Stairway to Millions, Daniel Negreanu has been nowhere to be seen.
Negreanu’s focus has turned to a healthy daily routine
Negreanu announced on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon that he was enjoying his vacation from poker and is hoping to be healthy and strong for another successful run at the 2022 World Series of Poker.
“Haven’t played any poker since early December but am considering trying to defend my PokerGo Cup Title February 2-9,” Negreanu tweeted. “I’m truly on the fence not wanting to disrupt my healthy routine.”
This new routine is clearly a high priority for Negreanu at the moment as missing a high-stakes tournament series like the PokerGo Cup usually isn’t something he’d actually consider. Negreanu took some time on Wednesday to respond to fans who had questions and comments about his new routine, and even wrote it out in full when asked about it.
Quoted from his tweet:
“10am - Wake Up
10:30am - Breakfast
12pm - Gym
1:30pm - Walk Puppies
2pm - Lunch
3pm - Coffee
4pm - Walk an Hour
5:30pm - Snack
8:30pm - Dinner
Rinse. Repeat.”
Negreanu’s vacation schedule allows for multiple small and healthy vegan meals throughout the day, multiple instances of physical activity and plenty of time for rest and relaxation. It makes sense that “Kid Poker” is hesitant to give up this relaxing lifestyle to return to the daily grind of live poker tournaments.
Daniel Negreanu put in the hours during the WSOP
Daniel Negreanu turned 47 years old last July, but he didn’t show any signs of slowing down during the 2021 WSOP. Negreanu amassed $1 million in buy-ins across 55 events during the series and had multiple deep runs over that span. He fell just short of winning his seventh career WSOP bracelet when he finished in third place in the $50,000 HIGH ROLLER Pot Limit Omaha Event #84.
One of the most impressive aspects of Negreanu’s 2021 World Series of Poker run was his continued commitment to letting the fans in and being a great ambassador for the game. Negreanu’s daily poker vlogs were consistently funny, entertaining and insightful, giving poker fans a look at the ups and downs of tournament poker. With only a six-month break between the end of the 2021 series and the start of the 2022 series, it makes sense that Negreanu wants to pick his spots carefully to conserve his energy for a similar grind this summer.
Still, it’s hard to imagine Negreanu skipping the 2022 PokerGo Cup. His victory in the $50,000 No-Limit Hold’em Event #7 of last year’s PokerGO Cup snapped an eight-year slump without any tournament victories and earned him a cool $700,000 for first place. This year’s series is being held at the Aria Resort & Casino with eight events across eight days.
The short length of the series, the fact that it is being played in Negreanu’s home town of Las Vegas, and the potential bragging rights that would come with winning the Cup back-to-back should offer Negreanu with enough incentive to break out of his new health routine; if only for a week.
Featured Image Credit: Haley Hintze
