Andrew: Whats the definition of going pro?

[Andrew]

first of all excuse my bad english.

Ive bin reading some postings about going pro. I would really like to know what the definition of beieng a pro is.

In the earlyer posting: "going pro someday?" they are talking of bankrols of 30k, being far to less to become a pro.

If a poker player for instants, wins an avarge of 100$ a day, playing tournaments. If this money would be more then enougf to live off. wouldend this player be a pro poker player?

I'm a newbee, with only a bankroll of 5k. This 100$ a day would be my goal. Is there any chance of making this?

I would love to get some feedback

[Dave Jay]

> Ive bin reading some postings about going
> pro. I would really like to know what the
> definition of beieng a pro is.

Most define it as one who depends on the game for their livelihood and done competently.

> I'm a newbee, with only a bankroll of 5k.
> This 100$ a day would be my goal. Is there
> any chance of making this?

You can strive to average $100 per day while understanding and accepting a quantifiable risk. You need to determine your game rules, betting strategy, hands per hour, hours played, to get more specific.

[Brick]

I dont know how anyody could answer your questions correctly. What i can say , is if you average $100 bucks a day for years and making a living at it, then you are indeed a PRO. However you are asking can you do it with a $5,000 bank playing poker?

You only know where you stand,nobody else does. If you were a PRO pool player and a newbie ask you the same question,how in the hell do you answer it?

Brick

Ive bin reading some postings about going
> pro. I would really like to know what the
> definition of beieng a pro is.

> In the earlyer posting: "going pro
> someday?" they are talking of bankrols
> of 30k, being far to less to become a pro.

> If a poker player for instants, wins an
> avarge of 100$ a day, playing tournaments.
> If this money would be more then enougf to
> live off. wouldend this player be a pro
> poker player?

> I'm a newbee, with only a bankroll of 5k.
> This 100$ a day would be my goal. Is there
> any chance of making this?

> I would love to get some feedback

[Andrew]

> I dont know how anyody could answer your
> questions correctly. What i can say , is if
> you average $100 bucks a day for years and
> making a living at it, then you are indeed a
> PRO. However you are asking can you do it
> with a $5,000 bank playing poker?

> You only know where you stand,nobody else
> does. If you were a PRO pool player and a
> newbie ask you the same question,how in the
> hell do you answer it?

> Brick

You are o so right.

The thing is, in some postings I read about bankrols of 30K being 90K short for becoming a pro. Then 5k would just be enougf to eat a nice icecream.

For the time being i'm sticking to playing black jack. Playing poker is one of my hobby's, But I would love to play it for means of making a living. From next week I will be staying in LV for the periode of a year. I'm giving myself that time to learn how to play poker (like a pro). but on the and of that year I will not have a bankrol of 120K, or even 30K. So if thats what it takes, next to playing a good game ofcours, whats the use of trying.

so my goals:
Improving my game the coming year.
Playing tournament poker (preffer online)
Scoring an avarege of 100$ a day
Starting with a bankroll of 5K

[DD']

It means you've given up your normal 9 to 5 job and will now rely on bj as your primary income source. 30K is not generally enough for bj, not really even close. But four people who combined their 30K might be about right. Poker is far different. The variance isn't as big and you don't need to constantly travel the entire country or world. A pro bj player spends half his life on the road and routinely shows a net loss for periods of six months or longer. If going six months to a year without any income would put you in a serious bind and cause you to start using your bankroll for living expenses then you are certainly not ready to be a solo pro. I would say that minimally you should have a bankroll equal to your desired annual income and a seperate reserve of 6 to 12 months living expenses. Being nearly debt free goes without saying.

[pat]

t means you've given up your normal 9 to 5
> job and will now rely on bj as your primary
> income source. 30K is not generally enough
> for bj, not really even close. But four
> people who combined their 30K might be about
> right. Poker is far different. The variance
> isn't as big and you don't need to
> constantly travel the entire country or
> world. A pro bj player spends half his life
> on the road and routinely shows a net loss
> for periods of six months or longer. If
> going six months to a year without any
> income would put you in a serious bind and
> cause you to start using your bankroll for
> living expenses then you are certainly not
> ready to be a solo pro. I would say that
> minimally you should have a bankroll equal
> to your desired annual income and a seperate
> reserve of 6 to 12 months living expenses.

I went pro with half that amount.all this talk about needing some huge bankroll is bogus.if you play shoes,maybe,but if you stick to double deck you dont need as much as the "experts" tell you.i have never lost more than 130 NET units playing bj.most of my losing streaks are about 100 units and are then followed by huge wins.my longest losing streak was 2 months.as far as poker goes-screw it.poker blows.its BORINGGGGG and the people you have to surround yourself with are complete jerks.stick to bj and make a nice living.

[Parker]

Sure, people frequently "go pro" with far less than the amounts that DD' recommended.

People also go broke all the time as well. The fact that you've succeeded (so far) proves only that you were fortunate enough to avoid an early sustained negative swing.

Or, to put it another way: You've been lucky.

DD' has probably forgotten more about playing blackjack professionally than most of us will ever know. I recommend in the strongest terms that anyone considering going pro take his advice to heart.

[Mister M]

[pat]

your telling me a person needs 200,000 dollars to play black.what a joke!you should probably learn basic strategy first before you comment on anything that has to do with bj.

[pat]

[David]

> your telling me a person needs 200,000
> dollars to play black

Pat, congratulations. You have provided the basis for a great discussion on the game. Your irreverant attititude is surprising, refreshing, and perplexing all at the same time. Generally, when one attempts to learn a new job, game, or field of study, one listens to people who have accomplished success in that area. Most of the responders to your posts, excluding myself, have done just that. The general rule of thumb for a bankroll that will survive the invariable negative swings in this game is 100 times your maximum bet. If your maximum bet is a black chip, then $10,000 is your recommended bankroll. Now, with supreme confidence and ability, could you succeed with $8,000? Yes. However, with that same confidence and ability, you could hit the "Mother of all losing streaks" and go broke with a $12,000 bankroll playing the same maximum black chip. Perhaps the best way to put this is to say that there are negative swings in this game that even the best players cannot avoid. These negative swings are killers. They make you question your sanity. Optimism is a great attitude. All we are trying to do is combine your optimism with reality.

[pat]

> Pat, congratulations. You have provided the
> basis for a great discussion on the game.
> Your irreverant attititude is surprising,
> refreshing, and perplexing all at the same
> time. Generally, when one attempts to learn
> a new job, game, or field of study, one
> listens to people who have accomplished
> success in that area. Most of the responders
> to your posts, excluding myself, have done
> just that. The general rule of thumb for a
> bankroll that will survive the invariable
> negative swings in this game is 100 times
> your maximum bet. If your maximum bet is a
> black chip, then $10,000 is your recommended
> bankroll. Now, with supreme confidence and
> ability, could you succeed with $8,000? Yes.
> However, with that same confidence and
> ability, you could hit the "Mother of
> all losing streaks" and go broke with a
> $12,000 bankroll playing the same maximum
> black chip. Perhaps the best way to put this
> is to say that there are negative swings in
> this game that even the best players cannot
> avoid. These negative swings are killers.
> They make you question your sanity. Optimism
> is a great attitude. All we are trying to do
> is combine your optimism with reality.
i am not a rookie.ive been playing bj for 10 years.went pro almost 2 years ago.wasted my time with red for many years because of all the cautious authors who said i needed 50 billion dollars to play green.i dont want some guy telling me and the board that we need 2000 units.he is 100% WRONG!i have no problem with you saying we need 100 max bets.thats fine.nice low risk of ruin.i just like to think of the positive not the negative.i guess im just a no talent who just happened to avoid every negative flux for 2 years.im just a lucky bastard.im sure i will lose it all by next month.

[Dancer]

> i just
> like to think of the positive not the
> negative.i guess im just a no talent who
> just happened to avoid every negative flux
> for 2 years.im just a lucky bastard.im sure
> i will lose it all by next month.

If you're primarily focused on the positive and discounting the negative, then you're certainly not thinking like a pro. The fact that you haven't encountered a significant negative run in 2 years of play is absolutely meaningless.

Don't make the mistake of believing your skill level has somehow saved you from the cold, hard mathematics of the game. Even if you're playing full-time, perhaps 500 hours a year, you've only got 100,000 hands or so under your belt. That's spit in the ocean. As Parker said, you've been lucky, pure and simple.