Poker Schools and Backing Funds: Is It Worth Joining?

Self-study builds experience, but this path tends to be slow and costly: mistakes at the tables directly affect your bankroll. That's exactly why players start looking for more efficient ways to develop and consider poker schools and funds as tools for accelerated growth. However, choosing the wrong training format can lead to wasted time, money, and motivation. To avoid this, it's important to understand the differences between these approaches in advance, along with their strengths and weaknesses.

Differences between a poker fund and a poker school

Both a poker school and a poker fund pursue the same goal — developing the player — but they do so through fundamentally different methods. Let's break down what the main differences are, what pros and cons each approach has, and which format is best for a beginner.

Poker school

A poker school is a classic training format in which the player pays for knowledge and manages their game entirely on their own: they play with their own money and choose their own tournaments to play.

Pros of a poker school:

1. Training
   A poker school provides a structured theoretical foundation, which speeds up learning many times over. 

2. No profit share
   All the profit from playing goes to the player, and the school makes no financial demands. The player decides on their own when and how much to play, with no obligations toward the school. 

Cons of a poker school:

1. Playing with your own money
   The player bears all the financial risk on their own. Mistakes in learning or play hit the bankroll directly. During a prolonged downswing, the player will have to lower their ABI* and play cheaper tournaments. 

2. Unclear training quality
   Before buying a course, it's impossible to know for sure whether the training format, the way the material is presented, and the level of difficulty will suit you.

3. The need for careful selection
   There are many schools on the market with varying content quality. A wrong choice can cost you time and money.

*ABI (Average Buy In) — the average cost of the tournaments you play. 

Poker fund

A poker fund builds its relationship with the player as a partnership: in addition to systematic training, it provides full backing — that is, money to play with (you can read more about backing in our article). On top of that, the fund creates a convenient internal structure that covers all of the player's key needs and ensures comfortable, efficient growth.

Cons of a poker fund:

1. Profit share
   The player shares their winnings with the fund. This is the payment for backing, training, and infrastructure.

2. Obligations
   The player commits to dedicating time to training: studying the provided materials, attending sessions, and applying what they've learned at the tables. In addition, regular playing practice is expected of them.

Pros of a poker fund:

1. High-quality training tied to results
   The fund's profit depends directly on the quality of training and the player's growth, since the fund receives a share of the player's winnings and nothing else. This is the key difference from a poker school.

2. No financial pressure
   Full backing removes the stress associated with losing your own money and lets you focus on the quality of your in-game decisions.

3. Internal structure and tournament selection
   The player is assigned a tournament schedule based on their stats, with a focus on maximum profit and optimal ABI. FunFarm also has a support team that will help resolve any issue with software, a poker room, or any other problem the player may have.

4. Mental support
   Working on psychology, discipline, and tilt is an important part of a player's steady growth over the long run. In some funds, players work with sports psychologists and mindset coaches, which speeds up development.

5. Community
   Constant interaction with other players speeds up learning and builds a professional approach. On top of that, it's easy to find friends and like-minded people. 

Where is it better for a beginner to go?

For a player without a bankroll and a stable track record, a poker fund is a safer and more effective way to start. The reasons are simple: you don't need your own bankroll to play, the training is paid for out of your winnings and doesn't require money out of your own pocket, and the quality of training is usually high because the fund has a direct interest in it. The player gets the entire infrastructure for playing: a tournament schedule, the necessary software, training materials and sessions matching their current level, and all the support they need — all that's left is to learn and play.

Not all funds accept beginners, and not all of them teach equally well, but if you want to start your journey as a professional player and get guaranteed high-quality training, we invite you to take the free FF Start course. There you'll find video lessons, text materials, and a trainer that will help you sharpen your theoretical knowledge, and if you pass the final test, we'll invite you to the backing fund FirstFund, provide full backing, and offer the best training on the market. 

FAQ

What's better for a beginner: a poker fund or a poker school?

For a beginner without a bankroll and a track record, a fund is the better option.

Do I have to pay to join the fund and train with it?

No. The fund earns money only from the player's winnings. 

Can I leave the fund?

Yes, the terms of departure are always specified in the contract.

Is a fund suitable for a player with no experience?

Yes, provided there are basic training programs for beginners. For example, FunFarm has a free course for beginners, FF Start, aimed at training from scratch up to a level at which we're ready to invite the player to the team.