[slickpoppa]

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and currently the top 5/10 players make more than the average lawyer, doctor, etc... How long do you think that will last?

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Why do you think it is fair to compare the top players to average lawayers? The top lawyers make a hell of a lot more than the top 5/10 players and this will continue to be the case. This doesn't mean that the top players won't continue to do better than the worst lawyers.

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Also, I don't think it is that easy to make money at 5/10 NL. The discussions on 2+2 about winrates at that level paint a skewed picture of reality. For every poster who mints money at that level, there are probably dozens who have taken shots and gotten their asses handed to them. But the people who lose money are much less likley to post about it. And of course you have to take into account the propensity of people to exaggerate their winnings.

Even though there are people who can become successful at 5/10NL in a shorter amount of time than it takes to be a lawyer, not everyone is capable of that. I know a lot of very smart people who could be lawyers or doctors but who could not become successful high stakes poker players. I think a big reason is the extreme variance in poker. I think many potentially profitable players end up busting because they either a) start off running hot and play above their heads too quickly, or b) hit a bad downswing and start tilting. A lot of people just do not have the patience and fortitude to withstand losing 5 figures in a day.

That being said, I agree that the profitablility of poker is likely to decrease in the future.