Living on Easy Street

[Lawrence Ng]

Excellent article.

Lawrence

[Ed Miller]

Thank you.

[Al Schoonmaker]

Lawrence,

I agree. This article and his others on going pro contain solid advice that pros and wannabes -- especially the young ones -- should follow.

Regards,

Al

[TheGame1020]

What if the wannabe pro will just play poker and flunk out of school anyways? If the young person isn't going to try at school then he might as well do something productive. How completely wrong am I?

[Ed Miller]

[ QUOTE ]
What if the wannabe pro will just play poker and flunk out of school anyways? If the young person isn't going to try at school then he might as well do something productive. How completely wrong am I?

[/ QUOTE ]

Damn. Don't flunk out of school! Get off your asses and do what it takes not to flunk out. How hard is that?

[BarronVangorToth]

It is amazing, Ed, how some kids aren't paying enough attention in school. One of the guys who plays my WWE Raw Deal game has a full ride to his school, all he has to do is keep a measly 3.4 GPA. Somehow ... he just barely kept it, after getting a 3.1 in his fall semester and getting on probation.

I hollered at him for like an hour before his spring semester to get off his can and buckle down.

Priorities.

We talk about EV all the time -- and getting your university degree is double-plus EV.

Barron Vangor Toth
BarronVangorToth.com

[BeerMoney]

[ QUOTE ]
It is amazing, Ed, how some kids aren't paying enough attention in school. One of the guys who plays my WWE Raw Deal game has a full ride to his school, all he has to do is keep a measly 3.4 GPA. Somehow ... he just barely kept it, after getting a 3.1 in his fall semester and getting on probation.

I hollered at him for like an hour before his spring semester to get off his can and buckle down.

Priorities.

We talk about EV all the time -- and getting your university degree is double-plus EV.

Barron Vangor Toth
BarronVangorToth.com

[/ QUOTE ]

I see part of the problem is our attitude towards education as being a necessary stepping stone to a solid financial future, or a sort of rite of passage. My point is that an education should be looked as a priviledge and part of personal development. People in other countries don't have the same attitudes that we as American's have.

[BluffTHIS!]

Well Ed, as someone who plays full-time and is 20 years older than most of the posters here, I have to say I disagree with the part of your article that says it won't last forever. The reason I disagree is because all over the world each year, there will be a new crop of young punk high school and college kids who watch Rounders for the first of 292 times, and who jump online at the first opportunity with their money and become a wannabe, only to slowly lose their dough and interest and move on to be replaced by the following year's crop. Just like weeds they'll keep sprouting up and provide us pros with new opportunities to mow over another year's worth. Only an economic depression would act as an effective weed killer.

[chezlaw]

[ QUOTE ]
Well Ed, as someone who plays full-time and is 20 years older than most of the posters here, I have to say I disagree with the part of your article that says it won't last forever. The reason I disagree is because all over the world each year, there will be a new crop of young punk high school and college kids who watch Rounders for the first of 292 times, and who jump online at the first opportunity with their money and become a wannabe, only to slowly lose their dough and interest and move on to be replaced by the following year's crop. Just like weeds they'll keep sprouting up and provide us pros with new opportunities to mow over another year's worth. Only an economic depression would act as an effective weed killer.

[/ QUOTE ]

The problem is that the number of new weeds is relatively constant (or will become so) and the number of pros waiting to mow them down will keep rising. Given that plus other factors they may harm the game; legislation, bots, fashion etc. and it must be sensible to assume the games will get a lot worse.

chez

[TimM]

[ QUOTE ]
Excellent article.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes it was. But now I feel a little guilty about having just spent $3,000+ on a TV. /images/graemlins/frown.gif

[Ed Miller]

[ QUOTE ]
Well Ed, as someone who plays full-time and is 20 years older than most of the posters here, I have to say I disagree with the part of your article that says it won't last forever. The reason I disagree is because all over the world each year, there will be a new crop of young punk high school and college kids who watch Rounders for the first of 292 times, and who jump online at the first opportunity with their money and become a wannabe, only to slowly lose their dough and interest and move on to be replaced by the following year's crop. Just like weeds they'll keep sprouting up and provide us pros with new opportunities to mow over another year's worth. Only an economic depression would act as an effective weed killer.

[/ QUOTE ]

My point certainly wasn't that poker will ever dry up as a potential source of income. My point was that winrates right now are bloated beyond what they could have been five years ago and what they probably will be five years from now. Someone making $300/hour today (and there are quite a few) might make $150-$200/hour five years from now. While that's still good money, it's quite a pay cut.

If internet poker gets hammered for whatever reason, those winrates could drop further to $80/hour or even less.

The point of that section (which I now realize I could have made clearer if I had worded it just this way) is... don't plan your financial future counting on your $300/hour to last forever.