If being a “gambler” doesn’t sound like a real career option to you, you won’t be alone in thinking that. Gambling is generally thought of as a hobby or form of entertainment, and quite a risky one. However, you may be surprised to know that there are people who have made successful careers out of gambling. But instead of leaving winning to chance, they have strategies and systems in place to increase the likelihood of winning.
If you’re good with math, open to the element of risk, and not the type of person who gets easily drawn into “just one more game,” read on. Professional gambling might be for you.
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What professional gambling really means
Professional gambling is not to be confused with excessive gambling or addiction to it. In the same way, someone who just gambles a lot and has done well out of chance is not a professional gambler either. At some point, their luck will turn, and they’ll eventually lose. A professional gambler has a specific approach and strategies to beat the system, focusing on long-term profitability, rather than big wins.
Usually, a professional gambler will have a specific game that they focus on. This is because they know it inside out. They’ll be able to analyze the game for flaws they can manipulate, learn strategies to calculate odds, understand opponent behavior, and estimate the different scenarios that might play out and when to take advantage or back out.
By way of example, professional blackjack players have a skill for quickly working out the odds of whether to hit or stick. Professional gamblers who focus on sports betting have excellent analytical skills and can evaluate statistics on player performance, trends, and team dynamics. They may also place bets to counteract opposite bets just to generate a profit.
Someone with a career as a professional gambler treats betting like a job. They set goals, have clear limits, discipline, and self-control. Gambling is addictive, so it’s very important that you have a strong sense of discipline and don't get tempted to keep going when your responsible gambling strategies say stop.
Pros and cons of being a professional gambler
As with any job, a professional gambling career comes with pros and cons. While exciting, gambling as a profession can be very risky.
Pros:
- Earning potential can be very high.
- It’s very flexible. You get to choose what you bet on, how much, and when and where.
- You can set your own targets and challenges.
Cons:
- Earnings can be volatile. Gambling is risky. Even if you calculate the risks, there’s no guarantee you’ll win.
- Gambling can be emotional. It’s important to stick to strategy and never let emotions take over.
- Addiction is a real threat.
Becoming a professional gambler
If the pros that come with professional gambling outweigh the cons for you, check out these five steps to become a professional gambler. We’ll walk you through choosing a game, learning the skills, and building a mindset that will keep you professional, without getting too emotionally involved.
1. Learn the rules, odds, and strategies
Professional gamblers don’t leave winning to chance. Before you start, you need to learn the game you intend to play and fully understand it. You need to be an expert before you can consider betting. Study the odds, statistics, and strategies.
One way to reinforce this understanding in practice is to observe how games are structured in real time using an online gambling platform, such as Stake or another reliable provider. This gives you a clearer sense of how odds are presented and how different bet types and interfaces work in practice.
For example, if sports betting is your expertise, narrow that down further to a sport you know well, such as football. Know the team dynamics, the players to watch, pitch conditions, past scores, trends, and anything that can affect how teams play.
At the start, you’ll need to build your bankroll — the money you’ll use to bet. Consider it as a tool and take care of it. Learn to manage and budget, because without it, you can’t make a profit.
2. Build strong analytical and money management skills
Bankroll management is essential. Set budgets and limits, and rigidly stick to them. Don’t let yourself get carried away. Treat gambling like an investment. It’s helpful to track your wins and losses to analyze trends so you can evaluate the probability of winning and identify high-value bets.
You need to understand your bankroll so you don’t run out of money before your bet comes in. In sports betting, for example, it can take time to earn as games are long, and so you need to make sure you have enough “bank” to place several bets without a win, for maximum profit.
3. Choose the right platform and learn responsible gaming
Gambling sites are not created equally. It’s very important that you choose a platform that encourages responsible gambling only and offers the appropriate security checks. Legitimate casinos and betting platforms will have proper licensing from a recognized regulatory body in the country where they operate, ensuring they stick to strict rules around fairness and security.
Reputable platforms don’t hold onto your money either. They offer fast, reliable payouts, which is essential for a professional gambler because it allows you to maintain your bankroll. With a bankroll that’s accessible, you can be flexible with the bets you place, which also reduces risks. This is why professional gamblers can be picky with the platform they use. For example, those in the US would prefer the fastest withdrawal casinos for US players, which means payments are almost instantaneous.
4. Develop a routine and professional mindset
Unlike gambling purely for entertainment, if you want to make gambling your career, it’s important to treat it like a serious job. Schedule your day like you would in any job role. Make time for gambling, time for practicing, and for learning and improving. It’s recommended to keep a spreadsheet of wins and losses, spend time reviewing games and outcomes, and look for patterns and trends that can help you predict outcomes going forward.
As with any job, it’s important to look after your mental health. Gambling can be stressful. You have a lot to lose, and the job is risky. You can never fully guarantee a win. It’s important to schedule work time and leisure time, and not blur the two when it comes to gambling. Never let emotions get in the way when you’re placing a bet. If strategy and probability say you need to bet against your favorite team, that’s part of your job. Don’t allow your feelings to cause you to take an unnecessary risk.
5. Explore alternative income and career paths in gambling
Professional gambling is exciting, but it’s volatile. To reduce the risk that comes with it, you could look at different career options related to gambling. Remember, you’re your own boss, and you could run these alongside your gambling income for some stability and variety.
Alternative career paths to consider include:
- Content creation: Professional gambling lends itself to exciting content. Consider setting up a TikTok or YouTube account to record what you do, your time in casinos, and include hints and tips for responsible gambling. You could set up a blog and review products and platforms too.
- Teaching: Do you have wisdom to share about professional gambling? You could take the above idea a step further and teach others to become professional gamblers. You can do this on YouTube or on an online education platform. Perhaps you can create a paid short course that can be a good passive income stream.
- Affiliate marketing: If you can build an audience, you could make money through referrals to gambling websites, casinos, and sports betting platforms.
- Industry roles: You might consider using your skills to benefit the industry. Gambling platforms hire anyone, from sales and marketing professionals to web developers and legal teams.
Key takeaways
Professional gambling is a real, legitimate career, though it isn’t for everyone. While it sounds exciting and you get the opportunity to make a lot of money, it’s risky, and only for you if you have the discipline to treat it like a job and not get carried away.
If a career as a professional gambler appeals to you, spend time learning your chosen gambling medium, building your skills, finding reputable platforms, developing a solid routine, and diversifying your income. Once you master a game or two, you’ll likely find it easier to learn new ones as spotting patterns becomes almost second nature to you.
This article was originally published in 2016.