Poker is a game of skill, fun, adventure, reward, and loss. While I highly recommend it as a leisure activity, I am reluctant to recommend it full time and here's why.
"Dear Geno," a member writes. "I would appreciate your input on a question I am asking myself. I am in my 20s, single and consider myself an above average poker player. I win far more often than I lose. I live in Iowa and work for a company owned by a member of my family. The job is good, it pays well, but I have a dream of becoming a professional poker player. Should I or shouldn't I?
Jim D., Des Moines, IA."
What a question!
Poker is poker regardless of where you are located. I have never played poker in Iowa, but I suspect the game isn't much different or much tougher than the games I have played in Pennsylvania, Florida and New Mexico.
Jim has a decent job that pays well. Since the business is owned by a family member, I would suspect it is his for a lifetime as long as he continues doing what is expected of him.
Let's examine his question of whether he should or should not become a professional player.
I am a journalist and magazine writer by profession. I love my work. When people ask me about my work, I can honestly tell them I have never had a dull day in my life.
My travels have taken me to a lot of places and I have lived in Las Vegas as well as Lake Elsinore, CA. where I basically played poker for a living. I can tell you this without reservation: it was the best and the worst of worlds.
A person with a normal job, and by normal I mean one that does not involve gambling, gets up in a different frame of mind from a professional gambler. You know you are going to report to a certain place at a certain time and do certain duties in order to collect a pay check.
You also know that around 5 PM., you will leave your place of employment and what you do the rest of the evening is up to you. That gives you a choice.
When you become a professional gambler, all of that changes. You get up, have breakfast, and if you are in a gaming mecca like Las Vegas or Reno, you head for the poker room to check out the action. When the poker table fills up, you join them. The action begins.
Now nobody is in the frame of mind to win all the time. You will have days when you simply do not want to play. Yet if you are a professional player, you play anyhow and pray for the best..jpg)
I admire professional players. They sacrifice a lot to gain that status and to keep their bankrolls intact. Win or lose, the bankroll is integral. It covers your living expenses, pays your buy-in fees, and enables you to enter tournaments.
Here is what I would suggest for Jim to do. He should temporarily forget about his thoughts of becoming a professional poker player. He should wait for his vacation time to come around and then go to Las Vegas for a week or two and simply start playing.
The daily ritual of playing poker will set in quickly. Jim can keep track of his wins and losses and at the end of his vacation time, he will pretty much know how he stacks up with the other players. He will also be able to evaluate how much he enjoys this new life he has chosen for himself.
Some people are cut out to be professional players and some are not. Todd Brunson, Doyle Brunson's son, chose that route and is doing very well for himself. Other sons and daughters of the legends of poker have tried and failed. The pro game isn't for everybody. I hope this information helps.
