Passion or ambition????

Catalina2 · Feb 2, 2026

Do you play out of passion????
Or do you play for ambition????

Both are good but in excess everything takes its toll...

If you play for Passion: Let me tell you that you are enjoying each hand and different opponents to deal with, but you still manage to break into the top 10 and you are pleased to be one of those first 10 of 500, 1,000, etc.
Your focus is on having fun, seeing what rival times you have, dealing with aggressive, weak, floopers, etc.
All of this gives you experience without asking for it.

If you play out of ambition: Here there are two sides to the coin... in excess, in excess it doesn't do you much good because maybe at first you win play after play until that changes against you and someone with a better game eliminates you without a minimum of effort.
Your focus is only on the prize: you want to win most rounds betting exaggerated amounts just to intimidate your rivals and win as soon as possible, but suddenly... you are eliminated

The other side of the coin is the best because without ambition we would be stuck with the things you have, plus it's like an engine that drives you to want to achieve more.

Kasztor007 · Feb 2, 2026

For me it’s both, but in the right balance.
Passion keeps the game enjoyable and helps you survive the swings. Ambition gives direction and pushes you to improve. Too much of either is dangerous passion without goals can stagnate, ambition without enjoyment burns you out. The sweet spot is enjoying the game while wanting to get better.

rsparente · Feb 2, 2026

Ambition.

pltelles · Feb 2, 2026

I play for the money, dreaming of winning at least a six-figure tournament.

Luvepoker · Feb 2, 2026

I play for both. I don't care about the money but I greatly care about the glory. My goal is a Circuit ring.

wushibala · Feb 3, 2026

For enjoyment, you can sit and play this game all day without getting tired, and that says a lot. For example, I probably couldn’t watch movies or TV series all day — I just wouldn’t handle it — but with poker, it’s easy.

john_entony · Feb 3, 2026

I think that 15 years ago I played with ambition, but now I play according to my tournament strategy. I have become more pragmatic in poker, and this helps me achieve results and be less susceptible to emotions.

gloria_marga · Feb 3, 2026

A little bit of both; I don't want to hurt myself by being too ambitious. But if I'm not a little ambitious, I'll never be able to progress in poker.

austral · Feb 3, 2026

Passion to endure variance and losing streaks.
Ambition to improve, compete, and never settle.

CaioRJ · Feb 3, 2026

Both, first for ambition, after passion, learn the game changed my mind.

R.Holynskyi · Feb 3, 2026

I play with dedication, I play with ambition, I play for fun, I play for money. I can name quite a few reasons why I play poker. But perhaps the main reason that motivates me every day is the satisfaction of winning.

dompoker · Feb 3, 2026

Passion makes us enjoy games, but ambition is the opposite, the more a player wants to win, the worse he sees him, he is angry and violent. So the best thing is to play with passion, and less interest in money.

rufininha14 · Feb 5, 2026

In my case, for two reasons: I play to make some extra money and also because I love poker.

Emily Trott · Feb 6, 2026

I enjoy the game, and have for more than 60 years, so that would put me mainly into the passion group. I also have the ambition that makes me want to reach the final table in tournaments, which are what I mainly play.

I started playing tournaments because I wanted to do something competitive again. The point of any competition is to win, not for monetary gain, but for the personal satisfaction of winning. So that is what puts me into both categories.

sibkaz · Feb 6, 2026

Prudence and desire...)))

odonob · Feb 6, 2026

Ambition for me. I have very little passion for the game.

Kpaprince · Feb 7, 2026

For me it’s a mix of both, but passion comes first. Passion is what keeps you learning, enjoying the game, and staying curious even during bad runs. Ambition is important too, but when it takes over completely, that’s when poker can become stressful instead of fun.

I think the best results come when ambition is guided by passion — you want to improve and win, but you’re still able to enjoy the process, accept variance, and not force results. Without passion, ambition burns you out. Without ambition, passion can stagnate. Balance is the real key.

Gaurav123p · Feb 7, 2026

I would like to play poker tournaments .where I won so much real moneyand I love to play poker in free time.

sibkaz · Feb 7, 2026

Before you can achieve anything, you must have a desire...)

bodil19982 · Feb 8, 2026

I like poker as a game. Ever since I was a child, when I saw this game, I was immediately drawn into it.

bodil19982 · Feb 8, 2026

For me, poker is more of a hobby than a passion. But who knows how it will turn out?

dompoker · Feb 8, 2026

I have liked poker since I was young, when I found out about this game, I was excited for it.

Ruslan L · Feb 8, 2026

Gaurav123p said:
I would like to play poker tournaments .where I won so much real moneyand I love to play poker in free time.

I think it's more important to win systematically and consistently. Being consistent and systematic will show your skill, and it's kind of the first step to playing professionally. Think about how your life would change if poker allowed you to pay all your bills.

Sschafell · Feb 11, 2026

I believe a little of both.

Jyco · Feb 12, 2026

I think it’s always a mix of both, but for me it leans much more toward passion. I mostly play freeroll tournaments, which don’t offer much money, but when you start getting close to the final table, everyone is short stacked, and you reach that moment where every hand could be your last or the hand that puts you on the path to becoming champion. That feeling is hard to replace.

Of course, there is some ambition involved, but it doesn’t compare to the passion of wanting to play well, regardless of the prize. Many times you lose because of a bad beat or your own mistake, but you should always leave the table with a smile if you know you played your best. Even when you bust early, you analyze what went wrong so you don’t repeat the same mistake and can improve every day. That constant desire to get better is what poker passion means to me.

Passion or ambition????

Catalina2

Rising Star

Kasztor007

Rock Star

rsparente

Rock Star

pltelles

Visionary

Luvepoker

Lost in the twilight zone

wushibala

Rock Star

john_entony

feed the Fox

gloria_marga

Rock Star

austral

Rock Star

CaioRJ

Rock Star

R.Holynskyi

Legend

dompoker

Legend

rufininha14

Rock Star

Emily Trott

Legend

sibkaz

Legend

odonob

Legend

Kpaprince

Rock Star

Gaurav123p

Enthusiast

sibkaz

Legend

bodil19982

Rock Star

bodil19982

Rock Star

dompoker

Legend

Ruslan L

Legend

Sschafell

Visionary

Jyco

Rock Star

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