I think the author is at least to some extent making a straw man argument.
I don’t know anyone who claims that Bill Gates would have been a failure in life had he not been successful in taking MS to dominance in the software world. The truth is that a number of factors, most of them involving just luck, made the difference between his being one of millions of highly successful people and his becoming the richest man in the world.
Claiming that all success is due to personal prowess and hard work is just as dumb as claiming that it’s all due to luck. Both are pretty obviously involved.
Yep, success stems from being in the right place at the right time...
AND being smart enough to recognize that you're IN the right place at the right time.
AND being disciplined enough to work to take advantage of the opportunity.
Luck plays a role, but largely, you make your own luck.