Are Germans the Sharpest Gamblers in the World?

While going through my in-box to delete the junk and clutter, I happened to come across a link to an article published earlier this year that shows Australians to be the biggest losers with regard to gambling per adult residents.

We all know that Aussies love their pokies, an adoration that generated losses amounting to $18.4 billion in 2013. But buried at the bottom of the chart with the least losses per resident was Germany.

Being an American citizen --but of German descent-- this naturally piqued my interest. If Germans lose the least, does that make them the best gamblers the world over?

I have been running quite well at Bovada's cash tables lately, thank you. And just one week ago, I bet with my head instead of my heart and enjoyed a nice payday when I correctly picked the Green Bay Packers to overcome 7.5 points and beat my beloved Chicago Bears, which they did easily (55-14).

OK, that one wasn't too difficult to see coming considering quarterback Jay Cutler never does well in Green Bay. (Cutler doesn't do well in a lot of stadiums, including Soldier Field).

But my limited success and native ancestry aside, what about the world of poker? Are Germans making their country proud and showing good reason why they deserve to be at the bottom of that list of top gambling losers? After all, the article could have been written another way by flipping the numbers around and showing Germans to be the best gambers by virtue of losing the least.

The answer is a big "Yes" considering that German George Danzer is on an incredibly good run that saw him win three WSOP bracelets in a span of five months and on two continents. His total live earnings surpassed $2 million, a good chunk of that coming from seven cashes at the WSOP in Las Vegas in June followed by three more at the WSOP Asia-Pacific in Melbourne in October.

How about Fabian Quoss, who just a few days ago won a HK$250,000 High Roller in Macau that the Hendon Mob database shows to be worth $679,862 in American dollars. That pushed the Nuremberg pro's career tournament winnings past $6 million.

Let's not forget 'Mad' Marvin Rettenmaier, whose best payday of almost $1.2 million at a $25,500 World Poker Tour tournament in 2012 is but one of almost 100 cashes in live tournaments since 2009. Or Tobias Reinkemeier, the Hamburg pro who tops Germany's all-time money list with $9,638,833 in lifetime earnings.

An argument certainly can be made on behalf of Germans and their ability to excel in poker and gambling circles. What do you think? Are Germans the sharpest poker players and gamblers?