Lex Veldhuis Uncovered: “Success exhausted me more than failure. But now, I know who I am”

How has your view of yourself changed since you first started playing poker?

I think that’s a really interesting question, because when I got into poker, I was very young. I wasn’t really happy with where I was in life, I had just finished high school and had no idea what I wanted to do next. I picked a university, but the truth is, I wasn’t happy with that decision either. I wasn’t making the right choices and didn’t have a clear sense of purpose.

Then I discovered poker and suddenly, I had something where I could channel all my competitiveness and drive to keep improving. I realized poker wasn’t just about cards for me; it was about learning who I was. The more I immersed myself, the more I fell in love with the process. I was still so young, and when you taste success at a young age, you kind of feel the world is at your feet, you believe you can do anything. Looking back, poker was really how I grew up.

I learned a lot of life skills; I had to figure out what passion and drive truly mean. With time, this journey brought some hard but valuable lessons. I feel almost like I went through adulthood twice. Later in my career, when things weren’t going the way I wanted, I was lost again. But that was a lesson too. Then I found streaming and that’s what tied everything together. Suddenly, it felt like I had a second career in poker, and I could approach things differently.

When did you realize your stream had become bigger than just playing poker?

Honestly, I think it happened almost immediately. In those first few streams, I was playing PLO cash games on PokerStars, but there was no passion for it. I was grinding for Supernova Elite, just putting in volume to collect points. I’d always pursued pushing myself to the top, climbing the stakes, trying to become the best. But playing PLO just for the numbers, just to rack up hours, was completely unfulfilling.

When the Supernova Elite program ended, I decided to try streaming. My first stream, I played $2,000 PLO games, thinking that would draw viewers. But then people started messaging me to play the Big 22 because they wanted to watch a tournament. That surprised me, people preferred a $22 tournament over a $2,000 cash game? Turns out, yes.

That’s when I realized people were invested in the journey itself, tournaments have a start and a finish, while cash games go on indefinitely. Right away, I knew my viewers wanted tournaments. I never loved tournaments particularly, but I made a choice to stream them. For the first four or five years, I always had this mindset: “What is the best thing I can do for the stream right now? What’s missing? What would make it even better?” Poker was almost background, I improved by playing, picking up tips from friends.

One of my earliest ideas was “Blow Friday”, everyone was doing bankroll challenges from zero to a thousand or ten thousand, which honestly bored me. So I said, “Every Friday, I’ll show you how I can bust a grand!” That’s when I started having more fun, drinking during streams, creating a show. I’ve always seen streaming as entertainment first and foremost.

Do you still have energy for streaming, or does it ever feel like a routine?

When I stream, I feel like I’m playing poker in front of friends. Twelve years I played alone at the computer, now it’s been nine years streaming and it’s a completely different vibe. Sometimes, I don’t feel like playing but I want to stream. Sometimes it’s the other way around, I want to play, but I don’t feel like streaming.

If I catch myself feeling it’s becoming a grind, I stop and ask, “What do I need to switch up? A new game? A fresh challenge?” If something feels like a routine for two weeks straight, I’ll rather take a break than fake it. I know if I’m not enjoying myself, the stream’s not going to work.

Do you feel there’s much difference between your public persona and your private self?

From the start, I promised myself I’d be genuine. If people enjoyed that, great, if not, it wouldn’t work anyway. I’d been watching streams since 2009 - Starcraft, Dota, all the esports stuff. My favorites were always the ones who showed real personality, sometimes in a great mood, sometimes openly down. I don’t like streamers who pretend to be upbeat 24/7.

Being on camera non-stop is like a live-in Big Brother, if you scratch your nose, someone will say you look sick. If you eat, someone will comment you’re eating weirdly. And if you’re faking it, you’ll burn out even faster.

What personal habits work best for you, and what are you still working on?

I’m trying to be healthier, fitter, and more mindful about sleep. Over the last four or five years, I’ve made real progress, at least as much as you can with two young kids. I’ve got a four-and-a-half-year-old son and a two-year-old daughter, so sleep isn’t always simple.

One thing I’ve learned since having kids is that the phone is a permanent extension of work. There’s always something to take care of, meetings, planning, research. But when I’m with my kids, I want to be present. I’ve become a lot clearer about what I want from work and how much energy I give to it. I used to hyper-focus on things, but if I’d found better balance back then, I might have become an even better player. I did well, but I could’ve been more consistent.

I’m also learning to push through resistance when trying something new - a new tool, new software. For example, I use Whoop to track sleep and recovery. I was nervous, thinking that if I saw bad numbers even when I felt good, it might drag me down. But actually, it’s great, if I see I haven’t slept much, I just adjust my training for the day.

I used to hate power naps, I thought they were a waste of time. But now, if I’m worn out or after a string of rough nights with the kids, I take quick naps, they help my stats and help me feel better too. I enjoy “gamifying” health, exercise and sleep. Strength training is my favorite, I believe it helps posture, metabolism, even that basic feeling of being strong. Plus, it just releases endorphins.

I also appreciate quiet moments, cold showers and meditation. It helps break up the day. Most importantly, I’ve realized that grinding 18 hours a day might work for two weeks, but when you look five years ahead, you need real downtime or you just can’t sustain it. I used to think working was the only way forward. Now I know rest is an essential part of work, it’s what lets you keep showing up at your best, long term.

How has life changed for you with a family and kids? Do you manage to keep a balance between work and personal life?

I definitely stream much less than before. I used to go live five or six days a week for ten hours a day. That’s just not doable anymore. I also shifted my playing schedule into the daytime. If I played at night, I’d barely see my kids.

I don’t just go all-out with work, then get home and collapse on the couch anymore. Now, free time with my kids isn’t just about recovering from exhaustion, I want to go outside, play with them, be truly present. That’s also why I always take a day off after a big event, to clear my head, take a walk, do absolutely nothing. When I get home then, I’m honestly looking forward to playing with them, not just hitting the couch, still tired and stressed.

What surprised you most when your first kids were born?

Maybe it’s strange, but for me, it wasn’t this huge, sudden change in my behavior. Five years ago, I lost my father, he’d been sick for a long time, had Parkinson’s. That taught me the importance of respecting your body if you’re healthy, and looking after yourself both physically and mentally.

So when the kids were born, I didn’t feel like life flipped upside down. What changed was, everything felt deeper. Emotions hit harder. But it wasn’t one of those moments where I thought, “Now, I have to be an adult.” That transition happened earlier, when I started streaming and when my dad passed. That’s when I started taking life more seriously. By the time the kids arrived, I was already in a solid place.

What has poker given you that helps in everyday life?

I learned that there’s always a chance things won’t work out and how to deal with that. When we travel, if our hotel reservation falls through or a flight gets canceled, it doesn’t rattle me. I know that’s just part of life now.

I remember a friend who wanted to start his own business. He said, “I’ll get a loan and go for it. I know it’ll work out.” I asked, “But what if the first year doesn’t go to plan?” He replied, “It has to.” My mindset, coming from poker, is different, you always consider things might not work out. And if they don’t, you look for a solution. If something goes wrong, sure, you can feel down or frustrated, but when you accept that it’s just part of the process, you can move forward.

Have you learned to handle failure well? How do you process the fact that poker is full of setbacks and bust-outs?

I think this is actually one of the biggest takeaways poker has given me. In everyday life, people aren’t used to constant setbacks. In poker, it’s part of the daily routine. I genuinely believe poker players have a different approach, you know you can lose even when you play perfectly. As tough as it is, you can’t let yourself get stuck in that disappointment.

Do you have plans for more live events like Lex Live? What’s your vision for that?

I’d love for Lex Live to keep growing, for the poker side to get even bigger, and for more of the community to join in. I want us to host it annually at least. I have no interest in making it just another generic, non-community event. Maybe eventually we could have Lex Live twice a year if the structure supports it, but we’ll see.

But for me, the crucial thing is that it always keeps the same energy - intimate, friendly, a real home for everyone who comes. I don’t want to lose that welcoming vibe or the feeling that this is “our” event. It’s basically an extension of what I do online. I’m not passionate about organizing events per se, it’s about the community and sharing this unique experience around poker.

If you had unlimited time and money, what would you want to build?

That’s a big question… If I had unlimited resources, I’d definitely focus on community projects. I’d probably create a huge community center where I live. A place for people to get together, run activities for kids, really do something good for others.

Another thing close to my heart is tackling loneliness. There are so many projects for kids without families or older people who are alone. That’s something I’d love to support, and do something about.

If you could go back and give advice to your 18-year-old self, what would you say?

I’d say: “Just relax.” You don’t have to destroy yourself trying to chase down every experience. If you do things the right way, experiences will come to you, sometimes even more than you expect. I’d also tell myself to care more about my own well-being, take a moment and ask if what I’m doing is really the best for me.

But to be fair, giving advice to your younger self is a lot like listening to your parents. Even if you hear it, you don’t always actually take it in. My younger self would probably tell me: “Shut up, old man.” Honestly, I wouldn’t trade any of what I went through, all those dumb decisions, wild stories, wins and losses. If I look at where I was as a teenager, in that situation, it’s naïve to think I could—or would—have done everything differently.

How do you like Bratislava and the local vibe?

It’s fantastic. I’ve asked people in the community what they thought about the hotel, Banco Casino and everyone rated it a nine or nine and a half out of ten. We’ve had four different locations for Lex Live and keep moving around, but I really think there’s a good chance we’ll come back here. It’s a beautiful city, peaceful, no cars downtown, just walkable squares and amazing architecture. Great food, great people.

I always wanted to explore Central and Eastern Europe and discover less obvious cities. Most people go to Madrid, London, Barcelona, Paris, Rome... I wanted to see places like Sofia, Ljubljana, Bratislava, Tallinn, Riga. I’m honestly thrilled to share this with my community. And now that I’m here, I don’t even want to leave. Truthfully, I really love it here.

Follow Lex on social media:

• X – https://x.com/LexVeldhuis
• YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@LexVeldhuisTV
• Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/lexveldhuis
• Twitch – https://www.twitch.tv/lexveldhuis