Nearly everyone is willing to boast about their prowess at picking up women, and some guys actually have the "little black book" to prove it (although it has likely evolved into an electronic device with a touch-screen). Most people have a hard time mustering up the courage to approach a woman and ask her for her telephone number, let alone for a date. There are significant factors that can, in fact, raise or lower the chances of one's success in this regard.
Location, Location, Location
Geography and demographics play a huge part in one's ability to meet and connect with people. In large urban areas, obviously, there a lot more women and more opportunities to mingle with them. Smaller towns not only have fewer candidates for dating, there tends to be a "date-a-base" in existence, wherein single women are often able to warn each other if someone is a groper, a cad or a person of otherwise poor character. In that situation, one can find oneself ostracized to the point where he may as well be wearing neon-orange body paint.
Padding Your Batting Average
In big cities, there is a certain degree of anonymity that allows people to get outside themselves. A software engineer, for instance, can don a leather jacket and steel-toed boots and go pick up women at biker bars, and no one would know the difference. One can also date more openly without the fear that a friend of a friend of a friend might connect the dots and blow the whistle on a guy for playing the field.
Navigating the dating scene is tricky enough without having a "record". Men who want to pick up women are likely to have a much better chance at success in an overcrowded market, and they can be more selective, as they have a wider variety of women with their various looks and personalities. Otherwise, they may well end up "settling for" the true love of their lives. As they say, it's complicated.
If you need advice on dating, check out David DeAngelo.
