Laak became known widely in the poker scene as the "Unabomber" because of the hooded sweatshirt and sunglasses he wears at the table, making him resemble the forensic sketch of Theodore Kaczynski, who was known as the Unabomber. These items were given to him by fellow poker player Gus Hansen. Laak is also known for his unusual and inventive manner of speech. He coined the poker terms "felted", which means having lost all of one's chips (i.e. nothing left in front of the player except the table felt), as well as "upstuck", meaning being down from your high point of the session (i.e., if you won $15,000 and then lost $10,000 within the same session). He also coined the terms "POW" (Pay-off wizard), which he uses in a self-mocking fashion (i.e. one who pays off big bets on the river), and "Cherry bomb", which refers to large, ultimately unsuccessful bets.