The Poker Dream
Ah, poker. You love it when you're winning, but you damn it all to hell when you're running bad. Even on a completely unemotional level, I struggle with poker all the time. Currently I am a graduate student in molecular microbiology and expect to get my PhD in September. The usual course for a guy like me would be to do a 3 year post doc, during which time I would publish some more papers and gain experience, and then apply for a long term job in industry or academia. But lately I have been feeling a little burnt out with science, and I'm not sure I want to jump right back into it immediately after graduating.
Enter online poker. Since the start of my poker carreer in early 2004, I've done reasonably well, and have gotten it into my head that I could make a living out of this, especially if I moved to some really inexpensive part of the world, say Argentina for example. This is an extremely tempting possibility. But when you really stop and think about it, you have to wonder: how satisfying can it be to sit in front of a computer all day hitting the fold, call, bet, and raise buttons, trying to coax bundles of cash from you opposition? Hell, even when I'm winning I sometimes get tired of playing online after a mere 3 hours.
And yet I can't stop thinking about poker. When I'm at work, poker. When I'm out with friends, poker. The other night I dreamt that I went all in preflop with AA, had three callers, hit my set on a rainbow flop, then lost to a guy with 69 suited when his runner runner flush came through on the river. If I could just find some dupe to pay me to sit around and discuss poker, I would have my dream job. But as it is, my interest in the game has definitely hampered my productivity as a scientist and I have to wonder if I would not be better off quitting entirely. I don't feel addicted - if I'm busy and can't play or ponder poker for a while there's no problem - but it is such an easy method of procrastination. The lifestyles of the extremely successful poker players like Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, and Phil Hellmuth are very enviable - these guys are at the cutting edge of the poker world and are living their dreams. But for someone just grinding away, without all the fanfare and hype, how good can it be? I suppose that with time my interest (I dare not say "obsession") in poker will wane, as it has with any other fad, and I will have an easier time focusing on more productive endeavors. Until then, deal me in.
ps - for a more in depth discussion of similar issues, see http://www.twoplustwo.com/magazine/current/Schoonmaker0506.html
Enter online poker. Since the start of my poker carreer in early 2004, I've done reasonably well, and have gotten it into my head that I could make a living out of this, especially if I moved to some really inexpensive part of the world, say Argentina for example. This is an extremely tempting possibility. But when you really stop and think about it, you have to wonder: how satisfying can it be to sit in front of a computer all day hitting the fold, call, bet, and raise buttons, trying to coax bundles of cash from you opposition? Hell, even when I'm winning I sometimes get tired of playing online after a mere 3 hours.
And yet I can't stop thinking about poker. When I'm at work, poker. When I'm out with friends, poker. The other night I dreamt that I went all in preflop with AA, had three callers, hit my set on a rainbow flop, then lost to a guy with 69 suited when his runner runner flush came through on the river. If I could just find some dupe to pay me to sit around and discuss poker, I would have my dream job. But as it is, my interest in the game has definitely hampered my productivity as a scientist and I have to wonder if I would not be better off quitting entirely. I don't feel addicted - if I'm busy and can't play or ponder poker for a while there's no problem - but it is such an easy method of procrastination. The lifestyles of the extremely successful poker players like Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, and Phil Hellmuth are very enviable - these guys are at the cutting edge of the poker world and are living their dreams. But for someone just grinding away, without all the fanfare and hype, how good can it be? I suppose that with time my interest (I dare not say "obsession") in poker will wane, as it has with any other fad, and I will have an easier time focusing on more productive endeavors. Until then, deal me in.
ps - for a more in depth discussion of similar issues, see http://www.twoplustwo.com/magazine/current/Schoonmaker0506.html
posted by Fishboy77 | 3:37 PM
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