Glad to see someone finally making a video on how much money poker players REALLY make

Not trying to brag, just trying to share. Hopefully this might help someone. -Lose one buyin i'm gone. Win three or four I'm gone. Has worked very well for me last 8 years. Used to b commercial electrician. Much more fun working the tables than the power tools. If I get tired I'm gone. If I feel myself starting to not pay attention when out of the hand I'm gone. Table selection key for me (probably #1). Only time I will stay no matter what is when one of the many" business "men , drug dealer, actor, or should I say whale is at the table. This has made it very stress free , controlled the variance,and made it fun for me. Good luck to u guys on ur next time out. U can call it corny, but its the plain truth. PLAY POKER SO u CAN LIVE UR LIFE. Dont live ur life just to play poker.

This is easily the best vlog channel on KZfaq. The quality of production is amazing, the content is not only real, but the host is realistic, humble and really entertaining. 5 stars for sure.

6:10 is what you came for

Andrew - don't ever apologize for the length of a vlog when it contains such high quality content. Great stuff as always.

First off how could anyone vote this vlog down? Andrew is a world class Guy and really take a ton of hard work to shoot some really amazing footage, that drone footage was top shelf video. I also really like how He talked about a job with a company vs being a poker player. What He is really trying to say is that in poker how long can You go with out poker paying You. When You are getting Your brains beat in, its uncomfortable I know. I have wondered if I would ever seen another winning session again before. Playing cards is a grind and I would not recommend it. I did it and its not worth it, now if You a single Man and don't need insurance, 401K sick time or paid time off go for it. It was a great year of My life but it is a grind.

My girlfriend wanted to watch Netflix, but now she's going to have to wait 25 minutes

One of the best poker commentaries I've seen..realistic, honest, to the point...well done.

You only have a gambling addiction when you are losing.

Andrew I was just going through your vlogs and ran into this one. It reminded me of a conversation I had with a guy who played professionally for 10 years after he sold his business. He had given me a lot of good advice and I have a lot of respect for him. One day I asked him how much he made in his best year. I was shocked when he told me 23k. Made me reevaluate my expectations. Keep up the good work! Marty "the good Marty" from Michigan

A video on taxes and declaring yourself a "professional poker player" would be interesting. Keep up the good work, Andrew.

Totally agree with you. I've made the calculations myself and realized quiting my job and play poker will never be sustainable. Best advice ever you gave for fun players.

gotta be up im 5 hours for work but had to watch this vlog. worth it

Was watching your blogs already but this video just made me a huge fan. The honesty is so appreciated, makes me realize that potentially losing thousands in one session isn’t as easy to shrug off as it may seem.

At the low stakes, I certainly do not recommend becoming a full time professional poker player. I grind $1/2NL at around 60-70 hours a month with a full time job, and average about 8BB ($16) / hour over 875 hours. At $16 / hour, I certainly want to keep my full-time job, but a little extra income doesn't hurt.

This is a great video...one of the best on any poker channel for folks to get a reality check. I know this is old, but for people who run across this and are looking at the math, there's one thing to note. The average month has roughly 4.3 weeks in it, not 4. So, for example in the 5/10 example, $2800 a week is actually $12,040 a month/$144,480 a year. If you want to figure out monthly or annual income based on weekly, multiply the weekly by 4.3, not 4.

I have logged 1152 live sessions over the years. I think it is really important to keep accurate data on yourself.

Great vlog Andrew! 10 bb is attainable with the rakes in Vegas I think, but you have to be pretty good. What I would recommend for people (and the way I've done it for years), is to be a parttime pokerplayer first and work like 20 to 30 hours on the side. That way you can balance the high's and low's and you have always something to fall back on. Once you really start winning and you really like the grind you can choose to do it fulltime (not for me). Other advice is to play some tournaments from your winnings. Those are a fun change once in a while and there's a chance you win a nice price to support your bankroll and move up in stakes. That's another advice: Have a seperate bankroll just for poker to make it easier to deal with the swings. Keep it up and when I see you in Vegas I'll definitely thank you in person for the great vlogs you're making and hope I can buy you a beer and pick your brain for a while :-)

I played live poker for a living for 2 years. I crushed 1 - 2 NL and 1-3NL in vegas in 2008. I averaged $200 a session. 5 days a week. my best week was $5,000 and my worst was negative $1,200. It was stressful. I lost some weight because i only ate once a day. I would play from 1pm - 6pm.. or i would jump in late like 5-6pm and play until 1 or 2 am. I kept a spread sheet and treated it like a real job.

This is great honest advice.....game selection is SOOO important...if you are willing to work the overnight shifts on weekends then you can really up your hourly rate...leave when the game is bad, dig in when it's good, etc.....Andrew is right on with his advice here. Learning where the game is good and when...not playing in shitty games is part of it....play where the game is good always. It's hard to do it when you have a family. Good luck everyone..

You're right that there are so many variables attached to playing poker for a living. I think though to hint that say $40k annually is not worth the time is not exactly fair. In the same way that very few players will reach the high winrates of 5/10 a lot of those folks also have no shot of getting a career with benefits and would be forced taking jobs with hourly pay. I think the biggest thing to consider is whether or not you enjoy poker and look forward to playing it. If you got that with $30k a year you're doing FAR better than someone who makes $100k a year working a salary job and is depressed and miserable. What good is health insurance or benefits when you f*cking loathe your own existence?

I’m 24 years old and just started dealing blackjack in California. After my 90 day probation I’m going to transfer to the poker department. I hope being a dealer will improve my game more quickly. If I can become a 10bb/hr player at 5/10 playing part time 20-30hrs I plan on investing $500 a week into stocks/real estate to start growing my passive income streams. Once I’m making $100k/yr passively I’ll really be able to enjoy poker more :) create a vision and work hard guys!

The title of this video should be 20 minutes of rocks

This was awesome, Just wanted to say thank you for putting the work to making this video. I played professionally at the 1/3 live games. I can honestly tell ya, it was hard and not fun. I had to live off my best friend so I wouldn't have to pay for rent and bills because my poker roll wasn't big and morally it felt awful. But I had a dream! haha. Now i went back to my career because I don't have the discipline and work ethic to be great at the game AND the games do not get bigger than 2/5. I know I didnt have a huge chance of success because I did a bunch of wrongs to start out, but I learned a bunch about myself and I would do it again if i a younger guy, But poker is just a hobby and a game to me now. And i have total respect for live professionals because its a hard life. Good luck Andrew ! Thanks for the video.

An expression I've heard from playing chess " Chess is a wonderful mistress but a terrible wife " seems to be relevant to poker as well....Jim Gilks.

I had to comment again, that hike to that view. Wow, the view off the top of those rock formations is so amazing!! Great video again!

you're a good dude, andrew. your vlogging is improving exponentially too--the holiday nog scene was great. thanks for all your transparency, all the best at the tables and beyond!

The problem I see with ascending the limit levels of poker is the issue of diminishing returns. I think it's safe to say that at a 1-2 game, 10 BB an hour is probably downright conservative. As you go up however, you incur greater risk from stronger players, and as a result your BB per hour goes down. Now of course if we're planning on making poker our primary source of income, 1-2 is probably not going to cut it unless we feel comfortable subsisting on a relatively low lifestyle. However, if you move up to 5-10 your income is simply not going to multiply by 5. I primarily play 1-2 but I do so as a part timer. I enjoy poker a great deal, and like the idea of getting paid for my entertainment rather than having to pay for it. I just don't get value out of the bigger games even if I wanted to move up. Here's the biggest flaw with "moving up" thinking though...as you move up it's not true that players get tougher and tougher like some video game where you made it to the next level. At around 5-10 you "bottleneck" where there will typically be great many very strong players at any given table all trying to move up but simply butting heads with each other. In the end you need money to make money. It's as true in poker as with anything else. If you want to "make it rich" then you need to have a bankroll that will allow you to start at a nose bleed level that may actually contain some players with more money than ability...games that despite having very high stakes actually have competition that is weaker than that 5-10 game. Very few players push through the bottleneck. Once you have the confidence in your game, the next step is easier said than done...you need to have the wherewithal to restart your poker career in the "big games."

I play for fun now...being pro sounds like hell

two things I like the length of the vlog versus everyday I watch a few vlogs and find myself waiting for yours after all it is a Poker Vlog and you talk about poker second THE DRONE ....super sick man super super sick WOW!!! great job andrew seriously bro

Taxes is only for the U.S. though, I don't think any other country taxes poker winnings. Also, if you play in Montreal you don't have to pay for food so that's $200-300/week in additional benefits.

One of my favorite videos of yours so far, love how you broke it down into a straightforward way that the everyday person can relate to. Killer videos

But... my dreams?

This video was a reality check. The part about thinking of playing poker and quitting my job hit home, I’ve been letting my wins go to my head. That and playing poker for 8 hours a day instead of doing benefit-less contractor work for 10 felt like a no-brained choice. Now, I’m thinking that giving up a steady income and the potential of permanent employment at a good company for non-stop stress every day, but the chance for real earnings, is a tough choice.

You mentioned its rare for someone to put in 40 hours a week every week, but you'll find some players who have trouble playing less than 50-60 hours a week. You can do 40 hours in 4 days and have 3 days off each week.

I feel like im going to see old skate videos from back in the day when i watch these. righteous choice of musical content

awesome vlog. loved the drone shots

First time I see a real sound analysis of what a pro can make in real life. Steadily. Very honest, I would have to be a winning player at 5-10 to start quitting my job. But reality is I get annoyed just playing poker all day, can be as boring, even more, than a real job. And need self discipline on top of that. Respect Andrew for sharing this info. :-)

I find your down to earth and honest assessment of poker very refreshing. how much does a youtube vlog channel make with 10k subscribers? 15K? any ballpark figures?

Awesome job, Andrew. First time I've heard this topic discussed in so much detail. I liked your quantitative breakdown as well. Keep up the good work.

as a poker dealer in Brasil i made about 7 to 9BBS per hour in a 5/5 game only with the tips. Its a pretty decent money. work about 30 to 40 hours week. And there is something else: I NEVER LOSE MONEY A SINGLE DAY :)

Heard about you for a couple months or so. Finally watched some of your vids today after watching for months your buddy who drinks a lot of coffee and plays poker in Vegas. Different styles of videos. A lot of people like your videos. I am really impressed on how in depth you are with the hand analysis of various games. This video was really good because it has the capacity to open the eyes of people who have unrealistic ideas of poker. I also appreciate you demeanor in the videos. You seem low-key and humble. Very nice sir.

I have ALL the respect in the world for you, Andrew! This is the most honest, transparent and realistic assessment of Poker Income! Most ( I don't know the percentage, but it stands to reason that it is a pretty high double-digit number) Poker Players are losers in the long term, and the very few that are incredibly lucky to win big tournament money, end up being broke or dead --from Stu Unger to Jamie Gold to everyone else in between!

After this video you made I recently recreated how many BB's an hour I'd be winning at low to mid stakes games based on an 8 hour a day, 5 days a week. I felt that to be able to play 8 hours a day and 5 days a week may not be so profitable for me due to lack of an endurance I might experience playing so much. Instead I worked out goals based on the BB an hour pay schedule of what is a good income regardless of the length of the session. It helps me understand that I can work a two hour session if I already have the achieved income for the day. No need to go overachieving when I become fatigue. Thanks for the payout formula you're using haven't heard of this before I now know how much I should be making based on the(BB an hour) formula. Sick videos Andrew! Thanks for the information your giving out!

For frame of reference. I've been a pro for 8 years or so and I've never played more than 25 hours a week over the course of a year. This past year I averaged 14 hours a week. Playing 40 hours a week is SO HARD.

as a rec player in my state at the time, we only had spread games 2-60, 2-100, timed no limit, and from my area we had to drive either 90 minutes or 3 hours to get to a 1-2 NL game. i pulled off a timed session routinely at these games. the design was: 3-5 hour timed sessions unless the game was really good. goal was to triple the buy in or better and call it a win. side strategy: wait for one very good starting holding to play your first hand; very tight to get the first pot win. it felt to me this was very important to not start off with a loss, and this gave me ample amount of time to study my table. at very low levels, i was able to average $105-$160/hr profit. i did this for over a year (played very few tourneys but was cashing at 75% with about 10-20% of those top 3 finishes). so hearing this breakdown is kind of a wake up call; it seems very bleak. i left the game for a couple years to do the whole plumbing union thing but have since left that and am now preparing to get back in. hopefully see some of you in the 2020 wsop. peace

Isn't it amazing that 10 years ago if you wanted such shots you'd have to rent a helicopter?

You are so right Andrew! I ve been playing 1/2 for 3 years now (I played 2 years online before that) and after these 3 years I m at 10bb/hr overall. It has been just part time job for me alongside my studies but I am sure I don't like poker as job. I crunched the numbers same as U did and I got same result. And I m living in Czech Republic where average salary is aroung 1k$. Anyway great video :)

no wonder trooper doesn't have any furniture

Most honest assessment of poker win rete I’ve heard !!! Poker players tend to exaggerate way too much about their win rates and their life styles. I’ve been playing poker for 4 years as recreational player, I’ve had 15 bb win rates until 13 months ago, this year about 70% of my bankroll went down the drain. Thank you for your videos. I luv them, keep making them please.

Well there go my daydreams of leaving everything behind, driving to Las Vegas, and becoming a professional poker player. :-)

This is by far the most realistic video about the tough poker life I've ever seen. Good overall analysis Andrew, keep up the good work!

Most talented vlogger on KZfaq. Keep it up man!

Thanks for the honesty! Really enjoy all your vlog and look forward to them each week! would love to hear about how you study and how you know when to leave the table and how you to be ok with that.

really loved this vlog....I'm a semi pro. moving up to $5-$10 in 2017....I agree with a lot of your wisdom....I probably want ever try to be professional unless I make it to $100-$200...keep up the good work mate

You can never really know because of the very nature of the game. No matter what skill level you are at. Poker is little skill and mostly luck. All of you will have different opinions.. Example. You always want your opponent to have a strong hand. Slightly under what your holding so you can make the maximum off your great hands. Other times you either trying to steal blinds , bluff , trap etc etc. We all know that if you spend any time playing poker your gonna take bad beats. People hitting 1 and 2 outters happens. Stupid calls happen. You always wanna sit at a table with fish but sometimes those fish get off the hook. Most of the time the big wins usually come on the heels of a big draw or lucky out.... I like this guy. He's on point with the reality of trying to play poker for a living.... Thumbs up

Very honest video. 10 bb per hour seems unrealistic to me. There are many hours of unplayable cards, coolers and good hands that are not connected to flop in any given week. Great drone shots!

This is the first time I’m commenting on any video on KZfaq and it’s because I genuinely want to thank you for putting the time to make this video. I’ve been studying a lot, going over the hands I play the casino and really put in the time to see where and how I can improve my game. Its been almost six months now and I still haven’t broke even. Your video really helped me realize how stressful professional poker can be. It kind of opened my eyes eyes in other words. Thanks again!

Hands Down Best Poker Vlog on KZfaq........ Big Up Sir

All Class with Style it"s Andrew Neeme...Where the Big Boys Play Poker.

these vlogs are amazing man. keep it up!

2011 winnings for me at 2/5- 79k...2012 winnings for me 16k....Poker is best left as a hobby to make additional money but relying on it full time is way too stressful and hard to stay constant which is what you need for family stability. :) Nice video!

Try sneaking that drone into a casino, but make sure Doug Polk doesn't see it. :)

Andrew I just wanted to ask if you've thought about making a Patreon account. I love your content, and it's the genuine candidness that I appreciate. Honest to a fault, and it couldn't be more helpful to a young poker player deciding on pursuing the avenue. If there's some way I can support what you're doing, let me know, cheers.

I personally don't think I could play 40 hours a week. Poker gets tiring and old at times, not to mention dealing with the times where you just don't want to be there and start doing stupid shit like unnecessary gambling, , or have somebody at the table you don't like or who gave you a couple stupid beats and you get after them. Lots of stuff can effect your game. If you do it for a job yiu have to be very mentally strong to avoid that kind of stuff, be able to handle the losses, as you said, and keep confidence. I have known or know some fairly decent players who just can't keep the mental part in check, I've been there done that too. On another note, it's pretty hard to be a winning player at 1-2, at least around here...people are going to see flops around here for 10 to 15 dollars, so usually it can be 5, 6, or more to the flop. I have lost more playing 1-2 than I ever have playing 2-5 or 5-10. Not saying I'm a losing player, but just a much better record at those higher levels. Better chances of winning a 3 way pot than 5, 6, or more. Just my experience. I avoid 1-2 when I can. Sorry about the rambling.

Andrew, I love the vlog. As someone who made a run at playing full time, I totally agree with everything you said. I couldn't handle the downswings. Im much happier as a rec. i hope to run into you in Vegas sometime and maybe buy you a drink. Cheers.

Love the vlogs keep up the good work....I think you missed one very important point...Every professional poker player has too have other potential for income..Like driving the truck for Knish.....I have some passive income which helps cushion those down swings. Its an unconventional life, but you can minimize your stress with some good planning

Andrew. Great post. 1 correction and 1 thing to add to the equation: You calculate the yearly amounts by saying 4 weeks a month, 12 months a year. That only comes out to 48 weeks, so that leaves 4 weeks out of the equation. I, personally, would use that as time off :) While the hourly rate totals make sense, one should also add the hours of studying that need to go in as well. As an employee on salary, I certainly know all the extra hours I put in keeping on top of my field that aren't paid. PS I love Red Rock! Thanks for sharing!

Wrong! I make 100bb/hr every night;' but then I have to wake up.

Reality of the poker dream is laid out perfect in this vlog. I stopped dreaming a long time ago. Cheers Andrew.

2400$ a month would be a good living wage in Finland. You'd be pretty happy with that. Then again you don't pay for education or healthcare and housing is not that expensive either. Of course it's impossible to make money like that at live poker in Finland because the games are also very tough, probably the toughest live low stakes games anywhere in the world.

Every poker wannabe should thank you for this REAL DOSE OF REALITY vlog!!! If you do not have some source of other income whether it be an understanding spouse or significant other, trust fund, side-hustle, whatever lots of luck to ya. I thought you were going to end this by looking into the camera and saying WTF have I been doing! I'm outta here! I can't wait to hear what "the Trooper" has to say about this.

Not sure if anyone has asked this question already: How does VLOGing (KZfaq) supplement some of your, Owen, &/or Polk's bottom line? What are the income potentials there?

was on vacation in vegas few years back. saw treasure island had the promotion for playing up to $599 for 60 hours in a week. i thought it was "easy" and i gave up after 30 hours. i dont play poker for living and its harder than i thought. respect for those who put in 40 hours +/week and winning at the same time.

hey Andrew anyway you could do a video on how you personally study poker?

I would say if you have a good support system, good stress management techniques, skill for the game and all that encompasses (studying, BR management, interest...etc.), plus low overhead, then many people would prefer this as an income producing job rather than having someone breathing down their neck Monday-Friday. The independence can't be understated. Great realistic breakdown though! Really enjoy your content.

I see the cubes go in the glass and I start guessing your drink of choice. Johnnie Walker, maybe Makers Mark, Jack Daniels?...... and you hit me with the egg nog?! Cmon mannnn lol

Always expected never guaranteed, unless you are Andrew Neeme!

Normally when I play, my goal is to double my bankroll. If I sit at the golden nugget in downtown at the 1/2 no limit, I sit with $150.00(75 bigs). I almost always double my bankroll within a couple of hours; however I end up losing at times for not leaving when I know I should only because I love playing. But I promise myself that I will fix that soon so I should be ok soon there after.

Andrew your a beast. Keep doing what you love man. God bless. Let haters hate keep faith. Would love to meet up sometime in the Midwest or Vegas. Thank you for all your videos!! Go get em!! Take zero prisoners!!!!

Look forward to all your videos. I would love to see a glance into your study routines. Any advice on material, etc., you have found useful. Your thoughts on the Doug Polk material. Thanks!

I just put everything else on hold whenever you upload a new video. Keep up the good work!

16:25 for the actual numbers.

I just started watching you, your very level headed person , I'm currently 95$ an hour for last 2 years playing 2/5 in 1k max. Play around 40 hours try not to burn out. The advice I would ad I'd minimize your losses on bad days and no alcohol treat the game we love like a job!

Thank you for the breakdown, I would point out that $30-40k yr jobs don't exactly fall from the sky... The come with much of the same issues like the need to improve and away from work efforts. In many cases, like where I'm from these jobs typically are in very dangerous conditions. You may not lose your money but I know plenty of people that can come home missing a finger or two... Just my thoughts.

I think a relative question in the income discussion that fits in with hours per week of play is table selection. Isn't there a big difference in the win rate you can expect in weekend games significantly higher that in weekday games? So even if you wanted to grind 40+ hours, are there even that many hours of "good games" to be had?

"The brandy is in it!" I am still laughing!

I am at the table rn(as usual) and I watched your video as soon as it popped up on my phone screen. It is definitely not easy to make money by playing poker. Hearing you talking in the video is great and I really wanna talk with you more about being a poker pro. If you have some spare time, hit me up!

a half year iv been playing poker with an amazing run in holland casino, won 1000s of euros, next half year I have been losing every facking day and Went through this Sick downswing, lost 1000s of euros. How good you play sometimes, it doesnt matter because you will get unlucky. Getting it in with 22 on a A26 board, openent plays QQ and goes al in and hits the Q on turn. things like this happened me every day for a half of a year. IV quited poker for some weeks, now I am back to the game and back to grind it up again, gave to much money away on other things when I was winning the first half year, didn't spare anything for these losing sessions. anyways, im ready for a new start, poker can be a brutal game and really wha u say, its not an easy living!

The amount you tip is also a HUGE factor. What does Bussee do for a living? She seems like she would be intelligent. Thanks for the videos man, gluck grinding.

Holy Shit. Look at 2:22... there is a face in the rock formation.... super freaky.

10bb p-hr sounds reasonable. I err on the side of caution and capp my hourly wr at 5-8bb. I don't play full-time, only 20 hr a week and work full-time.

My expected income for poker is -3,242.42 a month not bad ....

I also love photography, that is a beautiful landscape. Love the color at sunset. Thanks Andrew.

Andrew why do you prefer to play live rather than online? Is it more profitable do you think?

Thanks for your opinion. Seems pretty much spot-on. I suggest splitting hourly win rates into 500 hour segments, to see if you are learning, improving, etc. It's taken me almost 1200 hours to reach an $18/hr win rate at 1/2. After 500 hours I was barely over $11/hr. Thanks again for the vlogs!

where can i buy that holiday nog

Great video and absolutely accurate. I played full-time in Australia for 2 years; and I can testify its a hard job. When you show up to work, give up your Friday night and lose more money than you won in the whole week, its absolutely devastating. Its a really tough profession.

I thought the trail walk would be lame but wow such a gorgeous area

This is why you should always have a job and play poker recreationally. Clown on the recs but never leave yourself without outs.