Reading around the poker scene in 2004 and comparing the tone and enthusiasm in the articles written in that period to articles written recently show a clear division between what was being said then and what is being said now. The distinction is that now, if you were to log on this second and play Texas Hold’em poker online you would notice the following,
• There are more good players at all levels,
• It is harder to find those elusive fish we strive to hunt down and beat, and…
• Making money from online poker is not easy (how I wish it was!)
When I first started playing poker I did what all dedicated writers do and before I played a hand I did lots of research. This was back in 2004 and every single article I read without exception told me that there was an embarrassment of riches to be had by being no more than an average online poker player. I logged on and found that the games were a little harder than I expected and I admit I did not make, nor did I lose a lot of money. I quickly realised that thousands of other people had the same idea as me and had started to play poker because of this very public opportunity. Quickly the fish were cleaned out and replaced by a better overall standard of player (if you think three years is quick).
In those glorious early days of online poker anyone fortunate enough to enter and win one of the big live poker tournaments like a WSOP or WPT even was guaranteed a lot of coverage and plenty of deals including magazine interviews and poker room sponsorships. Now it is said that winning tournaments does not mean as much. However as recently as last week Liv Boeree won the EPT San Remo and she has featured on GMTV with Lorraine Kelly and also in ‘The Sun’ newspaper in the UK. Her sex appeal as a model undoubtedly boosted her mainstream coverage but nevertheless it is still being reported on and covered by the media, including none poker media which is rare.
Most big poker tournament winners were signed up by poker schools, online poker sites, poker magazines and other industry deals very quickly in the early days but now there are so many large poker tournaments even winning one is not a guaranteed ticket to poker fame.
James Akenhead is a great example, he is a red pro at Full Tilt but it took a final table appearance at the main event of the WSOP, a final table appearance at the WSOPE main event and winning the Poker Million before he got this deal. He also already had a runners-up spot at a 2008 WSOP event that brought him to the poker public’s attention. Poker stardom these days is certainly trickier to obtain than before, just like online poker profits.
I have blogged in the past about how I believe winning poker was never as easy as simply logging on and winning, but hearing people write that online poker tournament wins and even live poker tournament wins are comparatively meaningless compared to what you could earn in the past sent me on an off-the-poker-table tilt.
Buying a property outright to live in and securing your future would be a big deal to me. Having someone say to me after winning €1,000,000, having won my way to a large poker tournament via a bwin.com satellite event, that I will probably not get a sponsorship deal out of it would not be something I would lose any sleep over. Knowing that I now had a real shot at a comfortable lifestyle and with sensible investment a lifetime of financial security would mean more to me than signing a deal to represent a poker room, although if bwin.com come knocking I would be more than happy to oblige them.
The online poker tables are definitely tougher but this means you can be more proud of your poker achievements! However big or small, your wins should mean a lot to you, especially in the current poker environment. We all work hard to put ourselves in the frame for such achievements so make sure you enjoy the good moments when they come along!
By Malcolm Clarke
