What You Need to Know About Dating a Professional Gambler

A professional gambler doesn’t always have to be a poker player, but more often than not, these are the ones individuals find themselves dating. But whether you’re dating a professional poker player or maybe a professional baccarat player, there are some things to know before you get serious.

Dating someone who gambles for a living can be challenging, but it requires trust, knowledge of their profession, and a willingness to adapt. Read on to learn more about what you need to know about dating a professional gambler.

1. Do Not Try to Change Them

This may seem like a no-brainer, but there are many individuals out there (both male and female) who date based on potential. Remember, gambling is their profession. If you wouldn’t change your profession for someone else, you shouldn’t expect them to do so for you. The same goes even if their profession is gambling.

You need to enter the relationship knowing they will be gambling for a living. If that isn’t acceptable to you, don’t date them.

2. Know Their Profession, But Don’t Criticize

It’s rare that people date within their profession, but even if you are also an accomplished player in the same game as your significant other, never criticize their playing. The thing is, if your partner were a doctor, you wouldn’t tell them how they diagnosed a patient wrong, and the same goes for any profession. Again, this is your partner’s profession and they know best. We recommend merely listening when they tell you about their day.

That being said, if you know nothing about their profession, watching an informational video is advised. While you shouldn’t do a deep dive (again, this is their profession), having some base knowledge on what they spend their time doing day in and day out can go a long way in helping you understand them better. But don’t think this means you have to go out and buy a class—even just listening to a podcast on gambling can go a long way.

3. Trust Them

Obviously, you should trust your significant other no matter what their profession, but we find in professional gambling, trust issues run especially rampant. Yes, your partner needs to play at 10 pm on a Tuesday, no, you cannot try to make them switch to a 9-5 schedule. We understand this is difficult, and again, if you can’t handle it, then you should date someone else.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that your partner shouldn’t be reachable in an emergency or lie to you about where they are going. For example, if they state they are playing at X casino from 5pm to 10pm, if you happen to walk by the poker room during that time, they should be there. This doesn’t give you permission to stalk them, just know that you should be able to trust that they are where they say they are and that they are working during that time.

4. Be Willing to Adapt

One of the main issues partners of professional gamblers run into is that they don’t understand how the profession works, and they stress out based on aspects they don’t understand. Not every day is a good day; your partner will have income swings. You have to trust that they know what they are doing and are budgeting for these instances.

That being said, if they have a prolonged downswing, you must be willing to adapt. This means not shaming them if they are on a losing streak or suggesting things they could do differently. Be there, listen, support, and be prepared to do without on the occasion they can’t turn things around.

We also recommend, for long-term success, that anyone dating a professional poker player should adapt their own sleep schedule to match, allowing you two to spend the maximum amount of time together. If this is not possible with your profession, know that this may be a problem down the road if the relationship becomes more serious.

5. Learn About Body Language

Poker players especially spend a significant part of their career learning not to display their emotions. This can be challenging when it comes to romantic relationships. Poker players often learn how to turn their poker face off and on, but some don’t, and some are better at controlling it than others.

Basically, we are saying that you should expect your poker player partner to maybe be closed off during the hours when they are home. If you really want the relationship to work, learning about body language and their specific poker tells can go a long way toward helping your relationship run smoothly.

6. Know They Will Bring Their Work Home

There is a common misconception that professional gambling is easy or that it requires less work than being a teacher or a lawyer. This isn’t the case at all. Rather, being a professional gambler often takes more work than other professions, as you will need to take time to learn during your off time, and some gamblers spend significant hours studying while “off the clock.”

We used to joke that the best partner for a professional poker player is a busy one, and honestly, we still believe that to be the case. If you don’t have a hobby to keep you busy while your partner plays, it’s time to get one.

7. Make Sure You Are in It for the Right Reasons

As we mentioned above, the fortune of a professional gambler ebbs and flows. Sometimes things will be good, and sometimes things will be bad. So, as cliché as this sounds, only date a professional gambler you truly care for, because anything else isn’t worth the rocky ride.

Although this article may seem silly, dating someone who gambles for a living is harder than you may think. Remember, you aren’t the first person to date a professional player, and you certainly won’t be the last, so if you found yourself at this article, see if you can heed our advice. If not, it might be time to fold before you get yourself any deeper than you already are.