Playing Poker For A Living Tips

Posted on by admin

Yes, you can make a living playing poker in 2021. However, it is not easy. You have to work hard to be a winning player these days. You also have to be very disciplined. However, for some people like me playing poker for a living allows a lot of freedom. There are many different factors involved with.

  • Playing poker for a living isn’t easy, and often isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, so don’t make any rush decisions In the online arena, things have become very tough. It is still possible to win, but you need to be prepared to work really hard and learn to use software to select tables, track stats, and more.
  • Playing poker for a living isn’t just about learning strategies and math behind the game. This is, of course, a crucial component, and you won’t be able to get far without it, but there is much more to being a successful poker player. First of all, you need to have real determination for your goal and a lot of patience.

Back in the early 2000s, many poker players managed to quickly move up in stakes and build big bankrolls from virtually zero, and this played a huge role in poker booming. While the “good old easy days” are over, you can still decide to playing poker for a living and achieve success if you are ready to work (hard!) on your game.

Becoming a successful player in today’s climate takes a lot of time and effort, which is why you no longer hear nearly as many great “rags to riches” poker stories. However, the poker dream still isn’t dead. As a matter of fact, with the world-wide COVID-19 pandemic ranging, we’ve borne witness to how popular poker remains, seeing massive surges of popularity for the game online while people are on lockdown.

In a nutshell, if you decide to utilize your time effectively to study poker, you can certainly come out as a stronger player. Plus, if you been considering playing poker more seriously, now could be the perfect time to take action. Maybe these tips will help you out in working towards starting to play poker for a living.

Be Realistic About Your Skill Level

The first thing you need to do is assess your skill level. As mentioned, the golden era of poker is a bit behind us, and beating the games these days is no longer a walk in the park.

However, that could also be a good thing since many players will not commit enough time and effort to master the game, and this opens the doors to ones who are determined to win.

This is especially true in an online setting where competition is getting tougher, and only serious players stand a chance to succeed in the long run.

To play poker for a living in 2020, you’ll need to figure out where you’re at skill-wise. It’s harder than it sounds because players tend to overestimate their skill level, which could be a costly mistake.

It goes without saying that this type of mistake could be quite dangerous, with dire consequences because you’ll be making a significant change in your life and potentially putting a sizable amount of money at risk.

For

If you have not seriously played poker before, it would be wise to dedicate yourself to studying Texas Holdem strategy rather than jumping into the heat of the action. Moreover, you probably want to keep your regular day job for the time being until you’ve mastered at least the basics, so as to ensure a steady flow of income.

Of course, if you are already beating your stakes and just want to dedicate more time to poker so that you could take it more seriously,taking a leap of faith and following your dream sounds like an okay risk to take.

Poker isn’t going anywhere, so whether try starting to play for a living right now or in a couple of months, it won’t make much of a difference in terms of what you need to win. On the other hand, taking that extra time to get prepared and go into it as ready as you can be could be the thing that defines your success.

Utilize Available Resources to Improve

If you determine that you might not be there just yet results-wise, it doesn’t mean you have to give up on your plans to someday play poker for a living. There are plenty of great resources out there you can use to improve your skills and get better in whatever format you’re looking to play (MTTs, cash games, or sit and gos).

Make a living playing poker

Spending some time and some money enrolling in courses from some of the best poker sites out there will be an invaluable step in your transition to playing poker for a living. With so much fierce competition out there, you want to give yourself the best chance to start on the right foot, and learning the latest strategies will help you achieve that goal.

Many coaching platforms will help you understand the kind of mindset you’ll need to develop if you’re set on becoming a professional poker player. You may not think you need this advice right now, but once you make a move and get started on the grind, you’ll realize just how helpful these tips can be.

Understand What It Takes

Just as important as learning about the game is understanding what it means to be a professional poker player. This isn’t just about sitting down and playing poker many hours each week. Sure, this is an integral part of the process, but it’s only one part. There is much more to playing poker professionally.

You need to devote some time to study on top of your playing sessions as well as manage your whole day yourself and build proper habits, all of which is probably harder than you might think it is at the outset.

You also need to get used to the variance that comes with the game and make your plans around it. This means always maintaining a healthy bankroll and making sure you have plenty of buy-ins behind for the games you’re playing.

It also means learning how to deal with all the emotions that come with the lifestyle. Just as you’ll feel at the top of the world after a great session or after winning a tournament, you’re likely to feel down when things don’t go your way.

While these emotions are entirely normal, it is essential to learn how to keep them under control and don’t let them influence your decisions at the table and, more importantly, don’t let them spill into your private life.

Other Posts You'll Enjoy

  • Making a Living By Playing Poker

    So many recreational poker players have dreams of taking it to the next level and trying to make a living exclusively by playing poker. If…

  • 4 Practical Tips for Playing the Tournament Poker Bubble

    For many poker players, knowing how to properly play near the bubble of a tournament is something difficult to master. We're happy to share with…

  • 5 Tips for Getting the Most Value from Your Poker Bankroll

    Your poker bankroll is the tool you use to both have a great time while playing poker as well as to invest in winning more…

  • 4 Good Tips for Winning at Poker

    Just starting out at poker? You probably want to win - like you see all those players doing on TV. It's a long road to…

  • Webcam Poker - Online Poker Revolution?

    This guest post on Cardplayer Lifestyle presents an overview on one of online poker's newest developments: webcam poker. Read more to learn the advantages and…

  • 4 Tips for Staying Safe When Playing Online Poker

    Pretty much the worst nightmare for any online poker player would be their account being compromised. While online poker security is to a large extent…


The last card has been dealt. I stare at the final board. I have the best hand possible. My opponent goes all in! I call and win the huge pot! This is an experience I have had many times, and so have all professional poker players. The problem is this does not happen every time I sit down and play.

Do you want to make money in the long run and not rely on luck? Do you want to sustain a career playing cash games? If you answered yes, then chances are you want to be a professional poker player. The key is to treat it like a career and act like a professional. I have included 4 major tips to help keep your eye on the prize and win the most money possible over the long haul.

PUT THE WORK IN

This cannot be faked. The days of showing up to the table and just waiting for a huge hand to double up with are long behind us. Of course, this can happen, but remember, I am focusing on winning over a long period of time. An easy way to start is by tracking your sessions…

I like to keep a detailed spreadsheet on Microsoft Excel that includes all of the important facts: the date, time of day, how long I played for, which casino I played at, what game I played, how much I won or lost and any specific notes I want to keep. Those notes can be general about the session or about specific hands. Remember to include all of the details of the hand. “My pocket eights lost to his Ace-King when we were all in pre flop.” That is not enough information for me to later review that hand. “He raised to $20 from early position, and when it folded to me I re-raised to $65. Having more chips than me, he went all in and I called for my remaining $700.” A note like that would give me an opportunity to fairly go over the hand at a later time.

If you do not like tracking everything on a computer, do not worry. You are in luck! Apps like Poker Mate and Poker Income can keep all those important details at the tip of your fingers on your mobile device. I included a direct link to where you can download the free or paid versions of these awesome poker session/income trackers.

Putting the work in goes far beyond tracking my sessions. I must be diligent in the way I approach the game. When I am not at the table playing, I like to watch videos of other professionals discussing strategies or specific hands. Listening to a highly skilled player talk about a hand is a great tool to help advance the way I think about a hand. Check out this link, and you will see what I am talking about.

Find a comfortable routine that works for you. In all walks of life, working hard is the best way to get ahead of your competition and be the best at your job. Playing poker and grinding out cash games is certainly no different.

BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF

The example above when all the money went in before the flop with pocket eights vs. Ace-King helps explain another point. When I am reviewing a hand, it should serve one purpose: Recognize mistakes and take what information I can so I will improve for next time. Being a professional includes not blaming my losses on others’ poor play.

I do not review hands to tell myself I played perfectly and was just unlucky. That does not serve a purpose. Be responsible for the decisions you make, and be willing to consider other options if they make more sense. When I’m in that scenario next time, I can conclude that calling an all-in for $700 with a pair of eights when I only had $65 invested was probably a little bit too aggressive on my part, to say the least. Saying, “I knew he had Ace-King and I was ahead. That’s so unfair I lost when I knew what he had” unfortunately does not win you the money nor does it help you get better. Be aware that he probably had Ace-King or a bigger pair than eights anyway, and proceed more cautiously next time calling a large all in bet at the live tables.

You need to be willing to make changes to get better. Telling myself, I am only losing because everyone else is playing so badly is NOT BEING HONEST WITH MYSELF. I need to take the necessary steps so I am fully prepared for any situation that may come up during a hand. Discussion about hands really helps.

Try and find a circle of friends that play professionally. When I discuss poker, I enjoy discussing it with players who are better than me. I am not there to tell them my bad beat stories about how unlucky I got in my last tournament. I am there to listen with open ears, to ask questions and to be exposed to new concepts. I am there to learn and get better.

Being true to myself cannot be stressed enough. It is easy to whine about a bad beat, wondering why I was so unlucky. Being a professional means eliminating that way of thinking from my brain. Focus on what can be controlled. How I play and how I react is what really matters in the long run.

GAME SELECTION

Poker For A Living

As you get better and start playing in games with higher limits and higher buy-ins, game selection will become very important. This is the time to check your ego at the door. I am here for one reason, and that reason is to make money. Of course, I want to enjoy my time and meet new people. However, the bottom line is to walk out with more money than I came in with.

Game selection is about choices. This goes further than just picking which table to sit at once I get to the casino. Game selection includes which day I play, what time of day I play and which casino I go to. Chances are that a poker game will have more action and be livelier on a Saturday night at the Bellagio then at Red Rock Casino on a Wednesday afternoon. This is not to say I cannot find a good game during the day and during the week. Nevertheless, recognizing where I have the ability to earn the most money is important when planning out a schedule.

It is hard to imagine maintaining a long career playing cash games without planning a schedule. Everyone can do this their own way. I like to sit down on Sunday nights and write down on a calendar which days I am going to play with an approximate time slot. I do not need to pick the casino and game days ahead of time. I rely on the Bravo Poker App for that.

This app is a MUST for a cash game player. Before I decide where I want to play, this app allows me to click on each poker room and see a live look at their cash game screen. I can see how many tables (of each game) are running and the wait list for each game! Call the room and add your name to the list. It is that easy!

Now that I have decided where I am going to play, the work is still not done. Showing off and trying to act like a big shot is not why I am there; It’s to win money. I will look around at the available games and decide which open seat provides me with the best opportunity to win.

Sitting directly to the right of a very good and aggressive player is something to avoid. They will put a lot of pressure on you and constantly put you in uncomfortable situations. If you see players that have a lot of chips and are playing aggressively, try and sit to the left of them. Positional advantage is a complex poker term, but do not feel overwhelmed. All it really means is having the ability to make decisions AFTER you see the crazy player make his bets or raises.

Beating cash games in poker is a job. Like any other job, I want to give myself the best opportunity to be successful—in this case, to win money. To win money at poker, I need to understand the whole pie. Practicing proper game selection is a big slice.

BANKROLL MANAGEMENT

This is not the sexiest thing to talk about, but if you want to make a living playing cash games, you need to understand the ebbs and flows that the game brings. Poker is not like other jobs with steady paychecks. If I make eight thousand dollars in one month, chances are I did not make exactly two thousand each week. You need to understand and be prepared for the times that you don’t make money.

Playing Poker For A Living Tips Without

Setting aside my poker bankroll is important, especially during the early stages of a career as a cash game professional. I want to make sure I can always pay my bills, have food and take care of my personal responsibilities. If that means dropping down in stakes or skipping a big tournament I wanted to play in, then so be it. Playing cash games for a living means being a professional. As a professional, you need to be responsible and aware of the ups and downs that will continually happen.

Playing Poker For A Living Tips Step By Step

Making rules for how much money I need to have in order to play certain games is not an exact science. It really comes down to personal factors. When I was in college and single, I was not as conservative as I am now. If it did not work out, I was young enough to start again. Fast forward to now: a thirty year old engaged, car owning, bill-paying version of myself. I have no choice but to be more conservative! The point is that no matter what point in life I am at, I must know my boundaries.

I want to feel comfortable when I am playing cash games. I never want to feel like if I have a bad day, my entire bankroll will be tragically affected. This is not to say I do not get upset when I have losing days, but I am content with losing the amount I risk before I sit down.

Knowing I have at least forty buy-ins as a bankroll is a nice rule of thumb. It ensures me that I can overcome a bad couple of days or a rough stretch. I can regroup and rebound without having to borrow money or not pay my bills. To further explain that, if I want to play in a cash game and buy in for $1,000, I should have $40,000 available to my poker bankroll.

Playing Poker For A Living Tips At A

CONCLUSION

Online Poker Tips

Beating the cash games and being a winner year after year is a test of survival. It does not require me to be good at just one thing. Realize that it takes maturity and patience to overcome all the curve balls that will be thrown your way. A professional athlete has to take care of his or her body to be prepared for events. A CEO of a toy company needs to make sure all of his or her employees are on the same page and working together to produce the end product. As a professional cash game poker player, I need to be aware that it is not just about sitting at the table and trying to make a hand. The more I can understand and appreciate the hard work and sacrifice it takes to be great, the more successful I will be.