I'll try to summarize really quickly:
Back in the early 90s I purchased the Amateur Magician's Handbook by Henry Hay. Lesson one was one of the easiest things to do with a deck of cards. Lesson 2 was the classic pass. Although I had read the entire book and picked up what I could from it, the fact that I couldn't manage that second lesson did bad things to me. I also want to make note that this was before the Internet as we know it and back when I lived in orchard country. It was just my brother, the book, and me.
When I started getting involved with magic, the web sites, and now even IBM, that stigma was still with me. I told myself that I would learn the pass to finally shake those feelings, then move forward to other forms of magic. It is exactly what I did. I can't do a very good pass, and my handling is always a little shaky. I did, however, video tape some practice sessions where I got more than a handful of really nice ones done. I proved it to myself. That was what I wanted most.
So, that's what would compel a person to learn the pass then move away from cards.