You Can't Go Pro Without Already Being a Pro

[lehighguy]

I want to play X hands and win X dollars before going pro.

I work 60-80 hours a week since I graduated, so I can't play any hands.

This is a tough catch 22 for me.

I'm including 3 polls I would only like people to answer if they play full time for a living and make at least $70k/year.

I've made about $25,000 this year part-timing with long breaks (like when I started work), including an $8k multi cash in. I've played over 100,000 hands and over 500 SnGs but a lot of them are from when I played the lower levels.

[lighterjobs]

just quit your job already. life's too short.

[snowbank]

just quit your job already. life's too short.

I think your question is actually pretty valid and deserving more than just a short non-thought out answer.

Unfortuanlly I havent made this move myself, but I know others that have, and have had some thoughts about it for myself.

I currently make 60K at my current job. Ive talked to people who play up to 10/20 online, multitable, along with bonuses, and they can spend more than 60-70 hours a week just to average an amount that doesnt even equal my 60K a year.

Plus on top of that, you have to consider that you still are responsible for paying taxes, and well as make up for all the other benefits that having a job provides you with. (Health insurance being the major one, it's way more expensive when you have to pay for it on your own)

Also this is a no-brainer but before you even think about going pro, it's good to have a long enough track record part time so that you can be sure that you're really as good as you are and are not just experiencing positive varience.

Also Id be willing to bet that anyone who would just instantly suggest you should do it because "life is too short" is not making 70K a year and doesnt have much of a long term career.

If you are making 70K a year it's likely that you are in the process of having a career that you may of been working on for awhile. It's hard to just simply throw that away to play poker when you arent really sure what's going to happen.

[lehighguy]

I've gotten alot of votes, are all of you actually full time pro or just dabbling in poker.

i think "should i go pro" talk is very stupid.

if you think you can survive on poker, and you want to, then go pro.

if you can't then get a job.

if you don't try it, you can't know. PERIOD.

[MicroBob]

[ QUOTE ]
Ive talked to people who play up to 10/20 online, multitable, along with bonuses, and they can spend more than 60-70 hours a week just to average an amount that doesnt even equal my 60K a year.

[/ QUOTE ]


I know people run bad at times...but this doesn't seem terribly realistic.


Lets say that 'multi-tabling' is 3-tables.
Lets round down to 50 hds/hr per table (150 hands per hour total).
If you play 10/20 for 60 hours a week (ummmm....okay, whatever you say) then this is roughly 7500 hands per week.

At just 1BB/100 you should be making $1500/wk (which is more than $60k/yr...and we haven't even included bonuses and rake-back).



If you're playing 10/20 for 60 hours a week then making roughly $1k per week is pathetic.

You're friends are lying...or you are...because this just doesn't make sense.

[lehighguy]

Wether you "think" you can survive is based on data and analysis.

And based on that I would definitely say that 500k hands (Top option in your poll) is on the LOW end

[lehighguy]

That's just the thing. There is no way someone that isn't already playing full time can accumulate 500,000 hands. You have to way the numbed of hands you want versus the realities of you playing that much. You have to compromise. How much do you compromise? That is the point of the poll. But it seems every troll and their mother has responded about what they THINK they would need, rather then jsut people who actually did it responding.