What is needed to become a professional?

sibkaz · Feb 5, 2026

Play, learn, spend, win... and you'll have experience! )

thwenth1983 · Feb 11, 2026

Good morning, everyone. In addition to studying a lot and practicing extensively, it is necessary to have a certain natural talent to play poker. The best players in the world, besides being extremely intelligent, seem to have been born with a natural aptitude for the game.

andron205 · Feb 11, 2026

work hard on the quality of your game and have self-control

romerim · Feb 11, 2026

Talent helps, but study is mandatory. Without mastering math and technical strategy, intuition loses to professionalism in modern poker.

daniel.g · Feb 11, 2026

A huge bankroll and zero social life… or be good looking and start a social media channel. Haha lotsa pros are not that great but they are popular people to watch

Jyco · Feb 11, 2026

I think poker is like any other area in life, such as sports. A very talented kid often trains less because he believes his natural ability is enough and at first, it usually is. He really is better than most just because of talent.

However, over time, he starts to realize that talent alone is not sufficient. As the years go by, he falls behind others who developed strong training habits, discipline, study routines, and even better lifestyle choices.

Talent gives you an initial advantage, but it only takes you so far. Hard work, consistency, and deliberate study are what allow players to reach the level of true geniuses and sometimes even surpass them. In the long run, hard work always beats talent if talent doesn’t work hard.

hjuosh · Feb 12, 2026

"I think that to try to be a poker professional—just to try—it is necessary nowadays to have 5% talent and 90% study. The other 5% is having the bankroll to invest in your game. No business is possible without a good bankroll to invest in. So, three things to be a poker professional:"

1. Complete a real and serious study (90%)

2. Have the necessary bankroll to invest in your game/business (5%)

3. Have the talent to do it (5%)

Just an opinion. Good luck.

dzsire · Feb 12, 2026

Time, practice, patience and money. Without these, it's a waste to get into it. Of course, you can get into it as a hobby player from time to time to try your luck, but if you lose momentum and don't improve yourself, you can pretty much start the whole learning process over again.

chicbulls2 · Feb 15, 2026

treat it like a job, and after a few years we will see

E.Rostowicz · Mar 10, 2026

Honestly, natural talent only gets you so far these days. Maybe 15 years ago you could wing it on intuition, but the modern game is just too technical. If you aren't putting in serious work away from the tables with solvers and hand reviews, you'll eventually get crushed by the people who do. You really need that mix of both to go pro now 🃏

Prem · Mar 10, 2026

Talent can definitely help in poker — things like good intuition, patience, and the ability to read situations can give someone a natural advantage. But talent alone is usually not enough to become a professional player.

Most successful poker pros combine natural ability with a lot of study and discipline. They review hands, study strategy, understand probabilities, and constantly work on improving their decision-making.

Another important part is bankroll management and emotional control, because even great players face long periods of variance.

So in my opinion, talent may help someone learn faster, but consistent study, experience, and discipline are what really turn a good player into a professional.

Luvepoker · Mar 10, 2026

WladiYoga said:
Hi Guys, I wonder: Is it possible to become a really good poker player by just playing/just by nature? If one has a talent within himself to be one of the best?
Or is hard study work necessary in any case?
Thank you for your honest answers.

You can become a OK to decent player by reading and watching and playing poker. If you want to be a good or great player or even a professional player you need to study the game and hard. I am a student of the game and I still am learning things about this game. This game also evolves over time. To answer your question it is hard Study.

Chunhong319 · Mar 13, 2026

WladiYoga said:
Hi Guys, I wonder: Is it possible to become a really good poker player by just playing/just by nature? If one has a talent within himself to be one of the best?
Or is hard study work necessary in any case?
Thank you for your honest answers.

I think talent can help, but it’s not enough by itself. Poker is a complex game, and studying strategy, reviewing hands, and learning from mistakes are all very important if someone wants to become really good.

KLEBE7 · Mar 17, 2026

The mental game is what actually keeps you professional. Pros don't 'quit' when they lose; they review their play and get back to work. You need the discipline to play your 'A-game' even when you’ve lost ten flips in a row. Most people have the skill to be pros, but they don't have the stomach for the variance

Search

What is needed to become a professional?

sibkaz

Legend

thwenth1983

Visionary

andron205

Visionary

romerim

Rock Star

daniel.g

Rock Star

Jyco

Rock Star

hjuosh

Visionary

dzsire

Legend

chicbulls2

Rock Star

E.Rostowicz

Enthusiast

Prem

Rising Star

Luvepoker

Lost in the twilight zone

Chunhong319

Enthusiast

KLEBE7

Enthusiast

About CardsChat

Our Community

Our Site

Follow us