How to become a poker pro
One does not become a professional poker player by graduating through
a school or by being bestowed upon the title of a pro. It's the
choice you make of playing poker as an occupation.
Why choose to be a poker professional poker?
The choice is made when players feel they can make more money at
poker than any other game. They usually log 500 hours of poker where
they find their hourly rate much higher than any other job they
would have done. A pro usually uses a website CheckYourBets.com
to track statistics like these. Another reason may be that they
love playing poker so much that they would sacrifice income for
freedom. Though most expect poker to be a temporary job, waiting
for a more lucrative long lasting job in the future, very few adopt
poker and make it their life career.
For professional poker players this is a form of business. They
have to use their skill, bankroll, guts, accompanied with luck to
maximize their earnings. A true pro knows which game he or she excels
at and plays the one that gives him or her highest hourly rate.
There is no fixed number of hours played by the pros.
Generally, the factors that affect one's hourly rate include:
- One's skill compared to others' skill
- Number of hands per hour/tables the person can play
- The rake or time charge
- The variance involved
Very often it is not skill but being smart that wins you more money.
Many pros play against people who don't mind losing, this means
playing soft, loose games. . Also, because a poker player wants
to exert his or her edge as much as possible, the number of hands
one plays is a critical factor. Of course, it depends on the type
of game the pro chooses.
If a pro is a Limit Hold'em player, then playing on the internet
at 3 tables at once will easily yield five times as many hands per
hour compared to a person playing in a traditional casino. If the
two are playing the same limit against comparable competition, the
internet pro can easily make five times as much. While the B&M
player can focus more on his one game, the internet pro has the
advantage of a lower rake and the ability to play many more hands
per hour.
At Limit Poker, hand volume is much more important than player
reads. For No-Limit Poker, reads are more important. Thus, a player
might not be able to play two or three games at once. Again, it
depends on the player, but his or her choice of medium will greatly
affect his or her hourly rate.
Tournament professionals are much less since the competition is
stronger and tournaments have a high level of variance than cash
games. Tournament playing is not lucrative at all.
The disadvantage of being a professional poker player
First, it is not a very social activity and if you are an internet
pro, you are essentially playing at home, with little human interaction.
Secondly, poker can become very monotonous. Though poker offers
a variety of games a poker professional is primarily interested
in making money and will want to mainly play the one game that provides
highest hourly rate. This can become very boring. Thirdly, many
feel that the poker player does not really contribute anything to
society, but that's changing as professional poker players are often
considered 'entertainers.' Finally, and most importantly to many,
poker can have a highly variable income. This fluctuating income
may not appeal to many. Generally, poker players with large bankrolls
tend to fare better and play with less fear.
A professional poker prefers to play against a poor player as that
will get him better income than playing against players far superior
to him or her. A poker professional's income is much more dependent
on the skill of others than himself. If no new, poor players enter
the poker world, the professional will probably have to look for
a new job.
For the above reasons, most solid poker players do not become professionals.
Poker is often better as a secondary job. 'Semi-professionals' like
poker more as a hobby and they sometimes end up making more money
than many professionals.
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