Living the Dream: Tyler Jones, professional online casino poker player, discusses how his fantasy became reality!
As Hold’em players we all share the same fantasy, to play poker professionally. Whether we play in a home poker game, log a few hours playing online or frequent a favourite local card room, the dream seems to linger with us like a bad beat. My friend Tyler Jones is living his dream and making a living playing Hold’em professionally. Tyler shared his aspirations with me in 1993 on our first day of classes in the seventh grade. I recall a failed bookmaking endeavor we partnered on later that year (the principle wasn’t keen on our entrepreneurial ambitions). Tyler set his sights on this goal from a very young age but like any profession, an education is needed to be successful.
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Tyler plays exclusively online because of the freedom to play an enormous amount of hands per hour and the freedom to play anytime, anywhere in the world. For online professionals it is highly recommended that you take advantage of poker sites’ deposit matching promotions and third party sites which offer rake back bonuses. Tyler prefers the “Rush” style of cash game poker which usually consists of a pool of people and every time you fold, you are moved to another table. By playing four tables at a time the “Rush” style of poker allows him to play around 1500 hands per hour. With this amount of exposure and by playing only premium pre-flop hands, he makes a comfortable living.
But with more hands comes more bad-beats and the possibility of going on tilt. Tilting with 1500 hands per hour can be fatal. He sites bankroll management as the most important ingredient for success for a career in professional Hold’em and says that, “a player can have a ton of skill but without proper bankroll management, they will not succeed.” A fatal mistake that people make is not separating a bank account from a bankroll. When you blow your roll (which everyone does) there is money to rebuild. You should never have more than 5% of your bankroll on the table at any time and don’t be afraid to lower your stakes during a cold streak.
At the end of Tyler’s first year of professional poker he had some unusually profitable days followed by three weeks of losses and said goodbye to his bankroll. He took some time off and went back to school. He analyzed his game, watched the professionals and took advantage of all the video footage, advice columns and tools available to him online. Most importantly, he did not give up. In closing, Tyler recommends that you keep an eye on players who do not auto top-up their money at the table; this may be a sign of a beginner who doesn’t have the funds to stay at a competitive stack. Also, STOP set mining. If you are re-raised, chances are your pocket 8s are not going to hold up without an eight on the flop, so let it go!
You probably won’t see Tyler on TV anytime soon, but he is one of the countless number of people making a living doing what he loves. Are you next?
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About the Author
Kris Skinner
Online Casino Player
A 31 year old Gaming and Poker analyst from Victoria, British Columbia. With a background in Casino surveillance and professional dealing, along with over 25 years poker experience (Yes he has been playing since 5 years old) he would consider himself a serious-casual player, with a professional run on the horizon.
Playing at a rate of 1500 hands an hour makes rocket science seem easy.
Thank you for not writing an article that makes it sound like making a living off of playing poker is easy. For many people it is a fantasy of an easy life, but those that succeed at it work just as hard as anyone else.
No, kidding. So many people live under the illusion that making a living playing poker is easy and glamorous. The truth is being poker professional like any other career, is not for every one. It takes a certain kind of person. In much the same way that someone who does not like math and studied history at University probably would not make a good physicist. Although, they might like the idea of space flight. With poker you have to remember to separate the dream from the reality, and I think for a lot of people this is difficult.
Even if you are considering playing poker for a living, you should only start doing so part time while working another job. This way if you go on a run of bad luck you have something else to support you.
It is so true that you have to think of your bank account and bank roll as two separate things.
Does anybody know what the average yearly income of a professional poker player. I do not want to know what some of the wealthest poker players make, just the average player.
This is a very difficult question to answer. Since, unlike some careers where the majority of people in that field make roughly the same amount of money, pokers players can have very different incomes based on a number of factors. Like, whether or not they are playing casinos for there bonuses. The quality of their competition. How many hand per hour they play and how many hours they play a week.
If you are thinking about playing poker professionally, I would suggest that you ask yourself, “why you want to play poker professionally”. I do not think that the potential money you can make should be your primary reason of becoming a poker professional. You have to enjoy playing poker more than most thing to be successful.
Having read this and the comments left by readers, have to say that there is a lot of good advice being given.
It is true that playing poker for a living is not easy, but if it is something you love then nothing else will be good enough.
Are there any tips you could give me to help me get started? It would be appreciated.
Are there any tips you could give me to help me get started. It would be appreciated.
You should read as much as you can before you start. Read what the people here have said, there is a lot of good information. However, much of what you need to know can only be learned by playing.
Like Aubrey said it is best to start while you are working another job that you can fall back on.
Thank you. I was wanting a magic bullet. Oh, well hard work it is.
Poker.