On Tilt sent me an email inquiring about what it really took to play poker for a living. I was happy to answer, it being the holidays and all. And because Dan is withholding my Christmas bonus on the grounds that I don\’t post enough, I thought I\’d share our conversation with the educated readers of Pokerati who probably have given some thought to the same question:
From: Tom Schneider
Sent: Wednesday, December 19, 2007 7:03 PM
To: \’on tilt\’
Subject: RE: it\’s your favorite nuisance…Hey OT,
You are in a similar position that I was many years ago. Good results, but no place to play, and playing too small to make a real living. In order to think that you could make a living playing poker, I think you need to test yourself at limits that would allow you to live the same or better than what you’re used to. In other words, if you make $50,000 per year, that’s about $25 per hour. You are going to need to play at least 10-20 limit or, I would say 5-10 NL. I think many people make the mistaken assumption that winning at 1-2 translates into winning at 5-10 and higher etc. I even find myself sometimes taking 1 month of good results and interpolating 12 good months and wow, I’m rich. I believe that you need to keep detailed records until you have the equivalent of at least 6 months of full time work, i.e. 1,000 hours at the table.
I hope this helps
—–Original Message—–
From: [on tilt]
Sent: Wednesday, December 12, 2007 4:24 PM
To: tom schneider
Subject: it\’s your favorite nuisance…On Tilt…remember me.
I hate to bother you. I really do. But you are the closest thing to an authority with a proven track record that I can ask.
So basically, I\’ve already convinced myself that I could play cards for a living. But i have two things holding me back.
1. Bankroll. poker is essentially a part time job for me, and I partly live off of the money I make playing….so the bankroll is not growing. and between current job and family, I don\’t get out to play cards enough to get ahead.
2. There aren\’t any games big enough around here that make consistantly that would support doing it for a living. oh yeah, I limit almost exclusively when playing cash games at casino\’s or local rooms.
well i think most of that was irrelevant. i made a post on a local forum, and someone suggested that i email you and ask your opinion…so here I am.
i\’ll include a link to the post. i don\’t expect you to post there, but if you have time to take a look, i would love to hear your thoughts.
oh yeah, just a little warning. the core group that post there have all become pretty good friends. don\’t be alarmed by any derogatory banter or hazing you might encounter there.
here\’s the link.
http://www.westonpoker.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=81425#81425
thank you for your time
on tilt