Playing poker for a living (my experience so far) HELP!

Thought I give you all my experiences of playing poker every day at pp for that last 4 months.

Financially, the results have been great. Would have been greater if I did not give myself a dumb raise and jumped into the 100/200 game earlier in Oct. I had a great month in Sept with 30/60 and 50/100, so I decided to give the 100/200 a shot.

In a 48 hours, I got my face kicked in and lost $30k in that game. Stupid me. However I did manage to pick myself up, went back to the 30/60 game, and now only down -$10k for oct. I still have a few days left, so hopefully I'll be even or + a few thousand.

What have I learned these past four months? That it is incredibly hard playing poker every day. I don't know how anyone could do this for years. Its boring. The emotional highs and lows can be overwhelming at times. Not only when I lose, but when I win.

Now it's commons for me to have dreams about poker hands 4 to 5 nights a week. Its a blessing when I can sleep and not dream about poker.

I only like the money, not the game itself. The freedom to play whenver I want is nice. However, I think about playing all the time. And when I'm not playing, i'm reading about poker to better my game. But I hate playing the game, I just like winning!

How do you deal with all the negative aspects of playing full time? HELP!

[MoDOH]

chill...

[Subfallen]

Dude. You've been playing poker for 4 months (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=mediumholdem&Number=351283 2&Forum=&Words=&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Main=3512832 &Search=true&where=bodysub&Name=46596&daterange=1& newerval=3&newertype=m&olderval=&oldertype=&bodypr ev=#Post3512832) and are taking shots at 100/200. What the hell?

[ggbman]

I dont play full time, but i log enough hands to be able to relate to about everything in your OP. Theres a few things here i would like to point out.

1.) You can make a good living with less emotional stress at the 30-60 games. It can be worth it to sacrifice a little EV to make poker stress you out less. The time you are not playing should be your time, poker should not monopolize your thoughts.
2.) You don't sound like you want to do this forever. This is fine! But make sure you know what you are going to do when you dont make poker your primary occupation. You don't mention your age/education, but be sure you have options outside of poker.
3.) Lastly, dont let results influence you so much. Sometimes you take chances and they dont work. If you end up in the negative for October, it doesn't matter. If you play winning poker, you will have a losing month here and there and make eons the rest of the time. Don't get to stressed out over it.

Good luck!

Gabe

[obi---one]

If you want to play poker professionally you have to love poker. If you haven't been playing for a long time and already find the game boring, you must stop. You will be unhappy. You don't want to fall into the money pit, where you feel like you have to play because you need the money. Isn't that a reason a lot of people decide to play poker, to avoid doing something they dislike for the money?

[JohnnyHumongous]

Your experiences and opinions regarding poker match my own more or less exactly. (Except for the 100/200 part). That's why I'm so happy I took a terrific job that pays a lot less than I could make grinding on Party all day long as a full-time pro.

[baronzeus]

[ QUOTE ]
Dude. You've been playing poker for 4 months (http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=mediumholdem&Number=351283 2&Forum=&Words=&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Main=3512832 &Search=true&where=bodysub&Name=46596&daterange=1& newerval=3&newertype=m&olderval=&oldertype=&bodypr ev=#Post3512832) and are taking shots at 100/200. What the hell?

[/ QUOTE ]


he's been playing poker for a long time before that Live. so that shouldn't be a problem.

[bobbyi]

[ QUOTE ]
That it is incredibly hard playing poker every day. I don't know how anyone could do this for years. Its boring.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is not unique to poker. The large majority of jobs in this world are things that are pretty boring to do everyday for years.

[brick]

http://www.funinprague.com/img/photos/beer-walk-small.jpg

It sounds to me like you will not be happy doing this in the long term. My advice would be to do it a while to make some $$$ which would give you the flexibility to pursue something that you're more passionate about.

[catlover]

I pretty much agree that if you don't like it, in the long run you need to find something else.

That said, in the short run you have your head screwed on straight. The fact that you had the good sense to move back down when 100/200 proved to be difficult speaks volumes.

[elmo]

fwiw, he did lose 150 bets before he moved down.

[Eric P]

Poker is most people's hobby away from work. It's your job, so either find a different varient of poker for a hobby ( that you can combine into your work) or find a hobby that you really like. You can work from anywhere in the world thanks to the internet, take a vacation.

[oreogod]

I think playing poker for a living (if u know what u are doing and understand the inner workings of variance) is far better than any 40 hour job Ive ever had (office, retail, server...etc)...the only thing I would trade it for is getting back into working within the movie industry (by far the best jobs ever)...but for someone as lazy as I am, i can play 10 hours a week if need be and most of the time make far more than I could within a 40 hour week elsewhere.

But I also love the game. Sure it can be a bitch, but I like it for the competetiveness and money.

[Peter_rus]

I'm playing for a living.

If i'm tired from playing - i'm simply quit playing. Meeting friends, find new chick, make some business not concerned with poker, crushing some loose-aggressives in "Doom" etc..

If you playing 30/60 - it's easy to be lazy ass logging 100 hours in a month (as i do last 3 months) and having 30K for a fun living.

Hey ggbman,

Thanks for the tip. I've never played full time poker like this before. I use to go to commerce when I lived in LA 2 or 3 times a month to play the 40/80 games a few years ago.

After my company closed a few months ago, I decided to give playing poker a shot. As I won a $7k playing at Pokerstars back in March for the first time.

I just didn't realize how playing everyday would be so "tough" emotionaly and mentaly.

I tried 100/200 in september. Lost 20k, won it back plus more in 30/60 and 50/100. Tried 100/200 again in oct, lost $30k. Stupid me was chasing my loss, and everything I did came up empty. I've stayed away from the 50/100 and higher for the past two weeks and everything seems to be on the upswing again. I think i've learned my lesson and just stick to 30/60.

I just need to find something else to occupy my time. I don't have really high daily goals. Winning avg $1k is enough for me to stop playing for the day. Regardless if its 1 session or 3 or 4 sessions in a day. But I always want play. And I guess that is where the real problem is.

Hey subfallen,

Well, I played live poker casually at 40/80 at the commerce a few years ago. Going 2 or 3 times a month. Not very good, won some, lost some. Just never took it very seriously. If I went to vegas, I would play the table games, never the poker games.

But I tasted online poker the first time with pokerstars back in march. in a week I won $7k at 30/60. Then my company closed in April, and I decided to give full time poker a shot. Never did I imagine how tough it would be playing everyday.

Stupid me for taking shots at 100/200. I lost in sept playing that level, but the other levels still put me on the plus side. So i decided to give it another shot at the beginning of this month. Lost again. and it really turned my game upside down. I was still chasing that huge lost when I went back to 50/100, and that didn't work at all.

So the past two weeks, I've stayed only at the 30/60 and slowing digging myself out of the lost I created by playing at a level I was not financial or mentally prepared for.

Very stupid of me.

Hi Obi,

thanks for the tip. It's weird writing to you, since there's been many times I wanted to slap you when I played the 50/100 and 100/200 earlier this month.

You play all the time. Do you really love playing the game? Doesn't the winnings and losing sessions ever mess with your head? Or do you feel the same whether you had a losing or winning day.

I need to find filler time between my sessions, so I don't always want to play. At least when I played live, I would have to drive there. Think about traffic, go home etc. With online, its just a click of a button. I don't even have to get dressed. just wake up, brush my teeth, and i'm playing in all of 15 minutes.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
That it is incredibly hard playing poker every day. I don't know how anyone could do this for years. Its boring.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is not unique to poker. The large majority of jobs in this world are things that are pretty boring to do everyday for years.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're absolutely right. It's just that I've never played poker every day before. The highs and lows of winnings was something I did not really prepare for. Any suggestions on minimizing the downside of playing everyday?

[ QUOTE ]
I pretty much agree that if you don't like it, in the long run you need to find something else.

That said, in the short run you have your head screwed on straight. The fact that you had the good sense to move back down when 100/200 proved to be difficult speaks volumes.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm haven't really decided if I can handle playing everyday for the long run.

With regards to playing the 100/200. It was stupid. I tried it in sept, I lost $20k. but I won at the other levels to make it a great month for me. So I tried it again in oct. And the lost was even greater than the first time.

It threw me off my game for almost two weeks. So much that I couldn't even play the 50/100 like I was able to in Sept. as I kept seeing the same players who beat me in the 100/200.

So for the last two weeks, I've only played the 30/60 and have gotten some of my confidence back.

I don't think I'm going back to that game for a long long long time. I would have been in a great position if I never played that game. A tough and very expensive lesson to experience, in my opinion.

Good advice. My problem is that I just discovered how easy it is to get online and play. Before when I played live, I would have to get dressed, make time and drive there.

Now I can be playing within minutes of getting to my computer anytime I want. I try to do other things, like read (about poker) play video games, go out, etc.

But everytime I get back home, I have to fight the urge not to play if I had a winning day.

Do you play all the time? If you love the game, how do you keep yourself from playing?

Does winning and losing every day take its toll on you? Can I ask how long you have been playing?

[PokerBob]

[ QUOTE ]
Thought I give you all my experiences of playing poker every day at pp for that last 4 months.


[/ QUOTE ]

even if my job was to bang hot girls, i'd get sick of it if i had to do it every day.

Yes, I try to do the same. I'm just kind of depressed that I may be doing this for the next few years.

But its so easy to play. I guess I'm not use to it yet. I should be. But I'm still learning not only about the game, but also about the lifestyle required to play full time.

[flawless_victory]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Thought I give you all my experiences of playing poker every day at pp for that last 4 months.


[/ QUOTE ]

even if my job was to bang hot girls, i'd get sick of it if i had to do it every day.

[/ QUOTE ]
STFU

[Lestat]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Thought I give you all my experiences of playing poker every day at pp for that last 4 months.


[/ QUOTE ]

even if my job was to bang hot girls, i'd get sick of it if i had to do it every day.

[/ QUOTE ]

Bet you'd have some sick days left over at the end of the year though. /images/graemlins/wink.gif

[stigmata]

I think it would help to lay down some rules of professional conduct to yourself. Something like:

1) Play perhaps 20 hours a week (4 day week, two 2.5 hour sessions per day). This will stop you burning out.

2) Just become a simple 30/60 grinder. It sounds like the higher limits are stressing you out. Only doing the grind for 20 hours a week makes your life a million times better than most people in the world. Also, you will be more relaxed, and playing your "A" game most of the time.

3) To stop yourself getting entirely bored of poker, if you want to do "overtime", do something different. Enter a tournament, Learn PLO, or take a 1-table shot at the higher stakes.

Try and balance the weekly grind with keeping yourself fresh.

[ALL1N]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm playing for a living.

If i'm tired from playing - i'm simply quit playing. Meeting friends, find new chick, make some business not concerned with poker, crushing some loose-aggressives in "Doom" etc..

If you playing 30/60 - it's easy to be lazy ass logging 100 hours in a month (as i do last 3 months) and having 30K for a fun living.

[/ QUOTE ]

Haha, your post reminded me of bang bang bang (http://www.ebaumsworld.com/flash/bangbangbang.html). /images/graemlins/grin.gif /images/graemlins/grin.gif Tks mate!

[oreogod]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Thought I give you all my experiences of playing poker every day at pp for that last 4 months.


[/ QUOTE ]

even if my job was to bang hot girls, i'd get sick of it if i had to do it every day.

[/ QUOTE ]

I could stare at and play with the female anatamoy a hell of a lot longer than I could stare at a computerized poker table while playing with a stack of 11.5 clay chips.

All day in and out baayybee, All day in and out...just be knock'em back like bottles of beer.

[ QUOTE ]
even if my job was to bang hot girls, i'd get sick of it if i had to do it every day.

[/ QUOTE ]

-EV.

[stoxtrader]

[ QUOTE ]
But everytime I get back home, I have to fight the urge not to play if I had a winning day.


[/ QUOTE ]

what?

[mmcd]

[ QUOTE ]
Winning avg $1k is enough for me to stop playing for the day. Regardless if its 1 session or 3 or 4 sessions in a day.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is stupid. Why would you want to minimize your wins like this. If you play your 3 or 4 sessions and only make 1000, ok, no big deal, but if you always quit after you get get up 1000, you're leaving lots of money on the table. If you're playing several tables, you could get up 1000 in 5 minutes. Why wouldn't you want to continue playing and make more?

[tpir90036]

[ QUOTE ]
crushing some loose-aggressives in "Doom" etc..

[/ QUOTE ]
I have always been a weak-tight FPS player. I need to work on this. I think my spawn defense needs some work. My stats for that spot are pretty terrible.

Hey GoodMoneyManager,

Maybe I can add something useful from a little different perspective. I've only recently started playing poker, but have been a commodity trader for several years. Like poker, I have a small edge from my trading strategies. Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. Sometimes I stare at the screen for weeks without doing any trades (I'm a very bored trader, hence my new poker habit). The real trick to being successful isn't the edge, its the psychology. Anybody can find good places to enter or leave the market but very few people can actually trade well because of the psychology. Anybody can read 2+2 books, but few can follow the strategies well.

[ QUOTE ]
The emotional highs and lows can be overwhelming at times. Not only when I lose, but when I win.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is really the heart of the issue i think. I would strongly suggest you check out Ed Seykota's website (www.seykota.com/tribe/). Its a bit hokey at first but it will improve your ability to weather this stuff. It takes a while. Its not a matter of loving the game or some type of self discipline. And once you get it figured out, that 20k will be nothing.

As far as direct advice on sleep, "sell down to the sleeping point" is the trader slogan. Cut back on your play until you sleep well.

I hope this helps. The funny thing is that I picked up Poker to help learn how to handle trading stress; I was hoping the gamblers had it all figured out.

[kidcolin]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I'm playing for a living.

If i'm tired from playing - i'm simply quit playing. Meeting friends, find new chick, make some business not concerned with poker, crushing some loose-aggressives in "Doom" etc..

If you playing 30/60 - it's easy to be lazy ass logging 100 hours in a month (as i do last 3 months) and having 30K for a fun living.

[/ QUOTE ]

Haha, your post reminded me of bang bang bang (http://www.ebaumsworld.com/flash/bangbangbang.html). /images/graemlins/grin.gif /images/graemlins/grin.gif Tks mate!

[/ QUOTE ]

"find new chick".. awesome man. Awesome.

Work is work. If you don't love playing poker all day every day, you should quit unless you're making a lot more money than you could otherwise. Not many jobs are easy and stress free. In fact, if you find one that is, let me know. This past month, I've been happy just to be a small loser, and in months past this might weigh on my mind more than it does now, but you grow numb to wins and losses eventually, you just almost become a robot who is almost emotionless to a motion he goes through 5000 times a week,

[nichtgut]

Get a part time job. I work 60% (3 days a week) as the IT manager of a small company. I meet some people, drink some coffe, install a few patches then I go home, play a couple of hours of poker and make my real money. I too play 30-60, 50-100 and 100-200. The 60% job is just for social reasons.
If I'm playing and I'm bored or losing I start to sing. Just sing about what's happening at the tables. It's a lot more fun that way.
/NG