Have you heard those stories about people who earn a living from playing poker? Read our article to see what are the advantages and disadvantages of dedicating your life to professional gambling.
Life of a Professional Poker Player
Let us get things straight right away — yes, it is possible to earn a living from playing poker. The big question though: is it easy? The answer is — not exactly, but it is not that hard either.
Professional poker players are living proof against the old saying that gambling makes rich people poor, and poor people even more unfortunate. Poker masters, however, take most out of gambling by fully dedicating their energy to poker. It seems as though these people manage to do the impossible, so many admire their decision, while others wonder how do they do it.
It is no mystery — professional poker players work hard just like everybody else. It takes a lot of time and energy to perfect your skills enough to be able to start a poker career. But let’s take a closer look into the advantages and disadvantages of such a decision.
Professional Poker: Pros
- You love your work
Playing poker professionally sounds like an exciting venture compared to boring corporative jobs. Poker is a neverending source of excitement. Besides, if you are an online player, you work from home and enjoy all the benefits of freelancing. Additionally, playing poker requires no degree or qualifications — the only thing you have to have is exceptional wit and enough experience in the game.
- Flexible working hours
Professional poker players have no targets to reach, no working hours, and no boss. They work as much as they want and need, and they are their own masters. Again, if you are playing online, you don’t even depend on the casino’s working hours, and can test your luck 24/7. So, freedom is the keyword of the professional poker lifestyle.
- A great earning potential
Live online poker gives great earning opportunities to skillful players because average players are much weaker here than at the classic poker table. No one knows exactly why, maybe because recreational online gamblers tend to choose live poker more often.
Professional Poker: Cons
- Variance is the old party-breaker
Variance is the name for the reason that makes it simply impossible to win every game. A good strategy significantly raises your odds of winning, but not even the best win all the time. Variance can be fairly challenging in terms of patience and money. Pros need both to survive the periods of bad luck.
- It is hard to know your win-rate
A win-rate, put simply, is the measurement of the frequency and level of your downswings. It takes some mathematical calculations and needs to consider a huge number of your rounds, and it is essential for poker professionals to prepare for the bad periods.
- A substantial initial capital required
On the one hand, as with any other business, professionals need some money to start off. On the other hand, they always have to have some savings to survive downswings.
- Exhaustion
A life of a professional poker player is everyday calculations and careful strategies, which can be tiring after some time. In other words, an overload of excitement leads to an overload of stress.
Conclusion
A decision to dedicate life to professional gambling should be made carefully and only after all facts are brought together. If you want to learn how to become a player who is able to earn from poker, explore some of the online tutorials. Professionals are happy to teach you how to make gambling work in your benefit!