Every time when I walk into a card room or a casino – no matter if it’s in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Monte Carlo or Macao - I find it impossible not to look around the poker tables and try to identify the individuals who are professional poker players.
Granted, their numbers are few compared to the average fun-seeking visitors who gather at the poker tables night after night in search of an excitement and maybe a little spare change to take home. The ranks of professional poker players are comparatively small and consist of a very elite crew.

“An easy way to make a hard living”

While no one could consciously recommend to a young and impressionable person that pursuing a career as a professional poker player is a sound choice, nonetheless we cannot deny our fascination with these people who are willing to literally put everything on the line with the same nonchalance with which the average worker sits down in a cubicle and goes about the day’s paperwork.
How does one even go about the process of becoming a professional poker player? This is something I am asked frequently. Let me offer my personal observations about what is required for a person seeking to play poker in a professional capacity.

Greatness shows early

One thing you will find among a large percentage of successful professional poker players is that they began their journey at and early age. If you look at someone like poker champion Daniel Negreanu, for example, you will see a person who was fully immersed in the world of poker by his early teens.
That’s just one example, of course, and there is in fact nothing all that extraordinary about the youthful age at which Negreanu began. If anything, this is the norm. Phil Hellmuth is another example, and young champions Annette Obrestad and Peter Eastgate have all the qualities of a professional player at the age of 19 and 22, respectively.
So, if you are already in your 40s or 50s and considering a career as a professional poker player, just know that you are well behind the curve.
Having said that, I do not wish to be accused of ageism or inaccurately stating that the only people who successfully play poker professionally are those who haven’t yet gotten their driver’s license.
Take a look at Doyle Brunson and tell me old people cannot make a living at the green felt. Dan Harrington isn’t 30 anymore either. Lighten up, gramps!

Skill and perseverance

Aside from the requisite experience and comprehensive knowledge, personality and psychology are two critical factors which must be borne in mind. Successful professional poker players must have skin made of leather and ice water running through their veins. Online pros typically do anything to go after all the juicy poker bonuses out there, even if it involves switching rooms, moving e-cash around, etc.
Excessive emotion is not a trait which any pro can afford to exhibit. The histrionics of great players like Phil Hellmuth and Mike Matusow aside.
So, unless you have garnered, through years of studying, the skills required to seriously compete and have the guts to withstand heavy-duty psychological combat, chances are life as a professional poker player is not in the cards for you.

Many people who play 7 card stud really enjoy the game but just do not grasp exactly how to play it. The first thing you have to understand is the terms used in the game.

These include:
High card - any one of the cards from 10 to an Ace.

Low Card – any one of the cards 2-9

A Split pair – this is where you have a pair but only one is shown.

A Concealed pair – this would be a pair that either is in your pocket or hide as your hole cards.

The Door cards – these are the cards everyone can see, and they will determine who starts a round.

How to Fast Play: this is where you have a high pair in your hand and you want to hurry and bet, raise and re-raise so you get everyone out fast and you win the game.

Slow Play: This is where you cannot use the fast play option because you need to draw more to make a hand. You will throw out the cards you do not need and try for the ones you do to make a decent hand and hope you get it.