How have you taken advantage of being a poker pro?

[James282]

Jay, awesome.

Some great posts here, gives me some great ideas of how to keep busy when I leave here!

James

[Jurollo]

I turned playing poker and being a mod here into a job with Poker Stars. Which is pretty pimp imo.

[Entity]

Since I discovered poker quite a bit later in life than most of the players here (I'm 27 now, and didn't start playing until after college), poker has mostly been a pragmatic thing for me. It's helped me pay off a lot of debt, pay for a wedding last September, and buy a house.

The biggest thing that it's allowing me to do right now is work on starting a coffeeshop with my wife. It's something that she's been doing for years -- managing and working as a barista (no, not at Starbucks) -- and an industry that both she and I love.

I'm definitely hoping it doesn't completely fade away in the short term, but even if it has, it's been a great thing.

Rob

[Justin A]

James I've always envied all the travel you've been able to do.

How long are you gonna be out here for the WSOP?

[geormiet]

-I moved to costa rica for half a year.

-I started going to culinary school, which has been a lifelong dream.

[adsman]

Great thread James.

Poker came along at just the right time to supplement my slightly out-of-the-ordinary lifestyle. I've worked as a rafting guide since 1995 and in early 1999 I moved to Uganda to work on the White Nile. An absolute dream job but for the fact that literally days before I arrived a whole bunch of tourists that had only gone rafting the week before got hacked to pieces by some Conglonese rebels. Really heavy stuff.

So overnight we went from 5-6 trips a week to 1-2. We had a sweet setup in Kampala, the big luxury expat house with live-in servents etc, but you still need some cash to play with. I got involved with an expat holdem poker game. There were guys who worked in the UN and other crazy jobs. One night the US defence secretary for East Africa sat down with us. Nobody really knew how to play and I had discovered Planet Poker. So during the day I practiced on the free money tables and at night I tried out plays that I had been working on. It was a no limit game and I did well enough to have a really good time in Africa.

I got fired from my job over a political power-play and had to get out of the country fast. Took a flight to London with about $400 in my pocket and ended up rafting in Italy where I settled down to a good wicket. Raft in the summer for five months and play poker online in the winter while learning to snowboard. It's now seven years later and I'm still here. I've winded down the online poker as it doesn't hold me as it used to. I still think that the games are good but I much prefer to play live. So I pop over to Ljubljana every now and then and have fun with the crazy's over there.

I'm just in the process now of setting up my own nightclub here in the Italian Alps with the opening date set for June. I have to say that without poker a lot of this might not have been possible.

ads.

[imitation]

Lived in China, did unreasonable amounts of drugs and alcohol. Didn't travel nearly enough but got to see parts of China and Thailand. Not really a shining spot in my life because I'm broke now, however it still was a hell of a ride.

[Sigurd]

I'v just gone skiing in Canada, and plan on staying for 4 months. I live with 3 other poker players. We have a much better house that what the regular ski bum would be able to afford. The flexibility that poker gives you, is just perfect for skiing. I won't have to pass on one single good powder day because I have to work.

A lot of my friends are travelling too, but I'm propably the only one who will (hopefully) come home with more money than I left with, and I didn't have to work like a madman a couple of months prior to going, since I would still have my income over here.

Before going to Canada I spent a couple of months sitting in a dark room, but nothing really interesting happened in this periode. It did, however, give me some of my sanity back after being incredibly stressed in the last year of high school, due to a variety of reasons.

[FatalError]

Just moved to las vegas, got a loaded bmw 550i, a brand new condo just south of the strip, and bought all sorts of cool stuff thats gonna last 10+ years

I have no idea why people with 500k rolls can't spend 50k and just enjoy life sometimes. some of those dudes live like they're busto

[EMc]

Why I am no means a pro 'pro', I dont have to work during school, and I can splerge on things that many other students cant. It also has allowed myself and my father to become much closer, which to me is above any thing I can actually win.