Daniel Negreanu Says Poker's Easier Than Ever

Daniel Negreanu is one of the best, if not the best, poker player in the world. So when Negreanu talks, the poker world listens.
On a recent posting on his popular blog on Poker Journal, however, the poker legend told his fans something they probably didn’t want to hear; earning a living as poker player is easier than ever.
While that statement would probably be considered trolling if it came from a lesser light, Negreanu went ahead and backed up his argument with some pretty solid reasoning.
Negreanu’s main point, that online play makes racking up experience easier than ever, is spot on. He points out that a pre-internet poker player would be lucky to log 30-35 hands an hour. With online play, and its ability to offer simulations play on as many tables as a player can handle, it’s possible to log 100’s of hands an hour.
Today’s players also have more options for gaining that experience than previous generations did, he added. After all, simultaneously playing dozens of international players from the comfort of your own living room was simply not an option for pre-internet players like Doyle Brunson.
In the old days, players like Brunson were limited to legal games in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, or unsanctioned games in backrooms and other sketchy spots. There’s definitely something to be said for that.
Negreanu also points out that today’s players have more educational tools to help them develop their game. Online poker academies and a dearth of poker books are at the fingertips of anyone with an internet connection and that, Negreanu says, is another game changer.
It’s worth noting that Negreanu wasn’t disparaging the current generation of poker players. He repeatedly noted that the level of play today is higher than it’s ever been.
At the end of the day, Negreanu is right (big surprise). There are simply more opportunities available today for would-be professional poker players to strike it out and make a living than there have ever been.
None of those tools, Negreanu says, is a substitute for the experience of true grinding.