• Log InLog In
  • Register
Liquid`
Team Liquid Liquipedia
EST 10:10
CET 16:10
KST 00:10
  • Home
  • Forum
  • Calendar
  • Streams
  • Liquipedia
  • Features
  • Store
  • EPT
  • TL+
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Smash
  • Heroes
  • Counter-Strike
  • Overwatch
  • Liquibet
  • Fantasy StarCraft
  • TLPD
  • StarCraft 2
  • Brood War
  • Blogs
Forum Sidebar
Events/Features
News
Featured News
RSL Revival - 2025 Season Finals Preview8RSL Season 3 - Playoffs Preview0RSL Season 3 - RO16 Groups C & D Preview0RSL Season 3 - RO16 Groups A & B Preview2TL.net Map Contest #21: Winners12
Community News
Weekly Cups (Dec 15-21): Classic wins big, MaxPax & Clem take weeklies3ComeBackTV's documentary on Byun's Career !11Weekly Cups (Dec 8-14): MaxPax, Clem, Cure win4Weekly Cups (Dec 1-7): Clem doubles, Solar gets over the hump1Weekly Cups (Nov 24-30): MaxPax, Clem, herO win2
StarCraft 2
General
ComeBackTV's documentary on Byun's Career ! Team TLMC #5: Winners Announced! What's the best tug of war? The Grack before Christmas Weekly Cups (Dec 15-21): Classic wins big, MaxPax & Clem take weeklies
Tourneys
OSC Season 13 World Championship $5,000+ WardiTV 2025 Championship $100 Prize Pool - Winter Warp Gate Masters Showdow Sparkling Tuna Cup - Weekly Open Tournament Winter Warp Gate Amateur Showdown #1
Strategy
Custom Maps
Map Editor closed ?
External Content
Mutation # 505 Rise From Ashes Mutation # 504 Retribution Mutation # 503 Fowl Play Mutation # 502 Negative Reinforcement
Brood War
General
What are former legends up to these days? BW General Discussion How soO Began His ProGaming Dreams Klaucher discontinued / in-game color settings BGH Auto Balance -> http://bghmmr.eu/
Tourneys
[Megathread] Daily Proleagues [BSL21] LB SemiFinals - Saturday 21:00 CET [BSL21] WB & LB Finals - Sunday 21:00 CET Small VOD Thread 2.0
Strategy
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Game Theory for Starcraft Current Meta Fighting Spirit mining rates
Other Games
General Games
Nintendo Switch Thread Mechabellum Stormgate/Frost Giant Megathread Beyond All Reason Path of Exile
Dota 2
Official 'what is Dota anymore' discussion
League of Legends
Heroes of the Storm
Simple Questions, Simple Answers Heroes of the Storm 2.0
Hearthstone
Deck construction bug Heroes of StarCraft mini-set
TL Mafia
Mafia Game Mode Feedback/Ideas Survivor II: The Amazon Sengoku Mafia TL Mafia Community Thread
Community
General
Russo-Ukrainian War Thread US Politics Mega-thread 12 Days of Starcraft The Games Industry And ATVI Things Aren’t Peaceful in Palestine
Fan Clubs
White-Ra Fan Club
Media & Entertainment
Anime Discussion Thread [Manga] One Piece
Sports
2024 - 2026 Football Thread Formula 1 Discussion
World Cup 2022
Tech Support
Computer Build, Upgrade & Buying Resource Thread
TL Community
The Automated Ban List TL+ Announced Where to ask questions and add stream?
Blogs
National Diversity: A Challe…
TrAiDoS
I decided to write a webnov…
DjKniteX
James Bond movies ranking - pa…
Topin
Thanks for the RSL
Hildegard
Saturation point
Uldridge
Customize Sidebar...

Website Feedback

Closed Threads



Active: 1608 users

Chance of a life time - Become a progamer

Blogs > kcaz
Post a Reply
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next All
kcaz
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
Canada387 Posts
October 28 2010 16:20 GMT
#1
So to start this off, my dad is going to be inheriting a bunch of money in a very short period of time.

He knows how much I played broodwar, and now sc2, he knows that I wake up at 4 in the morning to watch little koreans play this strange space game. And he knows that its a little more than a game for me. So in an attempt to be nominated for best dad in the world, he said asked why I never gave pro-gaming a try (I'm a lowly 1400 diamond protoss) and to be frank, it's because my mom and step dad. They think its just a stupid waste of time. So I can only practice 1-2 hours a day because of work and RL constraints. So after talking for a while, he asked me a very straight forward question: given the proper circumstances, do you think you could make any money playing this game? And I said yes. I've always been a very competitive and driven person and I believe with the right atmosphere (basically live like a pro gamer) I could infact make some money playing the game we all love. So he said that if I was really serious about this, that he would sponsor me for 6 months. Pay my expenses, fly me out to tournaments and everything else that a pro gaming team does for it's players.

But before I really give him a yes or no answer, I wanted to get some feed back from the community. Do you honestly think its possible for someone to just switch over from a "regular" life into a progamer? What do I need to learn or forget about a regular day to day to be successful and progressive as a pro gamer? And to anyone who reads this who's on a team like EG, ROOT, Fnatic, what's it like to have an opprotunity like the one you have? Whats good, whats bad?

And to the community, would there be any interest, if this were to really become a reality (80/20 odds in favor of it happening) in me making like a daily blog of my experience here on TL?

Cheers,
kCaZ

**
You can't emphasize enough how much you need to be a paradigm shifter. - Ma Jae Yoon
DJEtterStyle
Profile Blog Joined October 2003
United States2766 Posts
October 28 2010 16:24 GMT
#2
This is a terrible idea. Tell your father to save his money.
YiukeDukem
Profile Blog Joined June 2010
United States125 Posts
October 28 2010 16:24 GMT
#3
Highly unlikely...but you may never get this opportunity again

Try to things other than gaming in korea if it doesn't work out...don't make it a complete waste

1400 diamond is pretty low...maybe you don't get to play enough though
quye
razorsuKe
Profile Blog Joined July 2008
Canada2000 Posts
October 28 2010 16:25 GMT
#4
If you don't follow your passions, life becomes boring an full of regret.
EntusGalleries.com - CJ Uniform Sale
ketomai
Profile Joined June 2007
United States2789 Posts
October 28 2010 16:26 GMT
#5
I think it's possible to switch but...you're not going to get anywhere if you're starting at 1400. I think it's better if you try to improve before you make your dad pay for tournaments and everything. Rather than getting sponsored by 1 person, it's better to get good enough to find sponsorship through a team.
ArbAttack
Profile Blog Joined September 2010
Canada198 Posts
October 28 2010 16:27 GMT
#6
All fun and good aside. You're going to have to realize talent is the deciding factor.

Statistics say you aren't going to make it very far.

And also, 6 months is not a long time at all by any standards.

Sorry to step on your passion/dreams, but just trying to paint you a real picture.
dtz
Profile Joined September 2010
5834 Posts
October 28 2010 16:28 GMT
#7
i think the very important question is.

how old are you? if you are younger than 18, i think by all means go for it.

if you are like older than that, then we have to know how good you are because it is a highly competitive field in my opinion and not everyone is "talented" enough to be able to be a legit progamer. I mean hard work do play a significant role, but take 10,000 young kids and train them in a pro gamer routine and only 10 or so will be like Flash or Jaedong. Same in other competitive fields. Not everyone can be Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps or LeBron, no matter how much time they put in.

That said, if you are confident that this wil make you happy, go for it. I will be interested with your progress if that happens but do blog it only if you feel that reporting to the community will aid your progress. If it gives you unproductive and unnecesarry pressure, you can report to us only when you have made it.
awu25
Profile Joined April 2010
United States2003 Posts
October 28 2010 16:30 GMT
#8
it sounds like you're still at an age where you go to school
I would stick to school because it is a guaranteed way to make money in the long run
it seems like you haven't even experienced what it's like to practice day in and day out 7 days a week
Lglow
Profile Blog Joined April 2009
130 Posts
October 28 2010 16:34 GMT
#9
Go for it, life is short-ish. Make sure to outline his expectations. I would advise setting some money on some good coaches... they will help you progress your game farther than just you will (at 1400). In addition, find high level practice partners that are willing to be just as active as you... (good place to start is the practice partner thread).
As far as the switch, it depends heavily on your personality preferences. ... can you sit in a chair for a long time, stare at a screen, and still do a decent analysis of your failures after 14 hours a day? ;]
tofucake
Profile Blog Joined October 2009
Hyrule19184 Posts
October 28 2010 16:35 GMT
#10
Personally, I'd say go for half of it. Ask for some support so you can stay home and practice. Play in a bunch of online tournaments (TL Open, ITC if it ever starts up again, ZOTAC, CraftCup, etc). After a few months, if you do well, make your final decision.

But really you should finish school regardless. Diplomas and degrees last a lot longer than a gaming career.
Liquipediaasante sana squash banana
scDeluX
Profile Blog Joined October 2007
Canada1341 Posts
October 28 2010 16:35 GMT
#11
I would give it a try.

Play from home 8 hours a day and see if you can compete with the best on the ladder.

Take 3-4 weeks to see if you can get to top 200 and you will know if you have the talent required to go on.
Brood War is forever
Madkipz
Profile Blog Joined February 2010
Norway1643 Posts
October 28 2010 16:36 GMT
#12
given your rating, and the amount of practice hours you have put into the game, if you where serious about this you should look at it with a tiny bit of realism.

The people competing out there are already miles ahead of you, You should try to get a set of gosucoaches and aim to rank higher on the ladder, compete online because realistically you cant win a lan yet.

You can do this but it will require practice, lots of practice. If he is serious in sponsoring you then fucking go for it but keep lan events in your TO DO list.

What will happen at the lan setting is you will travel, sleep uncomfortably, and get knocked out first day. A giant waste of time.
"Mudkip"
kcaz
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
Canada387 Posts
October 28 2010 16:36 GMT
#13
On October 29 2010 01:24 YiukeDukem wrote:
Highly unlikely...but you may never get this opportunity again

Try to things other than gaming in korea if it doesn't work out...don't make it a complete waste

1400 diamond is pretty low...maybe you don't get to play enough though


Like I said, I only get to play like 1-3 hours a day if I'm lucky, I've only been able to play 400 games or so.


On October 29 2010 01:30 awu25 wrote:
it sounds like you're still at an age where you go to school
I would stick to school because it is a guaranteed way to make money in the long run
it seems like you haven't even experienced what it's like to practice day in and day out 7 days a week


I'm actually turning 19 in a month or so, and I won't be going to school to next fall anyways. And I still plan on going 100% but I thought if I don't give it an honest try, then I'll always wonder what might have happened. And I have no idea what it would be like to practice day in and day out so thats why I wanted to get alot of feed back before I make my decision.

On October 29 2010 01:26 ketomai wrote:
I think it's possible to switch but...you're not going to get anywhere if you're starting at 1400. I think it's better if you try to improve before you make your dad pay for tournaments and everything. Rather than getting sponsored by 1 person, it's better to get good enough to find sponsorship through a team.


I don't plan on just flying out randomly to tournaments, I know 100% that thats a waste of time. My plan that I thought of was like to practice straight for a month and a half and then start by making short trips out to LANs with a prize pool a little bit more than the cost of the flight there. And do this for like 3 months and see where I am at by then.
You can't emphasize enough how much you need to be a paradigm shifter. - Ma Jae Yoon
Antiochus
Profile Joined March 2010
Canada548 Posts
Last Edited: 2010-10-28 16:39:24
October 28 2010 16:37 GMT
#14
Don't go ALL IN, finish highschool and then go try to be a progamer so that way if it doesn't work out like it does for most people you can fall back on the standard go to university get 9-5 job like everyone else does.

Edit: oh you're finished highschool.
All play and no work makes Jack unemployed.
Ethelis
Profile Blog Joined September 2008
United States2397 Posts
October 28 2010 16:37 GMT
#15
On October 29 2010 01:28 dtz wrote:
i think the very important question is.

how old are you? if you are younger than 18, i think by all means go for it.

if you are like older than that, then we have to know how good you are because it is a highly competitive field in my opinion and not everyone is "talented" enough to be able to be a legit progamer. I mean hard work do play a significant role, but take 10,000 young kids and train them in a pro gamer routine and only 10 or so will be like Flash or Jaedong. Same in other competitive fields. Not everyone can be Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps or LeBron, no matter how much time they put in.




This

Make sure of the reason why you are at 1400, if you're near your mechanical ceiling (you should be able to tell more or less) odds aren't that great. It's much easier to get good when your mechanics are keeping you down (considering your amount of playing time) than if you aren't good and/or quick to grasp little details about the game.
Disabled gamer - Diamond 3 (LoL) D+ Rank scrublord on BW. Bisu doesnt need DTs, He uses probes. just ask Flash.
RebirthOfLeGenD
Profile Blog Joined November 2008
USA5860 Posts
October 28 2010 16:38 GMT
#16
Like others have said, before you go have your father invest fucktons of cash into you being a progamer in korea you should try to mass game on bnet and get high ranked to justify the move. Besides if you are 1400 ranked its not like going to korea is going to add to your skill. You have to learn to practice and develop skills on your own, you can't just say you need to be thrown into the progaming life style to fully become a progamer and get good. You need a solid foundation to begin on, and 1400 seems pretty shaky.
Be a man, Become a Legend. TL Mafia Forum Ask for access!!
Teejing
Profile Joined January 2009
Germany1360 Posts
October 28 2010 16:38 GMT
#17
To make it simply i would try to place high on the ladder first.
Deleted User 55994
Profile Blog Joined December 2009
949 Posts
October 28 2010 16:40 GMT
#18
It takes natural ability that you might not have. You should probably just save your money and not waste 6 months of your life.
Stenstyren
Profile Blog Joined April 2010
Sweden619 Posts
October 28 2010 16:41 GMT
#19
In my opinion I think you should try to push 4-6 hours for a couple of weeks and see how that feels and how much your game improves. 1400 isn't a very high rating to start at and you probably have a long way to go before you get the "game sense" that you can't really learn without 2000+ hours of Starcraft behind you.

So basically, give it a shot, see how things go, ask (pay) a good player to take a look at some of your replays and have them judge how far you will be able to reach.

kcaz
Profile Blog Joined January 2010
Canada387 Posts
October 28 2010 16:43 GMT
#20
On October 29 2010 01:35 tofucake wrote:
Personally, I'd say go for half of it. Ask for some support so you can stay home and practice. Play in a bunch of online tournaments (TL Open, ITC if it ever starts up again, ZOTAC, CraftCup, etc). After a few months, if you do well, make your final decision.

But really you should finish school regardless. Diplomas and degrees last a lot longer than a gaming career.


Yeah most importantly, I plan on going to school 110%
And playing in online tournaments is going to be a big part of this to see if I can place in the top 10 consistently and that should give me a fairly ok idea as to where my progress is.

On October 29 2010 01:34 Lglow wrote:
Go for it, life is short-ish. Make sure to outline his expectations. I would advise setting some money on some good coaches... they will help you progress your game farther than just you will (at 1400). In addition, find high level practice partners that are willing to be just as active as you... (good place to start is the practice partner thread).
As far as the switch, it depends heavily on your personality preferences. ... can you sit in a chair for a long time, stare at a screen, and still do a decent analysis of your failures after 14 hours a day? ;]


I never thought of the coaching, but now that you brought it up, I'll definetly be doing that. And if gaming would be my "job" for 6 months I absolutely could practice in a chair for that long. And ever since BW I've always been able to look at my performance when fresh eyes no matter how long I've been playing.

On October 29 2010 01:35 ScDeluX wrote:
I would give it a try.

Play from home 8 hours a day and see if you can compete with the best on the ladder.

Take 3-4 weeks to see if you can get to top 200 and you will know if you have the talent required to go on.


Like I replied before, this will be my goal in the first 2 - 3 months, hitting top 200 that is.




You can't emphasize enough how much you need to be a paradigm shifter. - Ma Jae Yoon
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next All
Please log in or register to reply.
Live Events Refresh
Next event in 2h 50m
[ Submit Event ]
Live Streams
Refresh
StarCraft 2
RotterdaM 249
DivinesiaTV 40
MindelVK 36
StarCraft: Brood War
Britney 37360
Rain 9882
Sea 4595
Jaedong 2008
EffOrt 1053
GuemChi 760
Mini 651
Stork 631
Light 390
Soma 387
[ Show more ]
Shuttle 346
hero 326
firebathero 319
ggaemo 251
Hyuk 212
PianO 193
Rush 180
Mong 112
Mind 90
Last 77
Hyun 71
Barracks 63
sorry 57
Pusan 53
soO 50
Sea.KH 46
Terrorterran 32
HiyA 21
zelot 21
ajuk12(nOOB) 19
yabsab 18
Sexy 15
910 13
Shine 11
SilentControl 11
JulyZerg 7
eros_byul 0
Dota 2
syndereN1345
Fuzer 158
canceldota130
League of Legends
C9.Mang0434
Other Games
Grubby5200
singsing2736
B2W.Neo1784
Hui .316
Mlord311
mouzStarbuck152
Mew2King98
ArmadaUGS28
Organizations
Other Games
gamesdonequick908
StarCraft 2
Blizzard YouTube
StarCraft: Brood War
BSLTrovo
sctven
[ Show 16 non-featured ]
StarCraft 2
• LUISG 115
• 3DClanTV 51
• iHatsuTV 11
• AfreecaTV YouTube
• intothetv
• Kozan
• IndyKCrew
• LaughNgamezSOOP
• Migwel
• sooper7s
StarCraft: Brood War
• BSLYoutube
• STPLYoutube
• ZZZeroYoutube
Dota 2
• Ler111
League of Legends
• Nemesis2526
• Jankos2166
Upcoming Events
OSC
2h 50m
BSL 21
4h 50m
Cross vs Dewalt
Replay Cast
17h 50m
Wardi Open
20h 50m
OSC
1d 20h
Solar vs MaxPax
ByuN vs Krystianer
Spirit vs TBD
OSC
4 days
Korean StarCraft League
5 days
OSC
5 days
OSC
6 days
OSC
6 days
[ Show More ]
uThermal 2v2 Circuit
6 days
Liquipedia Results

Completed

Escore Tournament S1: W1
WardiTV 2025
META Madness #9

Ongoing

C-Race Season 1
IPSL Winter 2025-26
BSL Season 21
CSL Season 19: Qualifier 2
eXTREMESLAND 2025
SL Budapest Major 2025
ESL Impact League Season 8
BLAST Rivals Fall 2025
IEM Chengdu 2025
PGL Masters Bucharest 2025
Thunderpick World Champ.
CS Asia Championships 2025

Upcoming

CSL 2025 WINTER (S19)
Escore Tournament S1: W2
Escore Tournament S1: W3
BSL 21 Non-Korean Championship
Acropolis #4
IPSL Spring 2026
Bellum Gens Elite Stara Zagora 2026
HSC XXVIII
Big Gabe Cup #3
OSC Championship Season 13
Nations Cup 2026
ESL Pro League Season 23
PGL Cluj-Napoca 2026
IEM Kraków 2026
BLAST Bounty Winter 2026
BLAST Bounty Winter Qual
TLPD

1. ByuN
2. TY
3. Dark
4. Solar
5. Stats
6. Nerchio
7. sOs
8. soO
9. INnoVation
10. Elazer
1. Rain
2. Flash
3. EffOrt
4. Last
5. Bisu
6. Soulkey
7. Mini
8. Sharp
Sidebar Settings...

Advertising | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use | Contact Us

Original banner artwork: Jim Warren
The contents of this webpage are copyright © 2025 TLnet. All Rights Reserved.