Poker was a vastly different game in 2009 and Christian Harder was a fresh-faced 21-year-old that didn’t need to pack a razor to play in the $25,000 World Poker Tour World Championship. Harder was part of a generation that cut their teeth playing online in their teens, and media outlets counted the days until they could legally play in casinos.
Harder dominated future Poker Hall of Famers, past World Series of Poker Main Event champions, and other young gun peers that week. He finished in fourth place for $571,965, which is still his largest cash to date.
Harder finished Day 1B of the $3,500 WPT Seminole Rock ‘N’ Roll Poker Open in the top half of the counts, primed for a deep run into the money. A chance to add to his legacy.
A different generation of player
Harder is all too aware of how the game has changed.
“It’s kind of hard to compare; the game’s changed so much in terms of the faces you see play and how people play pre- and postflop,” Harder said. “It was fun because I was deep with ElkY (Bertand Grospellier), Scotty Nguyen, Shannon Shorr and Yevgeniy (Timoshenko). It was cool to play in a venue like the Fontana Lounge at Bellagio when I was 21, and every big player in poker was there.”
Harder’s been playing poker professionally ever since, has $5.8 million in Hendon Mob earnings, and is sixth all-time in WPT cashes with 36. It comes with a bit of a dubious distinction – only he and Jake Schwartz (37 cashes) are without WPT titles.
Now, with a touch of salt and peppered hair, Harder wasn’t even aware of his ranking. “Wow, I didn’t know that. I guess it makes sense for how long I’ve been playing,” he said. “I got second once. I was so close to winning at Foxwoods. Winning a title would be awesome.”
Looking at Harder’s profile, it’s hard to find any length of time away from the game. “I do take some breaks, but this year I’ve played more and still enjoy it,” he said. “I’m excited to go places like Hard Rock here, but I take enough time off to be refreshed.”
Expanding horizons
What does stand out about the last year is that he traveled further than he had in the past. “I’ve been playing poker professionally my whole life, and I’m 37 now and I never really traveled internationally that much,” said Harder. “I decided to see other parts of the world, so I went to Asia for two-and-a-half months. I played poker in Vietnam and Korea and it was awesome.”
Harders attributes his longevity to his yin and yang approach to poker – being stubborn and adapting. “To be honest, I could have adjusted better earlier,” he said. “Back then I was pretty elite comparatively, and now I’m just a grinder. But that’s okay; I’m happy. I’ve been smart with managing money and not being an idiot degenerate.”
His measured approach when it comes to a gambling lifestyle extends into his personal life. He’s single for now but sees the life coming to an end at some point. “Eventually I want to have a family and stuff, but I haven’t gone down that road yet,” Harder said. “I’m getting my poker and gambling out of the way for now.”
All photos courtesy of the World Poker Tour - images by Drew Amato.
