Slate article: "Raising a family on Poker"
There's a good article on Slate.com that I just read today--- Raising a family on Poker
I think that what I like about the article is its honesty about the ups-and-downs of living on a poker income. There's also the sound advice of playing within your bankroll and setting aside a "cushion" of living expenses that is untouchable (though this particular family was forced to dip into that cushion).
It's the same thing that I did when I started relying on poker as my sole source of income. Being a professional poker player is more about money management than anything else. You can't play well if you are worried about how you're going to pay the rent, or buy food. You can't play well if your results on any particular night can have a negative impact on your life.
The husband in the article saved 10K for his bankroll. His game was 10/20 Limit Hold'em, and 10K was "vastly larger than the recommended starting bankroll for the $10-20 limit games he was playing, leaving room for error". I wouldn't say vastly larger, but approximately 60% larger than what is usually quoted as necessary for a winning player. Next they saved 4-months of living expenses as their untouchable cushion-- which is good to start with, I think.
The only problem I have with the article is that I believe a poker player should constantly be living beneath their means--- saving and accumulating a bigger "cushion". 4-months living expenses is good to start with, but is in actuality a very short period of time (especially if one has a habit of dipping into their cushion).
Also, I think it's important to take advantage of the freedom and flexibility of poker to develop altenate revenue streams.
In this way, I think that a being a poker player can provide a MORE stable life than most Americans have. For most people, they are at the mercy of their company. If they lose their job, they're screwed. How many people even have 4-months of living expenses saved, without cashing in their retirement savings?
Stability was a big concern of my friends and family when I started playing professionally--- I don't think everyone realized how big of a concern it was of mine, and how diligent I would be in making sure that I was "safe".
With the poker craze still in full swing, there are a ton of people quitting their jobs, dropping out of school, selling their houses, maxing out their credit cards--- all with the dream of being a big-time professional player. It's completely the wrong approach. These people are approaching poker as a gamble, rather than as a business.
I think that what I like about the article is its honesty about the ups-and-downs of living on a poker income. There's also the sound advice of playing within your bankroll and setting aside a "cushion" of living expenses that is untouchable (though this particular family was forced to dip into that cushion).
It's the same thing that I did when I started relying on poker as my sole source of income. Being a professional poker player is more about money management than anything else. You can't play well if you are worried about how you're going to pay the rent, or buy food. You can't play well if your results on any particular night can have a negative impact on your life.
The husband in the article saved 10K for his bankroll. His game was 10/20 Limit Hold'em, and 10K was "vastly larger than the recommended starting bankroll for the $10-20 limit games he was playing, leaving room for error". I wouldn't say vastly larger, but approximately 60% larger than what is usually quoted as necessary for a winning player. Next they saved 4-months of living expenses as their untouchable cushion-- which is good to start with, I think.
The only problem I have with the article is that I believe a poker player should constantly be living beneath their means--- saving and accumulating a bigger "cushion". 4-months living expenses is good to start with, but is in actuality a very short period of time (especially if one has a habit of dipping into their cushion).
Also, I think it's important to take advantage of the freedom and flexibility of poker to develop altenate revenue streams.
In this way, I think that a being a poker player can provide a MORE stable life than most Americans have. For most people, they are at the mercy of their company. If they lose their job, they're screwed. How many people even have 4-months of living expenses saved, without cashing in their retirement savings?
Stability was a big concern of my friends and family when I started playing professionally--- I don't think everyone realized how big of a concern it was of mine, and how diligent I would be in making sure that I was "safe".
With the poker craze still in full swing, there are a ton of people quitting their jobs, dropping out of school, selling their houses, maxing out their credit cards--- all with the dream of being a big-time professional player. It's completely the wrong approach. These people are approaching poker as a gamble, rather than as a business.
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