Today we’d like to introduce you to Lydia Blair.
Hi Lydia, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
At almost 65 years old, this could be a long story 🙂
I’m currently the poker playing grandma from Texas on the Million Dollar Secret on Netflix. It’s a reality competition show that came out this year. But I just stumbled into that and it ended up being a really fun experience.
I was born on an Air Force Base in Sherman, Texas and lived around the world growing up. One of 6 children, I was quite the ugly duckling growing up (glasses, braces, acne, frizzy hair). I had to make new friends every time we moved. You learned to go along and get along and quickly adapt. That has served me well in life.
I’ve lived in the Preston Hollow area of Dallas my entire adult life and raised 3 children there. While I’ve got a typical resume of stay at home mom (Junior Leaguer, great cook, community volunteer), there is more to me than that. I’m also a savvy, competitive and tenacious.
While I live a very comfortable life, I know what it feels like to struggle. I’m not exactly Scarlett O’Hara – but I can relate to her. I worked my way through college, worked part time when my children were at home and then got divorced after 30 years of marriage. I worked hard to establish a successful career in real estate and retired from my position as vice president of a title company 2 years ago.
I am now married and between my husband and I, we have 7 kids and 5 grandchildren. I embrace adventure and in the last 10 years have tried everything from skydiving to swimming with sharks.
I think the 2 things that people find most interesting about me are:
– I play Texas Hold ‘Em poker tournaments regularly for money. It’s a challenging and fun activity. I learned to play poker when I was 12 from a salty old uncle who was a retired Navy man. I’ve won tournaments in poker rooms and casinos from Las Vegas to Austin. But I’m always learning and improving my game.
– I’m a walking scorekeeper for the PGA. I walk with the pros and their caddies at 4-7 tournaments a year in Texas and Mexico. It’s a big responsibility and so much fun to walk 18 holes a day behind the ropes and keep the real-time electronic records of every stroke and everything happening on the course. In addition to working the Byron Nelson tournament, I score the Mexico Open, The WWT in Cabo, a college tournament and others.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I dealt with insecurities and feeling unattractive from my early teens well into my 40s. Now in my 60s, I realize what a waste of time and talent that was. But we feel what we feel and hopefully we all get to a place of self-acceptance at some point.
My biggest struggle was knowing that my marriage of almost 30 years was failing and lacking the self-confidence to get out of it. At 52, I finally gave myself the kick in the butt that I needed to stand on my own. I had never lived on my own or had to support myself and I was anxious. But taking that leap and taking charge of my life was so gratifying.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’ve had several different jobs in my life, some more rewarding that others. It’s important for people of all ages to know that who you are and what you do will change many times throughout your life. And that’s a good thing.
My first job was at Six Flags when I was 16 years old. In my teens and 20s I worked as everything from a pool life guard to an American Airlines trainer. One of my first “real” jobs was writing press releases for a PR agency. When my children were young, I worked part time for a newspaper as a food writer. That lead to editing cookbooks. I enjoyed judging the cooking competitions at the State Fair of Texas for 27 years. The homemade ice cream judging day was the best day of the year!
When my children got older, I went to work as a Realtor and enjoyed many successful years. I transitioned to the title business and retired 2 years ago from my position as an Escrow Officer and Vice President of Allegiance Title.
I now play Texas Hold ‘Em poker tournaments. I’ve won tournaments in Oklahoma and Las Vegas casinos (at the Aria, Flamingo, Tropicana, Binions, etc.). And I’ve won tournaments at poker rooms across Texas (in Dallas, Houston, Austin, etc).
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
I believe that qualities most important to my success have been creativity and the ability to change and adapt.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.LydiaTexasGrandma.com
- Instagram: LydiaTexasGrandma
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lydia.player
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LydiaPlayer
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@lydiatexasgrandma
