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Most people who watch poker on TV think that being a professional
poker player must be one of the best “jobs” in the world. And while it
is great, there are many aspects of the lifestyle that most people are
unaware of. If you’re an aspiring poker professional, this article will
help you understand what you’re getting yourself into. Here are my Top 5
Myths About Being a Professional Poker Player.

1. It’s Easy Money

The biggest myth of all. Playing poker is a high-risk, high-variance
game. If you want to make money at poker, you have to put in long hours
and suffer horrible beats. Even if you are a great player, you can plays
countless losing sessions without even making a mistake. Additionally,
poker players are getting better and better, reducing your edge as time
goes on. It is extremely difficult to play well all the time, but
extremely easy to make a mistake that will set you back. Poker is hard
work!

2. You barely have to work – just play games all day!

Couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, I would argue that top poker professionals work harder than professionals in other fields.
Poker is a game that is deeply dynamic and ever changing. In order to
play at the highest levels, you have to study, discuss, review and so
forth. Not to mention putting 60 hour+ weeks when you include travel
time.

3. You’ll have the freedom to do what you want, when you
want.

Wrong again. When you rely on your poker bankroll to pay your bills,
you’ll have to be putting in a lot of hours, especially on friday and
saturday nights (when most recreational players are on) – meaning you
will have to sacrifice nights out with your friends and family a lot of
the times. The other issue, as previously discussed, is that if you are
losing you will have to continue putting in hours until you get back
into the black – otherwise, bill collectors will start calling. Other
priorities quickly dissapear, such as socializing with friends, cooking
& eating a healthy diet, exercising and so forth.

4. I’ll be on TV!

Actually, you probably won’t. Even if you buy-in to the World Series
of Poker Main Event, you likely won’t see any TV time unless you make
the final table. These days there are thousands of professional players
that enter that tournament every year… it’s not easy to make it that
far. Other televised events are often by invite only and offered to
existing poker pros like Phil Ivey, Tom Dwan and Phil Hellmuth.

5. I’ll have financial freedom!

You’ll never have financial freedom playing poker. Although it may
seem that way, you don’t often hear all the stories of the pros that
lost their entire bankrolls and never got back on their feet.  T.J.
Cloutier comes to mind, a poker veteran who recently had to sell
his WSOP bracelet on eBay to raise some money. Maybe you’ve heard
of Brad Booth, who in a recent article in All In Magazine confessed
to have been broke and borrowing money to get back on his feet. There
are countless stories. It’s very difficult to build a fortune in poker
but extremely easy to lose it all in one night.