Is 40 too old to start?

flint · Aug 4, 2009

Somebody once asked a older man who was studying a MBA if he knew he was going to be 65 when he was going to graduate, the man replied he was going to be 65 regardless of the graduation.

Why would 40 be too late to start? I tend to think as a 22 year old player that I started playing too young as I tend to want everything right now and not grind it out.

LizzyJ · Aug 4, 2009

As per usual in life, your desire and attitude will be your only determining factor on how well you do or how far you go. There are always going to be people how try to hold you back in a subtle way (read several post above) or flat out tell you it can't be done. Boils down to how motivated are you.

buckster436 · Aug 4, 2009

hell no, 40`s not too old, im 64 and still going,, gl,,,,,,,,,buck

BelgoSuisse · Aug 4, 2009

LizzyJ said:
As per usual in life, your desire and attitude will be your only determining factor on how well you do or how far you go.

i'm sorry but this is not true. desire and attitude are factors indeed, but saying that everybody can become a good poker player with those alone is just plain wrong.

BuggyX · Aug 4, 2009

of course 40 is not too old to start, check this forum out you will get heaps of helpfull hints, its never too late!!!

220878 · Aug 4, 2009

I am 31 already... only started to play poker....not very old, but really hard.....and I am from Russia....sorry for my English...

Leo 50 · Aug 4, 2009

For what it's worth I have been playing poker since I was a teenager, many years ago but only learned about Texas Hold'em back in 98 when Scotty won the main event.
One of the best lines to ever come out of poker "You call, it's gonna be all over baby!"

So for the last 10 years or so I have been studying and playing Hold'em.
I play in a monthly live game, numerous other home games, go to the casino's here in Southern California, and Vegas as often as I can and play in as many online games as time permits.

So far I haven't gone broke, have had a great time and made some money, trophies and a quite a few good friends playing poker.

So I guess it's never too late to start playing.

Oh BTW I'm 59!

DawgBones · Aug 4, 2009

Dogfish44 said:
is 40 too old to START playing poker?

Just take the blue pill and you'll be able to play for four hours straight.

Anymore than that and you might want to consult a physician

Welcome to CardsChat.

left52side · Aug 4, 2009

Maybe 41 but definatly not 40.
I agree with what mortis said.
Poker has no real age limit to it.

dweezel · Aug 4, 2009

BelgoSuisse said:
i'm sorry but this is not true. desire and attitude are factors indeed, but saying that everybody can become a good poker player with those alone is just plain wrong.

I disagree. If you have the desire and the attitude, you will do the other things necessary to become a good player, like educate yourself and such.
All the knowledge in the world won't make you a good poker player, but combine that knowledge with the desire and a good attitude about yourself and the game and you will succeed.
True they are not the only factors, but they are key.

Good luck OP .... I'm 53 years old, been playing for 4 years, have 3 online bankrolls all started from scratch, and a live bankroll that keeps on growing.

BelgoSuisse · Aug 4, 2009

dweezel said:
I disagree. If you have the desire and the attitude, you will do the other things necessary to become a good player, like educate yourself and such.
All the knowledge in the world won't make you a good poker player, but combine that knowledge with the desire and a good attitude about yourself and the game and you will succeed.
True they are not the only factors, but they are key.

I like Americans. They are so optimistic .... and so naive.

Reducto · Aug 4, 2009

Who cares if it's too old? If you are enjoying it and you aren't risking more money than you can safely lose then go for it. Worst case you realize you simply don't have a knack for it or it loses its appeal.

pedroman7 · Aug 4, 2009

If you walk in a casino, in the middle of the week, early in the day to play some limit holdem. As you sit down at the table you will notice you are going to be the youngest at the table at 40 more often than not. I spent a few days at a casino and played some limit games when I was running bad at nl and I dont think anyone at the table was under 40 and most were over 60 easy. So I dont think 40 is too old to start by far.

xtrigemino · Aug 4, 2009

It´s ok, you don´t need less years for play well... I see lot of people who have 60 years and more and they are very good players at the live tables, I think is the same for online poker. Just attitude and pacient is the best way for do this succesfull.

Good luck to you and practice

Makwa · Aug 4, 2009

Yes 40 is too old don't play (will that stop you?).

GL on and off the felts, gramps. I started online at over 50 and dont fear any of the kids (except Dwan of course - skeery creepy he is).

Egon Towst · Aug 4, 2009

BelgoSuisse said:
I like Americans. They are so optimistic .... and so naive.

Unlike the French, who have a more pragmatic attitude.

At the first sign of trouble, they surrender and leave the struggle to their allies (including the aforesaid Americans btw).

nobby1510 · Aug 4, 2009

Just go for it - if you're good you're good no matter what age!

8Michael3 · Aug 4, 2009

Does anyone remember the movie "the last of the Mohicans." Great movie. Nuff said.

I'm 28, still a spring chicken. And if I was 40 I would be even more arrogant at my ability to beat the youngsters who think they are Phil Ivey and Daniel Negreanu.

Dan Harrington has some good advice on becoming a great player both preflop and post flop. And I think any age group--barring severe dissabilities--could master them with the right attitude.

Preflop: "keen alertness, a finely honed intuition, and considerable courage."

Postflop is more analytical:"logic, planning, and cunning."

I think most older men have mastered these qualities through life experience and business ventures. Add to this the books and forum articles that 90% of young players don't read and you're miles ahead.

And 40? Cmon dude- these days 65 is middle aged and 90+is getting on in years. You still young and most probably at your peak....the best time to get involved.

Good luck.

RogueRivered · Aug 4, 2009

I certainly wouldn't want to discourage anyone from enjoying poker. It's a great lifetime hobby and a good way to make some extra money (at the right level). But I don't think anyone should expect to be the next WCOOP champion starting so late. Just look at the young guns who excel at those. You need a lot of stamina to sit through several days of those tournaments without getting frazzled. It's no walk in the park -- that's why I call poker a sport. You don't see a lot of pro athletes playing beyond 40, let alone starting. But you do see a lot of recreational players at all ages playing just for the fun of it.

NewLucker · Aug 4, 2009

To mine, poker has an age restriction only for start-18, and to you the time! Good luck!

arahel_jazz · Aug 4, 2009

BelgoSuisse said:
I think it depends on your background.

If you're an engineer who has played a lot of chess, go, backgammon and bridge before, switching to poker at 40 should be a piece of cake.

So that's why I took to NLHE poker so easily about 5 years ago...

[ x ] Engineer
[ x ] Speed Chess player from 20 years ago.
[ x ] Backgammon (with drugs and alcohol in 1970's)

=sum: Poker Player!

Although, as I get older, my patience (hence stamina) is waning a bit. I have to be really motivated to play 5-6 hour tournaments any more.

dmorris68 · Aug 5, 2009

I'm 41 and just played (and won) a 7 hour MTT a couple weeks ago. I was exhausted, sure, but could have easily gone a few more hours if I had to. I started playing online poker maybe 18-20 months ago -- before that I hadn't played a live game in 25+ years, and even then it was more recreational stuff like quarter-ante family games. No concept of the math involved, or even that there was math involved in poker.

It probably helps that I've been a software engineer for 20 years too, but I submit that being good at poker does not require an advanced math degree. Once you understand the basic concepts, the math is simple. I'd say more important are the aforementioned attitude and determination, and a natural knack is a huge bonus. You can never discount experience and intuition -- old-timers like Doyle Brunson rarely if ever rely on math to guide their play, they play by "feel."

Grinderinoz · Aug 5, 2009

is 40 too old ?

I hope not, I'm almost there

I was a little worried about that myself, however I believe that 3 out of the 9 at the final table at the wsop are over 40 ???...believe and succeed.

rhulp1 · Aug 5, 2009

as long as you dont fall asleep. Look at Doyle he is still playing!

xXShannonAXx · Aug 6, 2009

your never to old to play poker in my opinion which makes it such a great game for a diverse range of people

Is 40 too old to start?

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