Maria Konnikova

Maria Konnikova was born in Moscow, Russia, to Jewish parents.[3] She was four years old when her family emigrated to the United States and settled in the state of Massachusetts.[4]

Konnikova attended Acton-Boxborough Regional High School in Massachusetts.[5] After graduating from high school, Konnikova attended Harvard University, where she graduated with a B.A. in psychology and creative writing. While at Harvard, Konnikova was mentored by Steven Pinker.[6]

She earned her Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University in 2013,[7] under Walter Mischel.[4]

Following her B.A., Konnikova worked as a producer for the Charlie Rose Show, where she helped set up the segment "Brain Series".[4][8] She also wrote the "Literally Psyched" column for Scientific American[9] and the psychology blog "Artful Choice" for Big Think.[10][11] In April 2013, her article on uncertainty in decision making was published in The New Yorker, [12] where she continues to contribute.[13][14]

Konnikova at the IdeaFestival (2013)

Konnikova's first book Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes nominated for an Agatha Award and the Anthony Award for Best Non-fiction in 2013.[15][13] Her book, The Confidence Game, was published in 2016 and appeared on the New York TImes' Crime and Punishment best seller list.[16] Her third book, The Biggest Bluff, in 2020, follows her active participation into the world of poker.[17]

Konnikova makes regular appearances on The Gist podcast in her own segment, "Is that bullshit?" In early 2017, she published a 10-part podcast about con-artists and the lives they ruin, called The Grift.[18]

Konnikova has said that she became interested in poker after reading John von Neumann’s work on game theory. She described it as a way to examine the mind’s responses to conditions that involve both skill and chance. Konnikova told The New York Times, "When I started this, I didn’t know how many cards were in a deck. I hate casinos. I have zero interest in gambling."[19]

In the late summer of 2016, Konnikova made contact with Erik Seidel, who agreed to become her coach for her goal of spending a year as a competitive poker player.[20]

Konnikova competed in her first major tournament, the PokerStars tournament 2017 in Monte Carlo.[21] In January 2018, she won the PCA National event at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure No-Limit Hold'em Championship, winning $84,600.[22] The win also came with a Platinum Pass worth $30,000 to the PokerStars Players Championship in January 2019. Her total earnings prior to the event were about $30,000.[22]

After that 2018 win, Konnikova decided to delay work on her book, The Biggest Bluff, to compete in more tournaments with higher stakes.[20] She took up professional poker playing full-time. From June 2018 to November 2019, she partnered with PokerStars, who sponsored her in professional tournaments.[17]