I was really looking forward to the start of this month
after a strong finish last month, but this first week has been brutal. The first day of the month, I dropped $200 in
what can only be described as the doomswitch being turned on. I lost every single all in and I was a
favorite in most of them. I got a little
of it back in the next couple days, only to drop another $200 and to cement the
downswing. I’m not going to even post
the graph because I proceeded to tilt and play bad throughout the week and
ended up losing almost $600. The
combination of playing bad and running bad is really too much to overcome. These things come with the territory though,
so I just took a deep breath, shook it off and now I’m back to playing the game
how it is supposed to be played. I also
got some pretty big news this week, but I won’t go into more detail about it
until it becomes official. But I will
say it’s a game changer, and it’s going to put me in the right direction as far
as my career is concerned. Aight well I
just wanted to keep this short and sweet. I’ve
decided to start a race to 10k challenge for myself. I’m just going to try and see how long it
takes for me to make 10k using my standard bankroll management. I wasn’t going to put a time frame on it at
first, but now I think I’ll put a goal date of January 31st. Should be fun to see if and when I do
complete it, and it’ll probably be a huge learning experience. I’ll be playing probably close to 1500 hands
a day, something I’ve never done. So all
in all even if I don’t reach the goal, I should be well prepared to grind long
sessions and keep my emotions in check.
I’ll be updating my progress every Monday on this blog so be sure and check back to
see how it’s going. I’ll also be doing daily
updates on Twitter, so follow me on there as well. Until next time... Shipshape.
Hey man, I don't really know you well but I have been following your blog for quite a while (from the rivermeplz days). I read it once every 2-3 months for some good laughs and stories but I'm very impressed that you have stuck with online poker for so long. I personally stopped playing after FTP was ceased. I do want to ask if you are still planning on playing professionally or is this just for fun?
ReplyDeleteThanks. Yes I still intend to play professionally. With FTP & Stars getting shut down though, it has definitely made it more difficult, but hopefully once online poker returns to its full glory in a year or two it'll be easy pickings.
ReplyDeleteThat's great. It would be great for all of us if online poker returned in a year or two. I just don't believe it will have as much easy money. I was a reg at the 2/4 NL on FTP before it shut down. I think I had 1 fish on each table at best.
ReplyDeleteAnother question I had for you is how do you manage to focus on such low stakes? Do you ever look at your per hour profit? I want to understand your long term plan on becoming a pro. In my experience, seeing a lot of hands at the stakes you are playing does not translate into being a good player at higher stakes (where you can basically earn a decent living)
Just to clarify, this is purely a theoretical discussion because I do like your approach to the game. I don't want you to be offended. Your core beliefs of BR management and introspection are commendable.
ReplyDeleteWell once online poker returns its going to be legalized/regulated which means the casual player will feel more comfortable depositing money on the site which means more fish and more players. Its gonna be reminiscent of the 2006 year where Neteller was still operating and the fish were a plenty.
ReplyDeleteAs far as how do I focus on low stakes. Its something I've trained myself to do. Regardless of the buyin, every time I sit at the poker table I treat it as if it's the Main Event of the WSOP. I always try to make sure I'm playing the best game I can. I occasionally look at my hourly profit but I'm more concerned with am I losing the minimum and winning the maximum in each hand.
I find there is alot to learn when playing micro stakes. Granted the best approach is to play an ABC/straightforward style of poker and I think thats why some people have a hard time when they move up in stakes, but it helps you in other areas. Because of the such wide ranges of players styles at those levels, it helps you get good at being able to categorize each player at the table based on their playing style and be able to root out the good ones from the bad ones. A skill thats necessary at all buyin levels. Many other things I can go into but this is getting lengthy.
This actually gives me a good idea for a blog post, as being a good professional poker player requires alot more than just being good at the actual game itself.
Man, if poker returned to the neteller days, it would be amazing. Although I think people are kinda over the fad and its lost its popularity. I do want to address 2 points with you:
ReplyDelete1. I think you may be wasting your time playing micro stakes. Can you write a blog detailing your VPIP, PFR and bet/fold pct on each street. At micro stakes, you are mostly playing vs people who a) don't care about the money since if 5-10 bucks b) are little kids whose parents gave them allowance c) are not strong players/are just learning to play or d) cannot afford to purchase pokertracker, poker edge or other software. Therefore, they are complete sitting ducks.
You need to move up to a higher level to make it worth your while and actually experience good competition and develop a winning strategy
2) Another reason micro stakes will not work for you is because it will take a LONG time to finally graduate to meaningful stakes where you can actually earn a living. You need to risk some money and start playing at least .50/1.
Looking forward to your latest blog. I don't mean to be combative but really want to hear your opinion on these points.