Want to go PRO? Think again!

Just read this old interview with Daniel Negreanu and came across an interesting quote.

QUESTION: What advice would you give to the kids who are watching you on TV and playing online, hoping to go pro?

"Well, I would tell them to seriously keep their priorities in order and tell them the honest truth: Even if I knew I would have gotten here doing what I did, if I had to do it all over again, I would have chosen another path. I know that's a sad truth, but this life is not easy. Don't give up your whole youth for poker. I don't live with regrets because I'm happy about who I am, but that would be one glaring thing in my life. I never went to college; I was hanging around with 40-year-old guys. And those are years you can't get back. So, I would say, 'Don't live your whole life for poker. It's just not worth it.'"

Except when Daniel was moving up the ranks, poker hadn't exploded. So it was him in his 20s vs. 40 year old guys. Now, most people playing are in their 20s or early 30s. So that aspect of it no longer applies.

Besides, in the professional world, the majority of your co-workers are going to be older than you at most points in your life.

That really puts alot into perspective.

I think it is good advice in more ways than one. While it is good to have dreams, you have to have a fall back plan. Wether it is poker, pro-sports, or even just a really good job...what if you dont make it? Or even if you do, what if you cant continue for some reason, now what?
You see too many people that lose a job and have nothing. Actors or musicians arent popular anymore and go broke. Sports pokerstars get hurt and dont have an education. Its good to have a skill, but it is far more important to have more than one skill.

And a second point... say you do make it. Cool, but have you exiled your family and friends in pursuit of it? I cant count the people who at the end of a great career (in any field) say their only regret is they didnt spend more time with their family.

I totally agree with him on the fact that you should prioritize and not put poler in front of everything. On the other hand, I think that if you break through the crowd of players and become persistant in your winnings and able to survive through poker as your main stream of income, it wouldn't hurt to try a bit harder and try to achieve the ranks of a poker pro. That is because the life style of a professional poker player is something that every middle class person dreams of.

check out the video " highs and lows of poker pros" aka "poker bustouts" on youtube.

Interesting video. Hmm...

Video really put a negative, think again kinda spin on it. Just as someone in the video stated, i too play for the finer things in life. Not to pay the bills or to put gas in my car.

I don't think that I so much want to be a pro. but that I want to be successful. I think that I could definately do without the spot light but the respect from other players is what is important to me.

^^^^^^^^^^^^ This.


Its a totally different world now, then when he started playing.

Yea this is completely out of context. For DN-like live pros "going pro" meant moving to Vegas and giving up most other aspects of your life to focus on poker. w/ online play $$/hrs have skyrocketed in relation to a particular stake due to #hands/hr possible. You can make a much greater % of your bankroll in a much shorter time. So for the early pros to build up a roll meant many many hours of playing.

But today you could just take 4 hrs out of your day to sit at your comp and be a "poker pro" w/o having to change your lifestyle at all.

that video is really depressing, but is it bad that i want to sit at a table with all of them

There are more important things in life than poker. I learned how my of an affect it hand on my life. Sometimes just have put the mouse down and step away from the computer.
I still find plenty of time to play and learn as well enjoy the world outside of online poker. Maybe I have what it takes to put in the hours to play, study, learn to be a pro. But hey anyone can hit a streak in this game.
As long as you love doing what your doing than that's all that matter. Have fun and know your limits.

i dont think i can take the life of being a poker professional. the fact that i dont have the skills nor the bankroll aside, i know that i wont be able to juggle family, friends and poker in the same mix.

So Daniel said something we don't know? Where is the news here?

Yah, I bet he's boo hooing all the way to the bank every day thinking about his wasted youth (breaking my heart)

Very Interesting video

poker professionalism has become a spectrum, so there's really no threshold for "young kids going pro." like, ok, you make $5k a month and you don't wanna do anything else, are you a pro then? what if you're still part-time in college? hard to answer...

this is true

it takes money to make money, just like in any other business

the problem is so many people think they can take a couple hundred dollar deposit and run it into a couple hundred thousand in a weekend

this actually was probably my worst poker problem for a long time - though my roll was steadily growing, i wasnt happy because it wasnt happening fast enough
i am to the point now, where being able to withdrawl and having a br big enough to play where i want is fine with me
obv grinding micros is the worst part, but once you get your roll to the point where a winning session means you can buy food for the week, well it makes you feel better

as to that video - well i dont like it much, but it has a good point in there

if (hopefully when), i get to the point where i make enough off of poker that i can use it to invest in a business, that will instantly be my move at that point

i always have had the problem that no matter how much money i have, i always end up accumulating more bills, so i never get too far ahead
i live comfortably and i have my own small business, but i am still hopeful that someday i can make enough playing that it will set me for life

a few years ago i was into some things that earned me alot of money with little effort and quickly
i ran right through that money as well
now (reached 30, 2 kids, lots of responsibilities), i regret not saving that and today i would be able to set myself for life off of a big tourney win

That's pretty accurate for me as well, in terms of not making the money as fast as you would like. This game definitely tests my patience. My roll has been building fairly quick and steady, but i want more, more, more! I need to learn patience. Trying to bite off more than you can chew to make the money quicker inevitabely leads to disaster usually.

yea this is exactly true. w/ online you can spend so much less time playing/involved in poker related things than if you had to move to a city like vegas and play live like "back in the day". So you can easily play poker for income while going to school, which means it isn't an all or nothing decision by any stretch of the imagination. You could play alot of poker for a couple of years then stop (or at least revert to casual playing) and move onto other things because you were able to get an education while playing, keep up other interests, etc.

Just thought it was interesting..not everyone is a know it all like yourself

Hmm. Well, it's important to HAVE A LIFE, no matter what career path you choose.
It's good think to know and keep in mind that being a poker player is a tough job. I don't think I'll ever go pro.
It's only something on the side as far as I'm concerned...

Becoming a poker pro has a completely new sense in that anyone with a computer and some money can be "pro".

Oh god no, you guys ruined my hopes of becoming a pro tennis player...

I think it's good pro players are encouraging people to go to school even if it's a -EV play for them.