[VoraciousReader]

[ QUOTE ]
Are you wanting to get in her pants or start a serious relationship?

If you want to get into her pants, lie.

If you want a relationship, tell her. If she isnt ok with the idea then a relationship wouldnt work out. If she is, then you may have found a keeper.

[/ QUOTE ]

You are going to get a lot of advice like this. And it sounds good but...

it's not going to get you many second dates. I am not an advocate of deceiving my fellow women, but 95 times out of 100 you're going to say "pro poker player" and she's going to hear "degenerate gambler", "unemployed", "delusions of grandeur", or "still lives in parents' basement."

Heck, I love poker and have a lot of respect for people that are good enough to earn a living at it (I am NOT, nor will I ever be, one of those people). However, in my opinion, most people who think they are good enough to earn a living at it, aren't. Clearly you are.

If someone said that to me on a first date, I would be skeptical. And I would be more receptive than most. How much of your first evening together do you want to spend having the "Yes I actually make money and am not constantly in danger of going broke and no it's not all luck and yes I have been doing this long enough to know that it is a sustainable source of income here let me explain about EV" conversation?

Personally, I would say something along the lines of "Oh, I have a boring internet job, but it pays well and lets me work from home."

This has the dual benefits of 1)being true (most people would find multitabling poker on the internet for 40 hours per week very boring) and 2)not getting you permanently consigned to the "not very close friend" category.

Because of #1, you shouldn't lose huge amounts of points for being a lying creep when on date 7 or 8 you admit that yes, the nice lifestyle you enjoy is actually supported by online poker. Plus, by that time she should be able to see that you are not chronically short of money. Ideally, she will also like you well enough that she'll be willing to be open-minded if she has reservations.

There is more risk for you this way: if by the 7th or 8th date you like her much more than you do now, and she can't deal with the situation, you're going to get hurt. That is another factor to consider. Also there is always the possibility that she would think being a pro poker player is the coolest thing ever and you've lost an opportunity to score major points. You know her, I don't...that has to be your call.

Think about a first date. Generally as a guy you choose to go somewhere a little nicer, put a little more thought into making the evening special, dress a little better, maybe get a haircut, definitely wash your car, and usually open doors. She does the feminine equivalents: extra time on the hair, the outfit, special perfume, moisturizes everything, cleans the living room, etc. She's going to eat the dinner even if she doesn't like it, unlock the car door for you after you've held the passenger for her, and so forth. It's best-foot-forward time. Not a good time to have to justify what you do for a living. (Besides, you should be doing more listening to her than talking about yourself, anyway.)

Just my two cents.

[Edit: Reading the rest of this thread, I just want to say that the "hooked up with two friends" thing isn't just exclusive to greeks. Almost everyone that I've ever known that has gone to college has encountered this phenomenon (at least the ones that weren't in committed relationships for most of it). You end up grouping yourselves with people of like interests and intelligence, men and women. Life happens and suddenly you're sitting around with your 2 closest friends and you realize you've all kissed/whatevered Tony...and Andy...and Michael... In fact, if you stay close after college, it's not uncommon to attend a wedding and realize that the entire wedding party has hooked up with each other at one time or another.]