Magic v Poker...No Wonder They Switch...

Now before i write this i want to point out, i am a massive magic the gathering player, i adore the game for its strategy and fast paced action, but recently ive been thinking, you see alot of world class poker players (david williams and dario mineri to name a few) that have played MTG in the past, become world class, then moved onto poker from there...while as ive done it the other way round (without the world class bit of course)...so i had to think as to why, then it became very obvious

Magic+ : It's very fast paced and can have matches done inside of three minutes, this helps wonders for people just after a small game on the side
Poker- : Quick games? PAH! even with these new hyper turbo crap shoots they can take nearly half an hour, usually around fifteen minutes though

Magic+ : It's one of those games where you can build decks to your own spec's, and it tailors to multiple playing styles, each colour pretty much gives you its own set of styles
Poker- : Styles can be fit into a small amount of sub categories (well, small amount in comparison) and only a few work at the top level if you take out variance, but that said every game has an aspect of luck, regardless of how much skill you put in (and dont get me wrong, i reckon poker is almost 90% skill)

Magic- : You qualify for the pro tour's or even the worlds, congrats, you usually have to get there yourself, get spending money yourself, and while some places are nice, lets be fair, poker has far better locations...which reminds me...
Poker+ : On almost every single major event worth its weight in gold, it's usually got a site backing it with cheap sattelites, which DOES give you money for travel, which DOES give you spending money for the tournament duration (provided you dont spend like a complete prat), and which DOES provide you with some serious locations that even without the poker youd be likely to go to anyway (san remo? thats a massive tourist destination regardless of the poker, chiba in japan however, until the worlds were hosted there this year, i didnt even know it existed!)

Poker+ : Prize money...you do NOT mess with the sheer prize money these events offer, magic's biggest prize barely even makes the buyin for some of poker's world class events (i'm not joking here...the world's main prize is $52,000....but hold on, the players championship, widely considered to be the pro's ultimate accolade...the buyin is $50,000!)
Magic- : Prize money...who are you kidding...only the top events seem to offer money that comes even remotely close to pokers worst prizes (as i speak $52,000 is the top prize for the world's...which equates to £34,216, thats magic's biggest prize, only just ahead of dusk till dawn (nottingham)'s MONTHLY event!)

Poker+ : Sponsorships for the best which can be worth millions per year
Magic- : A pro tour club where the very best can be worth ten's of thousands per year

Poker+ : An online community beyond compare, giving millions in prizes while staying at home
Magic- : A decent online community with smallish prizes, but has no direct links to the outside world, once youve qualifyed for something online, your not given a real life copy of the deck you won with...you have to then buy your own deck AGAIN, last i checked poker doesnt have those problems

Poker+ : Almost completely mainstream, where bluechip sponsors are not far away
Magic- : Very specific to magic players with very little outside attention


Poker 5:2 Magic

I need say no more, its no wonder they switch