Many people who have never played poker before often ask if poker isn't "just luck." This question isn't easily answered. It depends.

If someone plays only one hand of poker during his lifetime, luck is a huge factor, and it doesn't matter if he is up against the best player in the world. He can get lucky and receive a superb hand, win the pot, and then never play again. Was luck a factor? Definitely!

One could apply this to tournaments as well. Say a player only participates in a single tournament - for instance, the WSOP Main Event. He manages to navigate through a field of thousands of players and then ends up the winner. To win a huge tournament like the WSOP, a player needs to dodge quite a few bullets, win coin flips, draw out, and receive good starting hands. All of this would fall under the luck category.

Despite this, poker has nothing to do with luck - in the long run. Say the same 1,000 players participate in 10,000 tournaments. A single participant is going to be lucky in some poker tournaments and unlucky in some. Draw out and be outdrawn. The luck will even out for all players, which results in the elimination of luck. Consequently, the best poker player is going to be the one who finishes highest in the long run.

Another thing worth mentioning is that luck only exists in the rear-view mirror. You can say: "Oh, I was lucky in that last hand when I hit my two-outer." But you can never say: "I know I only have two outs, but I call anyway because I feel lucky." You never know when the luck is coming, so it can't be a part of your poker strategy. Your game plan should be based on actual facts instead: Odds, hand strength, betting patterns, player types, etc.

All in all, a winning poker player lets his opponents believe in luck and uses that in his favor.