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During the online poker boom of the mid-2000s, I played full-time for a few years.

I'd be hesitant to describe myself as a "pro"; I was young and not playing particularly high stakes. But I was churning out hands (playing 24 tables at once) and making an hourly well ahead of what anyone would pay me at the time.

Anyway, I haven't played poker (online) for many years now, but a lot of the lessons I learned during those years have served me well when sports betting. Here are three of them:

Don't be results orientated

Poker is very much a game of ups and downs. It is common for good moves to backfire and bad moves to pay off. Accordingly, it was extremely important to separate your actions from results. For instance, if I managed to get an opponent to bet all their chips against me with a worse hand, only for them to hit one of the only two cards in the deck they needed to beat me, I needed to keep my head up and acknowledge I'd done the right thing, despite losing.

But equally, if the roles were reversed, I couldn't celebrate knowing I'd made a bad play.

When it comes to sports betting, it is much the same. If I call a tight game between strong defences, bet on a 0-0 draw, and then watch a tight game finish 1-0 due to a freak goal out of nowhere, I know to tell myself that if I keep doing what I'm doing, I'll come out top in the long-run.

Information is power... but only if your opponent doesn't have it too

People who play poker a lot tend to run programs which provide thousands of statistics on their opponents. This is fine, and the information is great for informing decisions. But it becomes worthless if the other players has the same information, and knows I have this information. If the stats show a crazily aggressive opponent, but that opponent knows I have this information, they can easily adapt their game to fool me.

With sports betting, it is easy to get carried away with information. "Messi is injured so it makes sense to bet against Barcelona". Well, no, because obviously the bookmaker knows this too, and has already adapted their odds accordingly.


There's no system, only constant improvement

I eventually fell out of love with poker and stopped studying the game. My results quickly went downhill. It is the same with sports betting. Finding an edge is hard, but possible. The thing is even if you find one, don't bank on keeping it very long. For a couple of years, I had a lot of success betting on football from very obscure leagues. I had an algorithm which was great at spotting games where bookmakers had not priced up correctly. But very quickly this edge vanished, as the bookmakers improved their own pricing strategies.

Would love to hear from anyone else who played poker seriously online and now bets on sports...

I don't know with the poker game because I never play on that game but all I can say for any gambling game including poker game, the result will always about win or lose, no matter the game and no matter how good you played. But I guess that you are one of the pro poker players because you are playing for a full-time in a few years.

I agree that information is power because if we can collect as much information from many sources, it will help us to make a strategy in any games and we can increase the chance to win although we still need to depend on the luck factor.

How can I say that you are a pro gambler? You are stating by yourself on this:


So you got an important lesson from poker, and you will know what you will do in every time you playing gambling besides to expecting to get a win in the poker game or other gambling games. But you need to remember that not all of your day will get lucky because you never know when your luck will come.

What? I don't see any thing on that quote which supports your statement. OP mentioned that he became successful on sports betting and not on poker. Nah, nevermind.

Anyway, IMO it doesn't mean that you are already considered a  pro player just because you have many years of experience. That's not the only qualification. It also depends on how good your skills are, your win rate and how big the assets (money and possessions) you earned through this game.

Maybe he was trying to say that the op is not a pro gambler because he is depending on his algorithms or methods/strategies  .  pro gamblers are already aware that there are no working strategies because gambling only based on luck   .   if they lucky they win and they save thier winnings  , they use their winnings on other profitable and less riskier activities but they play still gambling on other times  .

Poker is more like trading. You need to cut losses and know when to pass even if you already put tones of money on table. Here strategy might work because you don't play against casino where you have 47% probability of winning where casino has 53% (roulette example). In poker, you play against another player. Before looking into cards you and your opponents has exact the same probability of winning and this probability changes after each card you see. With bad cards you have low probability of winning that's why you should cut losses. And that's strategy that would work in poker.

When we do talk about probabilities then these card games do really have it and comparing it to other games like luck-based ones isnt really right at all.
Experience and skills is needed with this kind of game but overall these factors wont work out if luck wont be on your side.Therefore, all these 3 things will needed along the way.

I'm not much of a poker player myself.  It is definitely a mental game that requires a lot of skill.  Whether that is staying calm, reading your opponents, or just making the right moves more often than not.

Good for you to have been able to play full time and earn some money.
There are many aspiring full time players around here that wish they were in your shoes.
I only like to play poker for fun with friends because I cant trust online poker.
With sports it is very different since the chances are 50% to 50%.

Well mate, in any kind of gambling, there's no system but sports betting is an exemption. In poker, you have to know how to tilt the players and play the game by analyzing the body languages of the other players you play with. It's all about knowing how people react about the cards they possess, you have to know what are the body languages they do if they get losing and winning cards.

But yes, you can't be a result oriented person in gambling because you only speculate and ups and downs are always there. You just have to stay on sit and win the game.

Online gambling is a completely different ball game.  Its not like you can read people's facial expressions. :)
Some sites are very sketchy and you will get people teaming up on you as well.

Don't forget about bluffing on poker is one of the great strategy to make the game to turn our side but it is not going to work always.I don't really like poker because it needs time to play and lot of patience we need to keep while the players are winning.

Thank you op for sharing this with us and it is actually a great tip in poker playing.  Information is actually the best thing to have and like you have said that is only if your opponent did not have the same information.

Without luck you are still risking your money, I'm starting to like playing poker but same alike still learning from time to time,
a game of twist and strategy that can be learned when you are very observant but still influence of luck plays a big role inside,
without a good sense of controlling emotions, risk will showed up right after.

Needs to always find enjoyment rather than profits.

if someone wants to be successful today in poker there are a few things that are really important. Poker isn't as easy now as was it was 5+ years ago and it is continuing to get harder. A successful poker player needs to have a solid understanding of range theory, understand where they are currently within their range, and then understand how to adjust those ranges based on opponent actions. In general there are two main schools of thought when it comes to successful poker playing: "GTO"(game theory optimal) vs "exploitative". There are tools and tricks(like solving smaller sub-games) that can approximate a gto strategy for no limit texas holdem. If it were really optimal then the best an opponent could hope to do long term is to break even against you. Exploitative is, in my opinon, where a player understands the fundamentals of gto game and can estimate how far, and where, an opponent is from optimal. They then make what would be a mistake against an optimal player in order to take advantage of recurring errors in a less optimal player's playing habits(e.g. they fold/call too often in certain situations).  In addition to solid fundamentals of range theory they need to practice fairly strict bankroll management. There are a ton of variance calculators available where you can enter your expected win rate and then it will show you how large swings can be. Even a good poker player with bad money management skills will go broke on a regular basis. It requires skill and self control to be a long term winning poker player.

In this game, your strategies is really important because you are dealing to the other gamblers and not on the casinos. I think this is a game where your skills, experience and patience will matter. So many lessons to be learn in poker, so better to focus than to lose big money.

This game is very good, because apart from that you need to have your mental faculties to the maximum, you can exercise a psychology in others, you can prove it in your bets, you can have a bad game, but if you demonstrate security, you can bet with great capital and can cause Panic and become a winner, here all their faculties are measured.

Yes, this is a game of strategies and doing your best just to deceive your opponents. Its also risky especially if you don’t know what to do during the pressure moment. If you are not confident about your poker skills, then look for some gambling games which is based on pure luck.

Thank you for an interesting and informative post. Poker has got to be one of the most popular and challenging games out there, especially because it is just as much a game of skill as it is a game of luck.

I used to play poker and what you have said about the being not a results oriented is true. You just can't predict what other hands will have and what exactly it will be on your hand. Hearing such stories from veterans like you is very interesting.

It is also a risky strategy but if you get used to it, you're aware that chances would be higher if the other hand is scared of your moves. You shouldn't let other hands be familiar of your moves, you must be unpredictable in front of the table.

It is one of the game where your strategy comes into play and more experienced person you are it can become advantage as you may be able to clinch the tricks used to play and act accordingly. Also more than luck here the way you manage to play is vital.

Have been on gambling and gambling investment but have not seen poker easy as most of those gamblers said. Poker is the hardest of all gambling casinos games.

Most of people can see poker as a chance game. But in my opinion, poker is a strategy game in which only experienced wolves win. If you have watched Poker for many years, have taken lessons from the masters and have examined your competitors in detail, you can easily beat the average players.

Those are some good points on poker but as you said unless your opponents don't have that knowledge too. I have seen pokerstars in Tv and I have seen fortune to favour the bolds, I have seen some guy bluffing in texas holdem with two letters of 3-s and the opponent which would have won if he had call did fold.

I've played poker (promo tournaments) a few times since then I haven't played it again but I have been betting on sports for more than a year now. Well said on the three things that you've used from your poker days. I can relate since i've experienced winning bets that shouldn't have won due to a huge disadvantage.

It could mean one of the two or both. On the first part OP did say that he was gaining success on poker but eventually moved to sports betting.

He said:

By saying that, I only think that he is a pro gambler because not many of us can get a lot of success betting on football ;D

Perhaps, if he still stays with the betting on football and doesn't move to a poker game, he could get more money because he has much experience in that game. I only think that he wants to try with a new game and he choose a poker game.

But to be honest, the poker game is too difficult to learn as I try to learn, but I failed over and over, maybe it because I don't have interest in the poker game or maybe a poker game was really difficult.

football betting or sports gambling in general is more easier and more predictabe than a poker or card based game  .  so how can you say that no all gamblers became succesful in betting on football matches ? yes poker game is more difficult but it is also verry rewarding once you already grasp it .  you can earn more fast and huge income but its also enjoyable at the same time when compare to football betting or sports gambling .

Thats why Poker is similar to trading. You never know when big player will come and push price untechnical or when bad/good news will appear. You may have bad luck 9 times out of 10 and still earn if you know how to do money mangement well. Same with poker. You can have bad cards 9 out of 10 times and pass lossing small portion of money and then with one good set put yourself into profit.

Poker need experience, skill, big balls and on the fourth position luck.

But if you can gamble strategicaly, you can win just like Dan Bilzerian and live like him.
The matter only how far your guts and hope the luck meet you at your decision making.

Yes, it's complex thing but it's possible !

I disagree sports betting can be predictable but it's not easy to win. I think maydna's confused or just misread the first post, OP didn't move from sports betting to poker.

For starters it can be difficult but once you memorize the combinations it's not that complicated to play and win.

Yep you're right, I remember back in the mid 2000's, I have a lot of friends who did play poker like you do and earn a lot of money. Some of the started to play really good because I see some of their names in the poker list as well. Again, basically what you have said is true, specially the ups and downs, poker players needs to learn that not everyday is a winning day. You need to learn how to play if you had bad days and take advantage if you're really on a streak.

That’s why you skills is important in this game, its not easy to play agains old gamblers they know better for sure and if they see you as a newbie for sure they will play their best to beat you. Poker is a good game, its more on skills and just a small luck.

Not to be result oriented is the most difficult part. ;D
For me,the 2 most important tips about playing poker are:
1.Be unpredictable.Don't follow a strategy.If you follow a pattern,other players will "read" your game.
2.Be patient as f*ck.The lack of patience will break your game.

Agreed on this because we can only use our skills in Actual plaing i mean physical poker playing as we can read the emotions and body language of our opponents not like in Online when we only dealing with computers.i love playing poker also with friends that ee do mostly in wakes if family members died or on some special occasions when we have time meeting each other’s with longer amount of time

This raises a bigger philosophical question of what exactly is gambling.

It could be argued that when I was playing poker full-time, I wasn't really gambling. Sure, luck impacted whether or not I won on any particular day, but I played several million hands over a few years, and I had enough data to predict very accurately how much money I would make over, say, a period of 100,000 hands.

Equally, if you play slots, are you really gambling when you know the payout is 94% (or whatever). Is it gambling when in the long-run you will lose all your money (if you were to gamble into infinity).

Once you introduce certainty into a game (which you do the more you play it) does it cease to become gambling?

Of course bluffing too much on a poker table will make that strategy useless so we need to only use that blessing method very less often and at the right time to scare opponents on that table. But there is no strategy we can practice to give us win.

That's basically why I've quit playing poker, it's hard to keep up with all the latest 'trends' in the game if you're not consistently playing.
The last time I seriously played poker was about 5 years ago and I'd gotten pretty good at playing tournaments.

I'd end up at the final table pretty frequently, because I was very much interested into researching and improving on strategies that other players used.
The thing is that you really have to keep your knowledge up-to-date, I'd spend several hours per day watching other people play and improve on my own strategy.

This just became too much of a hassle in the end and I didn't enjoy playing anymore.

I'm not into sports betting for the same reason, I know what a time-sink it would be...

Lately i was watching the video through youtube about luxury life from professional poker player and he live in Malta but he was come from France but i forgot his name that he was able to make living from it but i think not all players have the same fate such as him that most of the poker players which his know already go bankrupt because lost but indeed poker is game full of strategy and you cannot always counting on your luck during play this game

Poker actually does help some gamblers and traders with certain strategies.

For example, one thing I learned with Poker was to never go "Full Tilt". What does tilt mean? It usually means that after you experience a few losses you start and make bad decisions which causes you to lose even more money due to being emotional.

This applies both to gambling and trading in general. Usually when a gambler is losing money, they just "want to play till break-even", and the more money they lose in the process they begin to take larger and larger bets and this usually results in them losing their entire balance in a short while.

Poker, Gambling, Trading is basically all done using money and its very easy to become attached to it too much and it leads to bad decisions this is why its important to always have a clear head and a good risk/reward and know when to stop.

In my student years, I sometimes played poker online, but I never did it for the purpose of earning money. It was just a pleasant evening out.
Now, sometimes my friends and I are going to drink beer and can also play poker, but we never play for money to remain friends.

I love football and sometimes I bet on this sport, I like to try my hand not only to guess who will win, but to make a complex bet with several results.

I try not to abuse the game on money so that I do not have an addiction and I can control my emotions.

I can say that is because not all of the gamblers can get valid information related to the match. Besides that, gamblers can miss one or two things with the news so they cannot win.

That is true that football betting or sports gambling is easier to predict and all things depend on how we can get the information. But in a poker game, not all gamblers can understand about the game, and even they cannot win easier than in the sports betting.

I don't think that you can earn fast in poker games because when someone can win in the poker, he should have high skills and experience besides that, his opposite will also have high skills, so it depends on the luck.

Yes, I agree that both poker game and sports betting are enjoyable for the gamblers. But if you feel difficult to learn poker game, then you can go with football betting or sports betting because you only need to search valid information related to the game.


So at least, we should have a good memory to remember the combinations which not all gamblers can have.

Maybe all you need is to push harder rather than given up on it, if you have had good 5 years’ experience in the game, you can still make it if it’s something you have passion for except you no longer have passion for it again.  Like you said, knowledge needs to be upgrade and rather than quitting it you could still be acquiring more knowledge which might be useful to other games too.

Take for example, I almost gave up on forex trading some years ago but I kept pushing, little did I know that it will be very useful for me in crypto day trading which overtime made me become a guru in trading.

Hey OP, this wonderful piece of advice got through your short article does not only fit in to poker game alone.
It is also applicable to other games too as I don’t play poker even though based on your write up, I might try it too.

I have learnt a lot through this short article and will apply it to other games I get myself involved with pending the time I learn to play poker game too and be a guru like you. Thanks once again man. By the way, any information on how to learn poker game online will be highly appreciated.

Firstly play to enjoy the game and the time you spend in the casinos while playing poker. This will become your good memories irrespective of whatever the end result be. But if played just to make money and you end up losing will become bad memory which will disturb you a lot.

Playing poker is not like other games which will feel like you are losing to someone so it will make your ego grower which will initiate the greediness of winning against them at any cost.

With that perceptions, your eagerness to win against your opponents will add spice to your enjoyment,  most of those experienced players/gamblers
loves being challenge, it's adding enjoyment each time they seen someone who wanted to win over them, strategies being made on an actual basis,
they have to keep changing paces in order not being caught.

You are playing both for ego and money, for sure you will try harder to win at any cause.

Since i agree with second one i can't agree with first rule. In poker strategy is the most important. Being unpredictable will push you to bet against statistics and sooner or later math will kill you before your opponent will realise what is your strategy.

One thing I found interesting in op post is that poker like other similar gambling require alot talent and skills to be successful.  So this doesn't quallify as probability based gambling. It more like a game of football where the most prepared team wins and goes home with a trophy.

So should this really be called gambling?

Yeah, poker is actually a skill based game, but luck does have a factor over here. Probability also plays a huge role in this case when the cards are being flipped. Its more like 50% skill and 50% luck, unlike other gambling games like dice which depends on 100% of luck with no skills being involved. This is one of the reason why I like playing poker since you have to apply skills so it kinda becomes fair for long players that have experience vs the new players.

I think the first rule is where you use your skills this include the denial of strategy that you use since you assume that your opponent knows what you were doing that's why you have to use some skills and be unpredictable so that your opponent couldn't read your next move.

A played some poker but full time so not as much as OP and I didn't play with a lot of money because I'm poor. There's a big difference if you play low stake tables because people tend to be more careless and all the newbies play there so I can honestly say that I didn't play "real" poker with people who know what they're doing and run statistics. There's no point in trying to read random people at a low stake table that will quit and an hour later you'll be playing someone else.

I cant really say that there no point in trying yet you would really need this thing to build up your experience plus skills.It is much better that you can
able to play with someone else every once in a while.Reading others is always been there and you will see different behaviors along the way and with that
you can able to point out which is bluff or real.

But if you continuously play poker then you’ll find to use strategy (ofcourse practice made perfect all the time)not like some games that purely needed is luck in poker we need skills and ability to add chances for winnings

I guess OP is a rich son thats why he can afford playing daily even when he was young because he talked as if he lose lots of money from the time he played.
I myself use to be an addict in local gambling since i was young but I didn’t come to play constantly as how Op did

Strategies will work of poker so technically we really need to make strategies in order for us to win because for sure your enemy knows what to do just to beat you. Patience will also play a big role in poker if you have a good cards then you have to be patient and focus on your strategies just don’t mind people around you.

Simultaneously learning and playing of poker will make a player become master in the game but I can assure that every aspect of gambling or investment have to do with luck because the synonyms of luck mean success. Aside that, players skills alone is not enough to provide a rewarding result and this is why some people gambling a chance of making money.

These are some  golden behaviors rather then techniques. Although they not grantee that you will win but our overall experience of poker and gambling will be better if we follow them.

I think is everything that play simultaneously, can make us better and better in that aspect. In poker it is really useful because like what you said, beside luck from a card skill from that player itself really affect on it.