Greg Mueller's poker journey began on long bus rides during his professional hockey career.
The former pro learned the game while traveling between cities and found that many of the same qualities that made him successful on the ice carried over into poker.
“As far as the competitive nature of hockey and the discipline required, those are the similarities with poker,” says Mueller. “Just as I learned to be able to skate away from an altercation on the ice, I learned to make big folds at the tables.”
To say Mueller is overjoyed at his journey to this year's Main Event final table would be a big understatement. He's having the time of his life, soaking in the positive vibes flowing his way from friends and family, with a shot at a life-changing $10,000,000 payday just days away.
Since PokerOrg last spoke with Mueller, he's lost more than a few pounds, taped a segment on the ice for ESPN, caught up on his sleep, tossed some weights around with his trainer, and feels more than ready to hit the boards on Monday for the epic Main Event showdown.
Picking his spots
During the live stream the last two days it seemed you were playing pretty tight. How were you adjusting to your tables up to that point?
The first five days I was anything but tight. Obviously, you can't make it this far by just waiting for aces and kings. But the number of big blinds, stack sizes, and positions at the table dictate how you have to play.
What people don't understand is you can't be a tight player or a loose player or a gambling player. You have to play according to how the situation dictates it.
You had a tough position at one of the last tables on Day 8.
Well, the last couple of days I had Lucas Jumalon on my left with mountains of chips. I can't just get in there and see flops; the chips are too valuable to be doing that.
I had to really tighten up and pick my spots and sort of navigate my way into the final table. I have to approach the strategy as it comes to me.
You were very patient. I imagine you were keeping a close eye on what was happening at the other table.
I was. I was fifth overall out of eleven players left. Our table had the top five stacks, and the other table had the six shortest stacks.
That situation really left me in a very difficult situation to do anything, because we just had to get 10-handed real quick. As soon as that happened, I realized I was in a pretty good spot.
But before, at my table, not only was I the shortest stack, I had the monster stack to my left. I felt like I adjusted really well accordingly and got myself in a pretty good position.
Did you have any rituals before each day of the Main Event?
Yeah, Bucky (Shawn Buchanan) got me on the cold showers before I headed down to play. I'll be honest, while it's happening, while it's ice cold and you're just standing in there and taking it, it wakes up the whole body and jolts you.
It gives you a clearer mind when you're in the trenches, and you have to make these crucial decisions. I'm not much of a meditation guy. But that's one thing that I did every day before my start time during the main.
Everyone loved hearing your proclamation that you could not wait to get home and lose twenty pounds to be ready to look good on ESPN. That was fun.
I know it's just discipline. Instead of having pizzas and ice cream at night, you have chicken breast and some rice.
My mission for the final table is to feel good, look good, and play good, kind of thing, right?
Your experience playing on TV tables and handling the pressure on the way to winning three WSOP bracelets has to be an advantage for you.
For sure. But in no-limit hold'em, you make one error, or get unlucky, and there are all sorts of ways to bust.
But having been heads-up, winning some bracelets, playing on Poker After Dark with all the cameras, chatting, and then being able to focus on the hand was a good experience. Yeah, I love it. I love thriving under pressure.
The fire returns
I'm asking players their pick to win, and many of the older guys are rooting for you. That kind of support has to feel good.
A number of my friends back home said they are coming out. And I've been receiving so many nice tweets and shout-outs from a lot of well-respected players; Matusow, Hellmuth, David Baker, Alex Livingston, the list goes on.
I have so many people genuinely rooting for me, whether they're poker players or friends from home. It feels amazing. I truly feel like it's a team game. I don't want to let them down; I want to win it for us, and then have the biggest party and celebration.
You've said in a few interviews you had lost the passion for poker over the past few years.
The thing is: life is precious, and time is short. I love walking the golf course with my friends. We gamble; we juice each other and have good banter.
Then we go to the nineteenth hole and relive the glory of our shots. And after, I can't wait to do it all over again. For me, that's more fun than playing poker.
That being said, the mixed poker community is special. Everyone's a good guy. I mean, you're essentially passing the money back and forth, but it's always entertaining. And compared to the no-limit games, we're always joking around.
Has this Main Event run reignited your passion to play a bit more during the year?
At the end of the day, depending on how I do, I want to play the big, staged events, like the WPT Championship at the Wynn.
But this one, the WSOP Main Event, has really gotten my juices flowing, and it's an adrenaline rush. The passion has definitely been sparked, but I don't know for how long. We'll see.
The 2026 WSOP Main Event final table runs Monday through Wednesday.
Stick with PokerOrg for all the biggest hands and moments from poker’s biggest showcase and beyond.
