Dating a poker pro- From the perspective of a non-playing girlfriend

[swede554]

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And that she has to put it on myspace is just asking for a night of drinks with her friends where they tell her that she needs to find someone who can spend more time with her. And she'll be like "no, no, no" and they'll be like "yes, yes, yes," and you're going to have to deal with a situation sooner than later.

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Most of her friends seem completely ok with the fact that she's with me, so I'd be suprised if this were to happen. But then again I don't really know her friends all that well, so who knows.


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Your gf sticking close to you, in substantial part, because she thinks you're hawt and because you are doing something of a maverick sort of nature, which is also kinduv hawt for her. She digs that. But just wait until she hits close to 30 and wants to get settled down and have her man around on a more regular basis. You may need to consider making poker PT and getting a FT job. Believe me - having an FT when you are on a massive cooler is kinduv nice. I hate it because I feel like I'm missing value bets / bluffs that could compensate for my cooler, and that is in part because I miss afternoon tourneys and can't keep as sharp as I want because of work, but there is always 2+2. Unless you win a big one, that is. Race to a major win before serious committment issues fall into place? lol

Barry


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I'm just two years out of college, and poker is allowing me to do things I really like to do, such as travel with my gf and see friends and whatnot. It is also financially more lucrative then any job I could possible have at this point in my life. I'll invest most of the money I'm making and save it for use later on in my life. When it comes to having a job to rely on if/when I'm in the midst of a massive cooler, well I have enough money put away outside of my poker bankroll to last me awhile, so even if I were to go "poker busto" I'd have ample time to get a job or maybe even go back to school if I felt like it.

All that being said, I'm not planning on playing for a living the rest of my life. I'm going to keep investing my money, and probably withing a few years I'll get a job or start something myself (or maybe go back to school). I'm happy where I am in my life, with my relationship, with the money I'm making and the freedoms poker has given me, so while I'm always keeping my eyes open for new opportunities, for right now it's good.

[golfnutt]

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I'm going to keep investing my money, and probably withing a few years I'll get a job or start something myself (or maybe go back to school).

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Money is inconsequential at this point in life. The return you will get on investing in your skill base will be much greater than the return on money.

Yes, you can get a job, but it is much more lucrative to have a career. Hopping on the career path at a later age is much more difficult than doing it when you are young.

If you were to plot your net present value of your lifetime earnings from a decent career it will in all likelihood be much greater than playing poker for 5 years (while saving money) and then getting a job.

There will of course be exceptions. And I am just talking about the safe path. Taking the road less travelled can be a blast too.

[BeerMoney]

Really good read.

[Number7]

You hit a jackpot with the GF there i guess.

Try meeting girls IRL or onlíne. Tell them you play poker for a living, and most of these clueless girls will tell you:

It is not possible to earn money by playing poker, and you must have a gambling problem.
Pretty funny and sharp conclusion, when it comes from people who have zero knowledge about poker.

People like to judge alot more, than they are willing to understand.

[Henry17]

Someone who plays poker needs to first establish that they have money before the topic of occupation comes up.

[Thremp]

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Someone who plays poker needs to first establish that they have money before the topic of occupation comes up.

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This will land a ton of gold digging chicks.

[Black winter day]

My girlfriend is very supportive to the point that i can tell her about bad poker days and she will understand and tell me stuff like "you know you just got few unlucky beats/situations, you know you are good and will win in the long run".

She likes the game, i taught her to play and now she plays play money on several sites.When we are at home she often wants to play HU between us and really enjoys it.By the way, on our first date it turned out that one of her favorite movies is Rounders (i didn't tell her what i do before the date).

She even started reading HOH1 and already halfway through it.
She knows i play poker professionally and understands that it's a game of skill.

Recently i took her to a poker club, she sat near me and i explained to her about some moves and hands process, she liked the experience very much.

In 2 weeks we fly to Carribeans for Carribean Poker Classic, she will be there to support me.

I feel lucky that i met her and love her a lot.

[golfnutt]

What is so bad about a 'traditional job'? You get paid decently well if you have some smarts, you are building up transferable skills, you learn socialization skills, etc.

The one thing I notice in all these threads is that it appears that there aren't many poker pros that have kids. That changes the responsibility level by x times infinity. You aren't playing with your bankroll anymore but the family bankroll and if you go bust, they go bust.

These threads are always started by someone in their 20's who thinks being a poker pro (or whatever) has allowed them to escape the death sentence that has imposed on their friends.

A job ain't bad or a death sentence. It is a lot more than money. For those that work just for money, it can be sad, but there is much more to life. I like the people I work with and don't see it as drudgery.

/ramble over.

[geormiet]

cool thanks for posting this swede, it was interesting for me to read cause i live in SF too, and have a girlfriend who works 9 - 5. The main difference between my situation and yours is that I DO play poker solely when she's at work, never travel for poker (beyond bay101), and I'M the one who does all the cooking...it sounds like you are a bit spoiled to be honest [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

She sometimes gets flack when she tells people what I do, but she doesn't care. I don't really care either, I'm happy with my situation and I love what I do.

[JanelleBB7]

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My girlfriend keeps a blog on her Myspace page, and in her latest entry she wrote about how she feels about dating someone (me) that makes a living playing poker.

Here's the link to the blog if you want to read it (I told her I'd post it on here),

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fu...ogID=325324163


Anyone got any good stories/advice concerning supportive (or non-supportive) girlfriends/wifes?

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Very interesting read from the perspective of a girl who plays and a bf that doesn't.

My situation is different because I don't make a living at poker it is more a hobby, but things are hugely different in a situation where it is the girl that plays and the guy doesn't.

Even with poker just being a hobby, I noticed that my bf in no way would tolerate me spending all night up playing. He was annoyed when I spent just two saturdays playing in those long tournaments.

Men I don't think are willing to be as understanding about playing poker as women are with a guy. Especially if the time conflicts with the time they want to spend with you.