How Pro Gamblers Keep their Incomes with COVID-19 in Their Front Door
The social distancing measures have taken a heavy toll on worldwide entrepreneurs, workers, and the self-employed. Pro gamblers are not exempt. At mid-march the COVID-19 alert spread like wildfire and demanded casinos, race tracks, stadiums, arenas, and every venue to get closed, making millions to lose their workspace.
From sin city to the high roller tables in Macau, professional gamblers from all the world have to put a stop in there jobs if they don’t want to risk more than a bet. Among gambling forums and news, the stories share the tone: concern.
Live Gamstop-Free Sharks are Live Bait for Online Grinders
With the closing of live venues, poker players lost their workplaces and many of them have transitioned to online games to preserve their incomes. But the adjustment so far has been costly. First of all, they are out of their element: games are fast-paced, and definitely no tells besides the time reactions. Internet connection may lag putting players on tilt immediately.
However, the biggest problem is that the gap between skill level is astonishing. Those used to win at $2/$5 tables ($500 buy-ins) and remain profitable to make a living are having a hard time at the $0.5/$1 tables ($100 buy-ins). For some, it has become a massacre like fresh roman recruits vs seasoned spartans.
Those who online poker comes as second nature, are getting benefits on the spike in the sites. Much like to compare with the poker boom that followed the moneymaker effect in the 2000s, where player hordes with little or no experience came like moths to flames against the grinders. Despite that, many poker players (old and new) are still looking to take their changes as people are continuously losing their incomes. A lot of Gamstop registered users are seeking for poker sites during this difficult period. In the USA and the United Kingdom, many of them are pledging to turn back online poker legal as a game skill, something that 60 million poker players in that country are looking forward to continuing to make a living.
Where are the Odds?
A professional punter has the benefit to work in any place thanks to mobile apps. Unfortunately, that flexibility doesn’t come with the events they usually place their bets. With every major sport event canceled or suspended at the very best, punters have lost their bread and butter. Those who placed their bets before the match can still get their refund but the bottom line is, now on what I can bet?
With horses running empty race tracks, and the availability of sports events reduced to drafts or events from obscure divisions, like Russian tennis table matches for live matches. As the quarantine periods further this isn’t going to be a sustainable model. Sportsbooks and exchanges are aware of the situation and are putting their hand on whatever they can find suitable to make their odds.
Common underdogs like esports are now the mainstream events as players and teams do not need to be physically present in order to play. The same happens with fantasy sports where players create a fictitious match that its outcome is decided according to several algorithms.
Novelty betting topic like politics, weather, who is going to be the next pope, even shocking celebrity or politicians death pools come across the diverse exchanges in order to provide something on bet on regardless if the punter does for boredom or to make ends meet. And just like poker, making the right adjustment has taken time and money.
Don’t Сount on That One
Professional casino gamblers are the ones taking the worst part. Having an edge over the house or at least knowing how to dodge the blows is an art that few have been able to successfully master, being blackjack players the most prominent ones.
But those precise skill set came out blunt against random numeric generators that make games completely subordinated to chance, therefore cutting any marginal edge for the player. Even in the case of live casino streams where gamblers can still have exploitation opportunities the results are not precisely the best ones.
Turning the Tables
With many gamblers facing a wall many rely on their savings to keep them afloat until times change for better. Unfortunately, not everyone has a large cushion to sit and wait until COVID-19 fades like another bad memory. These braves ones instead, try to diversification their incomes under their own rules.
Like any profession, investing in your education is always a great decision. With the unemployment rate rising day after day many are considering online betting as an option to keep an income despite the fact that things became more complicated for sports bets too because of quarantine. Professional gamblers who are in halt are also offering their expertise as coaches, with online experts being the most sought,
Other gamblers that made the switch online had also added a side job: entertainers. Those social skills that once makes people keeping their smile on their faces (while getting empty pocket) are now making thousands on twitch and youtube had a laugh to win donations in order to keep their number in the black. Online content is a must on these lockdown days with millions facing their screens to kept themselves entertaining or learning something new and interesting. Gambling online publishings and blogs require fresh content in a blitz so they have become a source of income for those with something to say like a great story or a killer tip.
One Last All-in
Finally, there is still hope for those that find themselves in a bottomless pit. Gamblers can claim unemployment benefits both in the USA and UK. If they have the support of gambling as their sole source of income they can claim these benefits as a self employer. This is very encouraging for those who got caught in very bad shape. However, it can take quite a time to qualify for the benefit among hundreds of thousands of claimants.
A Valuable Lesson
The coronavirus shows us that regardless of our country, jobs, and social status, nothing will save us from the catastrophe. However, it Is in these hard times where people show their true nature and willingness to travel against the storm because, in the end, there will be another sunshine waiting for us.
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