Poker News
Professional Poker: Earning Your Way to the Top
It’s a foreign concept to many people who give the game of poker a chance; people playing poker for a living, seemingly effortlessly. They continually win pot after pot without a second thought, rake in millions of dollars in earning, and have endorsements, video games, and eye candy draped over them everywhere they go. How do they pull off playing poker for a living? There’s a lot more that goes into being a professional than simply showing up and winning.
The best players, for the most part, have poured countless hours grinding their way up the ranks from the cheap seats to the middle stakes all the way to the nosebleeds and beyond. Chris Moneymaker won his seat into the main event in 2003 on a $40 satellite. Viktor Blom grinded low stakes tables online before he became the huge stakes grinder he is renowned for. These players didn’t plop $100,000 down and become a pro; they earned their way to their status.
They also used these countless hours of play to refine their game. most players have done countless hours of study and analysis of their own play at the tables, along with the play of many amateurs and professionals before them, finding patterns, tells, and more as they pour over hand after hand to plug leaks and improve their game. To put it in perspective, think about your favorite board game. You probably think you’re pretty good at it, right? These players, if they were professionals at the board game of your choice, would’ve put 40-70 hours a week of play and analysis into becoming a professional, including possibly playing more than one version of the game at once. Sound easy? Playing poker for a living is exhilarating and the ultimate dream for many amateur poker players, but player beware; it takes a lot more than a bankroll to hang with poker’s elite.
