WPT Global Investigates a Trio of Modern Poker Pro Archetypes
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There was a time when a professional poker player made a living purely from playing cash games or tournaments. However, poker continually evolves, as do those who make a living from the game. The WPT Global blog recently published an article highlighting how a trio of archetypes of the modern-day poker pros make money based on public reporting, interviews with professional grinders, and more.
The Working Live / MTT Pro
According to the WPT Global blog, the first type of modern poker pro is one who travels far and wide, grinding live tournaments and cash games. Their primary income source is the profits they make from cashing in tournaments or grinding live cash games. However, they also have a second income stream, mostly from selling action for big buy-in events, occasional backing deals, minor sponsorship deals or wearing patches, and coaching sessions.
Ari Engel is the perfect example of this type of poker pro. Engel used to be an online star, but now grinds live tournaments and circuits across the United States and worldwide. Engel has 19 WSOP Circuit rings, four WSOP bracelets, and more than $9.3 million in live tournament earnings, yet he's not known for producing poker-related content.
Shannon Shorr and Brian Altman are, in the WPT Global blog's eyes, two other shining examples of this archetype. Shorr has amassed more than $16.6 million in live cashes during his live tournament career, and has cashed for at least $1.2 million each year since 2019, excluding a COVID-19-hit 2020.
Altman goes about his business as a live tournament pro, often flying under the radar due to his not paying much attention to social media. He has four World Poker Tour (WPT) titles, a WSOP bracelet, and almost $9 million in earnings.
The Online Grinder / Strategy Pro
The online grinder / strategy pro has far more consistent income than their live-only counterparts due to the fact that they can log more volume and have far fewer travel-related expenses. This type of poker pro often supplements their income by mentoring other players, backing a stable of horses, or being heavily involved in training sites.
WPT Global says that Patrick "Pads" Leonard best fits this archetype. Leonard's online prowess is renowned; he has 21 Spring Championship Of Online Poker (SCOOP) and World Championship Of Online Poker (WCOOP) titles to his name and famously never misses a Sunday, yet still found time to co-found the BitB staking and coaching stable, and amass $4.5 million and a WSOP bracelet in the live arena.
German superstar Benjamin "bencb789" Rolle has over $35 million in online poker tournament winnings, including banking $3.9 million for his WSOP Online Main Event victory at GGPoker in September 2025. Despite this success, Rolle may be better known for founding the Raise Your Edge training site.
Rolle has enjoyed limited live success, mostly due to a lack of volume, as he has dominated the online poker world and produced much sought-after content for his training site.
High-volume grinder and co-founder of LearnPokerPro, Ryan Laplante has all the hallmarks of a strategy pro. Laplante is heavily involved in training in the poker community, offering subscription-based coaching alongside his daily online grind. According to the WPT Global blog, Laplante has played more than 50,000 online tournaments, and has over $8 million in live and online cashes.
The Content & Ambassador Pro
The third archetype that WPT Global discusses is the content & ambassador pro. Although a significant percentage of their income comes from playing poker, they also consider sponsorship and ambassador deals as part of their primary sources of income. This player type complements their income with streaming, affiliate links, sign-up bonuses, coaching, and merchandise.
Look at the likes of Lex Veldhuis, Brad Owen, and Andrew Neeme as examples of this archetype. Veldhuis is a superb poker player with high-stakes cash game and tournament experience, but earns a good income from content creation and sponsorships.
Owen is a model content-creator pro, whose engaging video content propelled him into the public eye. He, alongside Neeme and Doug Polk, is a co-founder of The Lodge Poker Club, while Owen and Neeme have ambassadorial roles with WPT, ClubWPT, and WPT Global.
Gone are the days when making a living from poker relied solely on solid results at the tables. The modern poker pro often fits into one of the three archetypes mentioned above, with all three paths valid ways of being a professional poker player.
