The substantial payouts and glamour inherent to high-stakes poker games make playing poker professionally an appealing prospect for gambling enthusiasts. However, behind the six-figure wins and potentially lucrative games lies a meticulously calculated approach where each move is made to maximise profitability, and the lifestyle is not as glitzy as many will have you believe.
The grind of professional poker is not for everyone, but if you want to explore income-generating poker opportunities, read on, as we provide insights into the requirements, challenges, and strategies intrinsic to playing poker professionally and share invaluable tips on diversification, bankroll management, and recognising potentially profitable avenues.
Playing poker professionally is not exactly the posh and high-end Las Vegas experience portrayed in films and on the Poker channel. The reality is that professional poker players are not that different from people working full, 9-to-5 jobs or running their own businesses.
It is a profession that requires the discipline to play multiple tables simultaneously during online sessions, and have the resilience and mental fortitude to work excruciatingly long hours and deal with the challenges of frequent travel to live events.
Factor in aspects such as investing in self-improvement and meticulously tracking and recording expenses and profit, and you can instantly see why playing poker professionally is referred to as a “grind” and not just a way to make an “easy living.”
Earning Potential: How Much Money Can You Make Playing Poker?
From seven-digit wins to barely breaking even, the annual earning potential in poker varies wildly. However, there is one constant – it is dependent on the skill level of the player.
Rough estimates would be that the best in the business, those who regularly participate in high-stakes cash games and tournaments, make millions of dollars each year.
Mid-level gamblers tend to rake in between €50,000 and €500,000 a year. Even with a respectable 15% Return on Investment (ROI), a mid-level poker player playing five days a week still needs to spend about €2,000 on buy-ins daily to get an annual profit of about €72,000. So, consistency matters.
Lastly, players engaging in lower-stakes poker rarely have an annual income higher than €100,000 and often turn to mentoring, poker training, or creating coaching content as side hustles to supplement their poker endeavours.
The Importance of Skill Level and Experience
If you wish to become a professional player, skill and experience are the non-negotiables that will determine your success. You need to be able to read others, calculate probabilities, and adjust your approaches all while minimising the effects of your weaknesses and capitalising on those of your opponents.
The average professional poker player is faced with challenging strategic and interpersonal decisions all the time and doesn’t succumb to psychological pressure even during long losing runs.
Well-versed in exploitative strategies while utilising Game Theory Optimal approaches to project a balanced and difficult-to-read game, the best poker players never stop improving. Therefore, gaining experience and honing poker skills is a top priority for would-be poker pros.
Bankroll Management and Variance
Managing a poker bankroll is as crucial as managing variance as well as the downswings and upswings in the game. Professional poker players maintain budgets large enough to withstand extended variance-caused downswings.
For instance, top gamblers may work with bankrolls that can absorb up to about 200 buy-ins for multi-table tournaments (MTTs). Of course, this will also depend on the number of players participating in the MTT, as fewer players mean more frequent wins.
Professional poker is all about adopting a long-term mindset, so emotional resilience during losing runs is essential. However, the bankroll must be able to deal with heavy hits as well. To minimise variance and increase your win rate and bankroll, many players opt for smaller field MTTs.
Cash Games vs. Tournaments: How They Compare and Which is More Lucrative?
Cash games and poker tournaments appeal to different types of players. With flexible buy-ins and players able to leave or join at any time, online and live cash games come with less variance, as gamblers can control session lengths.
In contrast, poker tournaments offer high-value payouts but involve more risks, as players can lose the entire buy-in early. Moreover, tournament play is synonymous with long hours, so endurance is paramount.
Therefore, even though poker tournaments, particularly the elite ones, are more lucrative as they come with the promise of massive payouts, it is up to the preferences of individual players as to which poker format they choose. In general, most poker players combine high-stakes cash games with high-yield tournaments for the most lucrative wins.
Can You Make a Living Playing Poker Online – Risks and Challenges
Starting a career in online gaming can offer a fresh start for many – so can playing online poker. Like most things in the iGaming industry, however, online poker is fiercely competitive, so maintaining an edge over others is a key challenge to manage.
You can do this by upping your multi-table game, relying on the latest poker software to track performance, and, most importantly, staying consistent. Once you do that, you can make the most of the benefits inherent to online poker games, such as playing more poker hands per hour than live poker, eliminating travel expenses, and enjoying flexible scheduling.
If you adopt a disciplined mindset and constantly work on improving your strategies and increasing the edge you have over opponents, poker can indeed be used as a way to make a living – and a good one at that.
Successful Professional Poker Players and Their Lifestyles
With an average annual wage of €85,500, people in Luxembourg earn the most money in Europe, according to Statista. However, those average wages seem insignificant compared to a professional poker player’s salary, particularly when the poker stars in question are Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, Fedor Holz, and online poker sensation Viktor Blom.
Daniel Negreanu has won more than €50 million in tournament prize money playing poker, while Holz’s career live tournament winnings exceed €40 million. Hellmuth, also known as “The Poker Brat,” has the most World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelets (17) and boasts tournament earnings that exceed €30 million.
However, as enticing as it might seem, making a living playing poker is not for everyone. Despite the perceived freedom, the lifestyle of a professional poker player is full of constant challenges that need to be navigated. The long and mostly irregular hours of playing online poker and the frequent travel and time away from family of live poker will invariably take their toll on anyone. Professional poker stars are not excluded despite their mental fortitude. So, unless players adhere to a balanced routine, both their mental and physical health can be adversely affected by a poker-dominated lifestyle.
The Role of Discipline and Strategy in Sustained Earnings
A disciplined mindset is a prerequisite to a consistent performance when gambling. People who play poker for a living rely on various strategies to improve their prospects of winning consistently. They base decisions on sound mathematical estimations, review game histories, adapt to the latest developments, and ground their game on psychological principles, such as arm motions, rather than being guided by emotion.
Taxes and Financial Management for Poker Professionals
Depending on the country of residence, poker winnings may be considered as taxable income. That may necessitate detailed record-keeping and hiring a bookkeeper. Additionally, taking into account the perpetual flux of the iGaming landscape, acquiring the services of an accountant specialising in local gambling laws will ensure compliance and adherence to tax regulations.
Taxes should also be considered when creating your poker bankroll. Income tax rates can get quite steep and that may result in unforeseen expenses. Due to variance, poker profit margins can get quite small, especially after extended downswings, so, setting aside funds for taxes is a prudent move.
Tips for Aspiring Professional Poker Players
Both players participating in small-stakes online games and seasoned pros on the World Poker Tour utilise tried-and-tested approaches to improve their chances of winning.
- Understand fundamental poker strategies and theory.
- Join poker rooms where most players are at your skill level or lower.
- Low-stakes games will help you build confidence early on.
- Stay disciplined and consistent with your bankroll management.
- Approach poker as a job, and not a hobby. It doesn’t always have to be enjoyable.
- Choose trusted online poker sites with extensive experience in online cash games.
- Track your performance and aim for continual improvement.
- Focus on your mental and physical health, as professional poker will test both.
As you can see, becoming a professional poker player requires a lot of dedication and determination. It is also essential that you know the right people within the online poker and iGaming community. Networking opportunities, such as the expertly orchestrated events organised by Ace Alliance, can prove invaluable for players looking to learn, grow, and benefit from first-hand industry expertise and know-how.
Conclusion
Professional poker players can make substantial amounts of money, but how much they win depends on the size of the bankrolls they work with, the buy-ins they pay, and the games and tournaments they join.
More importantly, the success of poker pros hinges on skill, experience, and an unending desire to improve. So, while making a living by playing poker is definitely possible, you must successfully navigate the challenges associated with it day in and day out.