Poker Player Earnings History

Have you ever been at a table and heard someone brag about how much they make playing poker? Chances are if you haven’t yet you will very soon. Online poker games are filled with people who boast about winning at poker. Hiding behind the anonymity of the internet and a screen name poker players tend to exaggerate about their win rate and profitability – perhaps even lie all together. Up until a few years ago they could get away with relentless bragging. Many websites now track earnings of players in tournaments and sit n go games. You can go on to these sites free of charge and search any players earnings.

Several search databases exist, but we have combed through the majority of database sites and come up with a few good ones. These poker earnings history databases track profitability in a few types of games like tournaments and sit n’ gos. For cash games you will have to rely on pokertracker and other data mining services. Each of these services tracks and ranks various players across different poker sites. You are usually allowed three basic searches per day free of charge. For additional features and searches you must have a premium membership. For serious poker players who rely on poker for income these databases may be a necessity. Here are a few reasons you may want to utilize poker player earnings history databases.

• Measuring an Opponent’s Skill
• Finding Loose Games
• Disproving Statements Made By Opponents
• Tracking Your Own Performance

Pocket Fives

Pocket Fives is a members only database that ranks various players across all poker sites. The best part about the site is its lack of charge. After signing up for a free membership you can search for other members of the site. The only downside to this feature is your opponents can do the same for you. Pocket Fives is strictly for tournament play rankings and player biography information. The website is well respected among the poker community and even ranks players specifically by world, country, state and city. This site can tell you what players are good in your home town, even if it is small and unknown.

Sharkscope

If you have ever played a sit and go you will want to know what players at your table  are profitable. This will help you attack the weak players and stay away from the strong ones. Sharkscope is a earnings history database designed specifically for sit n go tournaments.  The service is so useful that some major poker rooms have contemplated banning poker players from using it. General visitors get five free searches per day with additional services and information costing a fee. Using the premium service is great for serious sit n go players. You can search for the weakest tables to play at  before buying in to a sit n go. As you already know table selection is important since you want to play against the weakest players possible.

Official Poker Rankings

If you want to know the collective career earnings of any of your opponents Official Poker Rankings is the site to visit. It organizes players by card room and ranks them out of the total player pool. The it provides interesting and useful stats like return on investment (ROI) and in the money (ITM) percentages. If you ever make it deep into a tournament this service can help you figure out what kind of tournament poker player you are up against. This service is provided free for a limited amount of searches. Visitors get three free searches per day before they are prompted to sign up for a premium service.

*Updated: OPR no longer carries Full Tilt Poker statistics.

The Poker DB

The Poker DB is under new ownership by Bluff Magazine. The site offers an unlimited amount of “basic” player searches. For detailed information on players you must subscribe for a premium membership. This provides detailed access to all datapoints. While free searches aren’t nearly as detailed, they are unlimited. Furthermore, ThePokerDB.com covers all poker sites including Full Tilt Poker.

If you haven’t already heard of these services visit the sites right now and look up your own poker earnings. If you are playing in a tournament or sit n go right now check out the other people at your table. Using these services during play is a big advantage. You will instantly know who the good and bad players are without much effort. It may be the difference between a big cash and barely making the money. Perhaps a few free uses will convince you to go premium for a small monthly fee. Whether you use the services for dirt on your opponents or for a competitive advantage, the value is unmistakable – statistics don’t lie.

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The Lifetime Poker Grind

Whether you want to be a doctor, professional athlete or poker player you must persevere through all obstacles in your way. The wash-out rates of highly esteemed professions are staggering. The grind and hard work is a high price to pay for the majority of people. An interesting and obvious correlation exists between odds of becoming a given profession and salary – the harder it is to become something the more you get paid. Here are some interesting odds numbers on professional careers and occurrences in life.

Odds Of…
Winning Olympic Medal: 1 in 662,000
Professional Baseball Player: 1 in 470,000
Struck by Lightning: 1 in 576,000
Dating a Supermodel: 1 in 88,000
Audited by IRS: 1 in 180
Professional Blogger: 1 in 10,000

Long Term Winning Poker Player: 1 or 2 in 20 (5%-10%)
Top Poker Player: 1 in 5,000 (Winning $XXX,XXX+)

If you can’t spot the sucker at the table in the first few hands – its you. A similar line from the movie rounders supports the estimated percentages of profitable poker players. Many theories are out there, but roughly one person at each table makes money playing poker, maybe even less. If you think you can just sit down at an online poker table and make money right away you are sorely mistaken. Poker takes just a few days to learn and a lifetime to master. The game is measured in terms of thousands or millions of hands, not a quick rush. The rake taken from each pot hits you and your opponents are always getting better. Next time you sit down at a poker table and have a losing session, realize just how difficult it is to profit long term. The game of poker and many careers often start off as a grind.

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Multitabling or Single Table Poker

Multi-tabling is the act of playing several online poker tables at the same time versus single table play involving only one table. Almost every online poker site allows multi-tabling, anywhere from a maximum of 6 to as many as 24 tables. While it may seem extreme to play as many as 6 tables or more it is quite common online. Video sites like Youtube.com have several examples of multi-tabling in action. Each style of play has positives and negatives, suitable for different types of players.

Multi-tabling

• Higher Amount of Hands Played
• Higher Pre-Flop Expected Value
• Higher Rakeback
• Prone To Blind Stealing
• Human Error

Single Table

• More Attention to Opponents
• Higher Profitability
• Less Misclick Potential
• Less Rakeback
• Fewer Hands

The following chart represents a possible hourly win rate in terms of big bets won per 100 hands. A good online poker player at low level no limit stakes games could reasonably make 6 BBs / 100 hands. Focusing all of his attention on just one table will obviously mean full concentration on that table and better play. As more tables are added (multitabling) that same player’s win rate should be expected to drop. Folding marginal hands to avoid time consuming decisions and less evaluation of opponent play decrease the win rate. The tighter range of cards played coupled with the sheer volume of multitabling should increase gross profits while decreasing individual table win rate. As more and more tables get added the risks of bad play increases as well. The chart of winnings could look something like this:

.25/.50 NLHE – Assuming 60 Hands / Hour

* 1 Table = 6 BBs / 100 @ 50c BB = $1.80 / Hour
* 2 Tables = 5.5 BBs / 100 @ 50c BB = $ 3.30 / Hour
* 3 Tables = 4.5 BBs / 100 @ .50 BB = $ 4.05 / Hour
* 4 Tables = 3.75 BBs / 100 @ .50 BB = $4.50 / Hour
* 6 Tables = 3 BBs / 100 @ .50 BB = $ 5.40 / Hour
* 8 Tables = 2.25BBs / 100 @ .50 BB = $5.40 / Hour
* 10 Tables = 1.75 / 100 @ .50 BB = $ 5.25 / Hour
* 12 Tables = 1.25 BBs / 100 @ .50 BB = $ 4.50 / Hour

*Not including rakeback earnings

The key is finding balance when deciding how many tables to play. As you can see from the chart above a sweet spot exists for number of tables played. A player should play enough tables so that they can play a tight range of hands, yet not so many tables that they cannot focus properly to profit from those hands. Multi-tabling leads to better pre-flop expected value and rakeback, while single table play leads to a higher profitability percentage with less overall profit. In the end multi-tablers sacrifice reads on opponents for higher expected value preflop. Single table players sacrifice more hands played for higher profitability in the fewer hands they do play. Four to six tabling might be a good starting point for online play.

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Poker Darwinism

At a typical cash game poker table just one player in nine is profitable over the long term. The coined term Poker Darwinism helps explain this phenomenon. Darwinism is a term created by Charles Darwin is describing natural selection in nature where the most intelligent and best conditioned members of a species prosper. In its crudest form this term can help us understand how the game of poker works. The best and most adapted poker players make the most money, while the other players lose. Since poker is a zero sum score game, when you win your opponent(s) lose. When rake is factored in the game becomes a grind – or survival of the fittest.

The Case for Poker Attrition

A win rate of 3 big-blinds per 100 hands is widely accepted as a good win rate among poker players. Usually about sixty hands are played per hour. Therefore a win-rate of nearly $6.00 per hour is considered impressive. Minimum wage in the United States is very close to this figure so we can infer that the best lower stakes players make near minimum wage. Mid-stakes or limit cash game players might make 2bb/100 or $9 per hour – not much more.

Follow the Money

If you have ever looked up hand history you will not only see how a given hand played out, you will also see the words “Rake Collected: (insert number here)” toward the end of the output. The rake collected from each pot by the house is the number one explanation for the grind of poker. Now you might say “Rake only accounts for a small fraction of each pot, not nearly enough to affect my earnings.” You couldn’t be any more incorrect – house rake is your number one enemy. You might lose more money in rake than to your opposition.To make things easier to understand a comparison can be made.

Scenario
Imagine that you are granted power by the government to run your very own toll both on whatever road you choose. For each car that passes a fee of half a cent is collected and for every truck that passes you earn one cent. Poker rooms also charge a “toll” they label as rake.

500 Trucks per hour x .01 = $50

3000 Cars per hour x .05 = $150

= $200 hour

x 24-hours in a day

= $4800 per day

This example only accounts for one road (table). Now multiply this result times X number of roads/ tables – lets use a conservative number like 1000. (Full Tilt has 20,000 tables+ going at one time usually)

1000 roads x $4800 = $4,800,000 per day

x 360 days per year (to account for maintenance & down time)

=$1,728,000,000 per year in revenue

Charging no more than .01 per vehicle passing through your toll system 24 hours a day – 360 days per year you would make nearly two-billion dollars in revenue per year, maybe more. The toll fee example above used higher numbers than would be applicable to poker, but hopefully you get the general idea. Micro fees multiplied over millions of transactions/hands is powerful. If you relate to movies better, watch Office Space to understand this lesson.

*A popular poker room PokerStars recently announced it had dealt its 25 billionth hand. Using a conservative rake estimate of just .10 per hand you get a startling result – $250 million.

Big Fish in a Small Pond

One of the worst mistakes a good poker player can make is playing against tough opponents – as if battling the house rake was hard enough. Believe it or not, you make the majority of your poker earnings off the mistakes of others – not your own brilliance. This common statement has been thrown around the poker community, but few players truly understand it. Table selection may be the number one determining factor in your poker success or failure. If you are knowledgeable about nature you inevitably understand the food chain. Poker has a food chain as well. The house is on top followed by the top players who make money when weaker players lose. If you are the 9th best player in the world playing against the top 8 players you will lose money.

Hopefully you can see why online poker is such a profitable industry for the house. The rake structure compounded over millions (or billions) of hands secretly robs the collective poker user base like a parasite on its host. Although rake is accounted for and visible, it is so discreet that few people even realize its happening. Money slowly draining off the poker table into the hands of the house ensures the grind of the game. The house is always getting a cut of the profits generated. All of the negative factors discussed in poker cash games create the perfect environment for poker Darwinism – survival of the fittest.

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Plug Your Poker Leaks

A basic bucket filled with water analogy best explains the relationship between poker leaks and your bankroll. Leaks are the holes in your poker game or the bad ways you lose tiny amounts of money over and over again. Imagine a faucet slowly filling a wooden bucket with water – at the same time a few holes on the bottom of the bucket slowly leaking water. The water being poured into the bucket represents the pots you win, while the tiny holes represent the avoidable things you do over and over to lose money. Several microscopic leaks will eventually drain a bucket of water dry. Likewise, small leaks in your poker game drain your bankroll – applying quick-fixes like gum to patch up your bucket won’t work either. Long term improvements and efficiencies must be made for long term success. Even the smallest positive adjustment could be worth a lot when applied over millions of hands. Swallow your pride and be prepared for an honest self evaluation of your game. Where are your small and avoidable errors? Plug your leaks and make your poker winnings overflow!

What qualifies as a “leak” and what is a “skill” in poker is debatable. A leak is an avoidable error a player makes costing a seemingly insignificant amount of money in the short run – but something that adds up to a lot over the long term. They are also things that can be readily fixed with small and simple adjustments. Things requiring higher intuition, reads or a major strategy overhaul don’t really qualify as leaks. Much gray area exists between the two depending on your given skill level. Below are some practical leaks that can be instantly plugged without any skill overhaul.

1) Rushing into a Game
This is one of the most common mistakes in poker. We see this mistake happen everyday as if it is acceptable – rushing into a ring game before the big blind reaches your position at the table. This means a player pays two big blinds plus the possibility of completing the small blind in just one table orbit. This type of play coupled with multi-tabling and thousands of hand poses a significant leak. Rushing into a game also takes away your advantage of measuring out the competition for a few hands before you actually are dealt a hand.

2) Timing Out Repeatedly
We have all seen an opponent timing out all the time while playing poker. Every few hands that player disconnects and is forced to post a “dead blind” to join back in the game. The disconnected player loses the blind and possibly default-folds with the best hand, losing a potential pot. This type of action annoys the table and will soon result in the table disbanding. When this happens you must buy in at a new table, resulting in another big blind lost. Get a reliable internet connection and always act within your designated time.

3) Tapping the Glass
Giving free education in the poker room chat box whether out of spite or to be “nice” is unacceptable. Discussing odds or how to play a hand is a big no-no unless you intentionally offer sneaky suggestions to set somebody up to take money. While you may have been the victim of a bad beat, telling your opponent how he was wrong only hurts you in the long term . Believe it or not some players still think poker is “gambling”. Suggesting or hinting at something other than gambling could get them to look deeper at the game – only resulting in improved play and tougher opponents for you to play against.

4) Snap Action
Clicking the mouse without thinking is unacceptable unless you are last to act against just one other player and you are calling his all in holding AA. Even then this isn’t advisable. Try to determine before you make the obvious call what your opponent is holding. Challenge your card reading ability….Snap table action goes against everything profitable in poker. Mistakes and mis-clicks resulting from snap decisions are 100% preventable. Split decisions are usually motivated by emotion and TILT making them long term negative actions.

5) Quitting while ahead – Continuing play when behind.
Poker lasts your entire life – it is one big session that starts with your first hand and ends when you die. Quitting while ahead is only appropriate if: 1) You feel you can no longer play optimally 2) The average collective skill of your opponents has increased. Continuing play when behind is only appropriate if 1) you are playing at or near the top of your game 3) you make an honest assessment of your table and feel that you have an advantage. If you are ahead at the table it is usually because you are better than your opponents – if you are behind it is usually because you are inferior to your opponents. Base your decisions to stop or continue playing off your skills in relation to your opposition and your mental state.

6) Calling With Too Many Hands – Suited Hands – Ace Rag
Contrary to popular belief, suited cards don’t give you much more advantage pre-flop. Since you only hit a set once in two hundred hands, suited cards only have a 1% advantage over non-suited cards. If you find yourself calling pre-flop just because you have suited cards, money is leaking quickly from your bankroll. Playing garbage or broken hands that aren’t connectors or suited is even worse. Playing any hand containing an ace is also a leak since you will often be out-kicked post-flop with top-pair.

7) Failing To Tag or Note Other Players In Some Way
Taking notes on opponents significantly helps you over the long run. Good notes can help you make that crucial decision, saving or winning huge pots. Players at low to mid stakes games usually fall into betting and timing patters. Tagging the fish and marking the sharks with different colors is advantageous. Assign all in ranges and basic skill level tags to every opponent at your table. Also note the regular players and try to avoid confrontations with them.

Shoving the One Card in Hand Nuts with a Tiny Pot
This is one of the easiest leaks to fix in online poker. Shoving the nuts only using one card in your hand is a terrible leak. You either get called by an opponent who also has the nuts or you win just the tiny pot. In the case you tie your opponent by both having the nuts, the house takes the maximum rake of $3.00 and you actually lose money with the hand. Value betting is a much better decision since your opponent will either call with the second best paying you off – or they will raise and probably tie you with the nut hand.

9) Playing Too Few or Too Many Tables
Finding the optimal amount of tables to play is crucial to your bottom line. Too many tables results in mis-clicks, loss of card reading ability and play making ability. Too few tables results in lost potential profits and rakeback. Playing an increased amount of tables is profitable up to a tipping point, where profit levels off and eventually decreases. The optimal amount of tables varies by player but is generally 4-8 tables.

10) Being Results Oriented in the Short Term
Although results are important over the long term, you should only be concerned about making the correct decision each time you act. Getting the best of it or getting your money in ahead is all that matters. Variance, bad beats, heaters and coolers will happen – but over the long term making more good decisions than bad determines profit or loss. Once you have played a statistically significant number of hands at a reasonable stake level examine your results. If you solely focus on results instead of good decision making you are missing the whole point of poker and are set for an emotional roller coaster.

Here are some other gray-area leaks:

* Calling out of spite when you know you are way behind
* Distractions at the table like tv, music games etc
* Creating a massive sized pot with just top pair top kicker
* Long Sessions (late sessions) making you tired
* Not Getting Rakeback – self explanatory
* Playing Way Too Fancy against weak opponents
* Getting “tricky” with Premium Pairs pre-flop
* Getting all in with less than AA to a 4-Bet
* Completing with broken hands in the Small Blind
* Drawing to the 2nd Nuts
* Not utilizing pot odds both betting & calling
* Not betting enough against an obvious drawing opponent
* Bluffing Too Much or Never

The list is endless.

No leak is too small or insignificant to plug. Long term profits are possible if you work at it – how bad do you want it? The worst leak in poker is believing you can’t get any better. Since you are reading this article right now, hopefully you don’t fall into this category. Small leaks turn into big leaks in a phenomenon known as the “slippery slope”. Don’t ever let the thought of poker as just a gambling game enter your mind or think that long term changes are made overnight. Get better at poker with every hand and always believe you can improve. When the top players in the world are trying to get better so should you – if you aren’t getting better you are getting worse. Plug your poker leaks today!

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