Not a pro player but I do well enough recreationally in local clubs when I play. GTO in my experience is really not a threat. Most players dont play GTO and against bad players GTO is not a factor. I've played with solvers before but I see no value for my current stakes. Nor do I feel that GTO is important. Perhaps in computer simulations but... its all theoretical and just fun and games. You'd need to play HU against Phil Galfond if you want GTO to be useful but how many players will be challenged like that?

I also play recreationally and pretty much agree. The average person at $1/2 or $2/5 is playing on mostly emotion no where near GTO. I think it does have some benefit in how you think about the game, how to mix in bluffs, expected value, but it's not really GTO math specific and more general ideas.