Living the Dream: What Can You Expect as a pro?
January 20th, 2010
Call me a wide-eyed idealist, but I like to believe that anyone could turn pro if they were willing to put in the time and dedication. After all, a lot of poker can be learned. You can study strategy guides and read books to learn tip and tricks. If you want to be perfectly fair, you could also memorize mathematical formulas so you know what to do in every possible situation. I assume that everyone can do this if they tried. However, I do not think that everyone would want to cross the amateur divide and start playing professionally.
As a professional poker online player, your life hinges solely on your performance at the table. If you lose a pot, that was money that you needed for your daily expenses. If you win a pot, that’s rent money. I would not be able to deal with the stress of playing pro because I would feel like I was risking my mortgage with each hand. Proper bankroll management can minimize, but never fully eradicate this feeling.
I also think that many people would get frustrated by the professional viewpoint that online poker is a business. It all boils down to money when you play professionally because that money is your income. You can’t play for fun anymore because you can’t risk making foolish mistakes. Is this living the dream? I don’t think so.
