Playing Poker for a Living
I have been playing professional poker for over two years and thought I would
share my experiences. There are some great benefits to playing poker on the
Internet for a living:
-
You can work your own hours.
- You are your own boss.
- You can take as much vacation as you like.
- Yon can work wherever you want in the world.
- You can work in your underwear, lol.
I quit a very good job as a Finance Director with a large pharmaceutical company to
be able to take advantage of these benefits. I moved to \"New Zealand for a couple
of years and enjoyed a nice relaxing life. I am now back in the states and have the
flexibility to live wherever I want. The great thing about Internet poker is that I can
work around my social life rather than plan my social life around work. It is a good
life.
As with any job, playing poker for a living is not all fun and games. Playing 10 hours
a week can be a lot of fun and be a great hobby; however, the fun and thrill of
playing poker is not quite the same once you start playing 40 hours a week in front
of a computer. I still have a passion for the game and enjoy playing most of the
time, but this is definitely not something I will want to do for many years full-time. I
am starting to look for other ways to add to my income (like writing this book and
real estate); so that I can start reducing the hours of poker I play each week.
Let's look at some of the practical downsides to playing poker for a living. Although
it is great to have as many vacation days as you want, these vacations days are not
paid! I always enjoyed four weeks of vacation before with my finance job, but it is
quite different when you know that no income is coming in while you are away. If
you do decide to play for a living, I recommend setting aside some vacation pay
each month just like a regular job. This way you can feel like you are being paid and
enjoy your vacation without worrying about money.
There are also some additional expenses for being self-employed. American
residents must pay full FICA and Medicare payments, which is 15.3% of your salary
up to certain limits, rather than the 7.65% you pay when working for a company.
You must also pay for medical and dental insurance.
Remember also that gambling income is taxable in the United States just like
regular income, even if you play part-time. If you are an American citizen and move
overseas, you are able to deduct over $80,000 a year from your income since you
are not residing in the States. This effectively eliminates most income tax, but you
still must pay the FICA and Medicare taxes.
Obviously, poker has some inherent risks that are part of the job. You will have an
unstable income each month, with the risk of actually losing money during a month.
If you recall from the "Bankroll Management" , it is possible to play many
hours and still lose as an expert player. To play professionally, you need to be the
type of person that can handle these fluctuations. Although they shouldn't happen
too frequently, they will occur, and believe me they are not much fun.
How much can you earn playing poker on the Internet? This all depends on the
number of hours and tables you play in addition to the limit. You can also earn more
in most short-handed games than you can in ring games. Of course, your hourly
rate will depend on how good you are. When looking at hours, remember to
account for lunch breaks and any other distractions that might occur during the day.
Playing eight solid hours of poker a day can be quite tiring, especially when playing
multiple tables.
Let's look at some possible scenarios. If you can work seven hours a day playing
$10-$20 and earn one big bet an hour, you would earn $700 a week. If you work 48
weeks a year, you will earn $33,600 at $10-$20. If you are able to play two tables
half the time you are playing, you could increase this to $50,400, assuming you
maintain the same earn rate per hour at both tables. You would earn $25,200
playing $5-$10 or over $100,000 playing $20-$40. You could earn more if you can
manage a win rate even better than one big bet per hour.
Once you estimate a projected income, remember to deduct the additional
expenses such as Social Security and medical insurance to arrive at a net income
estimate. I earned over $100,000 my first twelve months playing full-time at limits of
mostly $20-$40 and $15-$30. A six-figure income is possible, but be sure to
account for the downsides of the job.
NEXT...Internet Poker
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