I have a slightly different opinion. You are a PUA as long as you are learning and using new PUA-techniques, AND approaching women frequently, just for the sake of pickup and getting laid. If a woman asks whether you are PUA, your game is too obvious, with a risk of being a try-hard.

This process (being a PUA) goes on until you become a natural, which in my opinion is the "master rank" so to speak. You are a PUA as soon as you learn your first technique, and therefore it is equivalent to being a newbie/rookie. When you get good enough, you will stop calling yourself a PUA, because you realize that all it is, is a big fat DLV.

When you learn game to perfection, becoming a natural, you can stand next to a girl, looking at some guy doing his PUA-stuff, shaking your head saying "look at that poor guy, trying so hard to learn how to deal with women", and suddenly you have demonstrated higher value. MUCH higher value! Like a boss.

Well, I like the "learning process" thing hugge wrote, but I also don't think It's accurate. I mean, the word "artist" in pick-up artist implies that you have already achieved excellence in what you do. Everyone can throw a bit of ink at a canvas, but only a true genious like DaVinci or Caravaggio can be considered an artist.

Sheer number alone won't cut it either. If you hit on 100 girls and fuck 20 you get a 20% success rate, whereas a guy that only hits on 10 girls but fucks 9 has a 90% success rate and is, therefor, a better PUA, even though you fucked more girls.

But then again, to have a higher success percentage, you only have to lower your standards. 1 out of 10 model type girls would agree to go out with you, but 9 out of 10 ugly ass acne covered fatties would go out with you, giving you an artificially high success rate.

God, now my head hurts...

Does it really matter? Women find it sexy and they love the compliment.

I've been described as a "Hunter" and women always get a kick out of it. They love that they're being pursued, seduced and someone is going to the effort of singling them out and taking special notice of them to hunt them. They love it and it makes their friends jealous because if they can see that they know you can get women and you chose her they're jealous that it wasn't them that was chosen.

Hunters/PUAs/Seduction Artists are a different breed from average men altogether. We're different, we're fun and it's a compliment to women just as long as they haven't been listening too intently to all this feminist crap that's all over the web these days. Seduction is sexy.