Hey everyone, most of you don't know me since this is only my 2nd ever blog (with my first being a general blog that got no views), but I just graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in Finance and Marketing and am trying to figure out my future plans. I've thought about it for awhile, and I think I am going to become a live pro. Black Friday obviously makes it tougher to go pro within the US, but I am confident that this will work. I just turned 21 a little over a month ago, so I don't have a ton of live experience. However, I have made countless poker trips to Turning Stone, random Florida casinos/poker rooms, and the PCA.

There are many reasons I want to go this route rather than get a "real job." First of all, I know this sounds childish, but I really do not like being told what to do all the time. Being able to be my own boss instead of getting ordered around has a lot of value to me, especially if I was in a job that I did not enjoy. Second, I like being able to work whenever I want. Waking up at noon and going to grind instead of being forced into a 9-5 lifestyle is appealing to me. Third, I did not particularly enjoy my major and am unsure that I would enjoy a finance-related job. Going along with that, I really LOVE poker. I know it's clich© and everyone is probably saying that now, but I have realized how much I miss it since Black Friday. I found myself enjoying live poker more than online anyway, so I'm not worried about being new to live poker. Lastly, you only live once, so why not make the best of it? I would rather do this and fail then look back 20 years from now and wonder why I never took a chance and instead "gave in to the man."

I am not worried about my poker ability relative to live players, especially at the levels I am planning on playing (mostly 5/10 with some 2/5 mixed in). The part I am a little apprehensive about is the emotional drain that goes along with live poker. I know that during one of my two-week trips to Tampa, where I played poker literally every single day of the trip, I was burnt out a little bit by the end. But I'm hoping that this will be alleviated by taking breaks and not playing when I'm tilted/not on my A game.

Alas, my live pro experience begins in a couple hours, when I board a plane to Atlantic City to play in a couple Borgata tournaments, followed by a drive up to Turning Stone for its East Coast Poker Championship series. Then in June, there's the WSOP in Vegas, which I've been looking forward to for years.

Anyway, the reason for me writing this is that it's a current decision that a lot of people are going to have to deal with, assuming online poker does not come back in the near future. Hopefully I look back at this blog in a year and am thrilled that I made this decision; even if I do fail, like I mentioned, I think it will be a good experience and one that will help me out with my life no matter what happens.

Matt