Just as with video poker professionals, live poker professionals should not all be lumped together. It is certainly true that many of them have little understanding of bankroll requirements and money management, and that many of them engage in additional gambling activity where they do not have a positive EV.
However, there are others who decry the "gamblers" and who even recognize that they are not making contributions to society by their poker play -- and therefore manage their money well, play within their means, avoid negative expectation gambling situations, avoid drugs and/or alcohol (ala Stu Ungar - and others), and yes, as with Jennifer Harman, even engage in charitable activities (Barry Greenstein is well-known for donating all his tournament winnings to charity, as distinguished from his cash game winnings, which must apparently fund his tournament entries as well as his lifestyle).
In fact, charity poker tournaments in my community, and in most others of which I'm aware, are well-attended by those who recognize that (with a big piece of the prize pool going to the charity) these are no longer positive EV games even for the best of players (although the non-poker players who also attend and play, simply to support the charity, do help the situation for skilled players a little bit).
There are good people and bad people in all walks of life, and while casinos in general house a skewed sample of the population at large (in my opinion, anyway, no data to back that up), there are still examples of every kind of person in that population, including the subset that calls itself "professional poker player".
--BG
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>
> Poker players are known to make high stakes bets,
sometime when the odds are not favorable. Many are known to
make high stake wagers on craps, of all things.
>
haha a diplomatic way of saying "compulsive gambler". But
they are high class addicts, and most are "functional"
unlike Stu Unger. I never understood the thrill of these
bets for a high stakes pro, look what they play tourneys and
cash games for. That doesn't give them enough buzz?! I never
had much respect for those guys, and they are too numerous
to mention. Sign of our sick society that the media
glamourizes their "fun".I'd rather idolize someone like Jen
Harmon, who had the courage to fight a deadly disease and
helps defenseless animals
with her charity tourneys.