It’s very easy to dismiss online poker as a hobby, a thrill, or even an expensive habit, but to some it’s a lifestyle choice; their means of earning money each month. While ‘professional poker player’ may not sound like an obvious career title, or choice, the fact is that some players can, and regularly do, earn enough to support themselves alongside, or even in place of, a regular salary. In fact, as a poker player, it’s possible to earn enough in a year to compete with some of the highest paid professional sports stars in terms of salary; players must simply keep track of how they’re faring next to other players, how much they’re spending, and what the returns are.

Let’s take a closer look…

It’s estimated that some 25% of poker players will make money in the long run, while 10% regularly earn enough to consider themselves professional; that is, enough so that poker becomes their most regular, or even only, source of income. How much a poker player makes will depend on three contributing factors, which are the player’s win rate, the volume of their hands, and the kinds of stakes that they play against; assuming that a professional is playing 100,000 hands a month, they could be earning between $7,800 a year based on 30bb/100 hands with 2NL, and $60,000 a year if they play 4bb/100 hands with 100NL. The top rate is more than Australia’s average gross salary, and on a par with horse racing jockeys and A-League soccer players.

Top Tips

Players hoping to maximise their winnings should search for online games with the weakest opponents, and mix things up with a combination of tournaments and cash games.

As with every choice that a poker player makes it is important to note that there’s no such thing as a steady income, and that even the best players have ‘losing years’; this is something that the budding poker pros of tomorrow will have to consider.

Source: http://au.888poker.com