It’s hard to believe that it has been over two decades since the poker boom of the early 2000s, but the fact is that it’s been more than 20 years since the everyman from Tennessee named Chris Moneymaker shocked the poker world and won the Main Event.
Broadcast into millions of homes across the world, the game’s popularity took off like nothing we’d ever seen before or since.
And while the initial boom may have tapered off over the years, the game is still as mainstream and popular as any hobby or recreational activity.
However, over time there have been many new, great players developed. We live in an age with more people supplementing their income or playing outright for a living than ever before. That brings to mind the question; “how do they do it?”
Of course, we can’t cover it all in one, simple article, but we can get you started on the right track with some of the most basic, foundational aspects of playing professional poker online.
Here are 3 tips you should implement into your game immediately if you plan on playing serious poker:
Table of Contents
Managing Your Bankroll
This is probably number one on nearly any list about learning to play poker. So why is it on a list about playing professionally?
The answer is simple; oftentimes bankroll management is what keeps great poker players from becoming winning poker players. We’ve all seen those players who seem to always build a stack when they play, yet they never seem to cash out ahead.
Bankroll management is about so much more than just having enough reserve funds to play the game you prefer. It’s about what type of games you play, how long your sessions are, how you utilize your reloads, how often you play, and many other things.
Starting Low and Building Up
This doesn’t mean you must start at the penny-blind cash games or the freeroll and $1 tournaments (although if your bankroll was $100 or less, it would be advisable).
It just means you need to play games that you can afford, against players that you can consistently beat. Poker online play tends to get tougher the higher the stakes, meaning you will need more bankroll and skill.
Balancing Cash Play and Tournaments
It’s hard to be a 2-sport professional at anything. And although tournaments and ring games might both be poker, they are as different as football and baseball.
It’s best to pick one at first and work on developing that into a consistently profitable result before integrating the other style into your schedule.
Reaping the Benefits of Playing Poker Online
It doesn’t matter how great of a card player you may be, if you don’t have the opportunity to play frequently, there is simply no way to make a regular stream of income from poker.
However, with the wide availability of online poker these days, it is no longer necessary to live close to a casino or card room to spend some time at the tables. That’s why sites like WPT are immensely popular.
