Purely for enjoyment. Just a note, imo, even pros don't play professionally to earn money via games, but rather to earn via sponsorships and the like. There's also fame in there, which is probably part of it, but honestly, for winning games? I highly doubt it. In all honesty, the game should purely just be for fun, not for any money, or possibly any other reason. Most of the stuff that we enjoy right now should purely be for entertainment, instead of being a way to influence your life in another way.
I don't think that gambling can be a salvation for a person no matter what life's turmoil he had. A very large number of people have some kind of mental problems that can lead them to various addictions: gambling, drug addiction, alcoholism, etc. Can not be considered a salvation of a hobby, which can lead to unfortunate consequences. Salvation can be faith in God, sports, family, but not gambling.
It's called escapism tbh, anything that relies on an external factor to FORGET, and not to accept, is escapism. Salvation can even be considered one, depending on how the person themselves think of Salvation, whether it be for the good or for the bad.