What does it take to make a living at punting?

[ShadowRoll]

Spyder’s recent thread (“Were you a winner or loser this year?”) has motivated me to quit my months of lurking and contribute to the conversation with this query: What does it take to make a living at punting?

It seems near impossible to get an accurate figure on the percentage of bettors who actually turn a large enough profit on which to live. I’d guess that those who do probably aren’t talking much about it in public forums. Alydar commented, on Spyder’s thread, that 95% of the players he knew did not win in the long run. This jives with what I’ve read in books and on the web (for what that’s worth), but I’d guess that even less, maybe 2%, actually make a decent living at gambling on horses.

Here are my thoughts on what is necessary to produce a viable income:
1) Enough time and discipline to treat it like a job. This means a full workday of such things as watching replays, updating your personal databases on whatever statistics work for you, handicapping the form or whatever you look at for past performances, selecting the best plays, and then going to the track or the turf club or a wagering site (plus, keeping accurate records of your money, afterwards).
2) Having the fortitude to sit out most of the races on a card (or cards) and wait for your selected play (I’ve heard this called having an “iron a$$”), and being able to pass on your selected play if the odds don’t reach your value line.
3) Being able to financially support yourself through those long periods of drought between the big hits that make all your dough for the year.
4) Maintaining a big stake and making huge bets. I remember reading about some self-proclaimed pro who said that he made six figures a year, but pushed nearly a million dollars through the windows to make it.

Personally, as much as I love the sport (okay, “monomaniacal” isn’t too strong a word), I’ve decided that treating my passion like a job would su¢k the very life out of it. If I break even at the end of the year, while having enjoyed some good times, I’m happy.