Lhe Challenge(?) Thread

[checkymcfold 0]

It must be the season... I'll be joining you after next week. My work shut down my department, so all of us our sans jobs after Friday... I got a few months severance, and I'm not going to rely on cards for income so I'm in a different situation, but just thought I'd comiserate a little. Good Luck,BenSIDENOTE: Jamie,When are you getting home from Vegas??? We need to do one more FCP Chicago thing before you leave for the home of wings. This one needs to be in the city though, and the suburban guys need to suck it up and drive for once...

i haven't bought my flight back yet, but it's probably gonna be around the 4th. i'll be to and from buffalo for a lot of july, but i'll def be able to do a get together. can't be at my place, though, since my roommate takes the bar exam at the end of july and i don't wanna bother him any more than i have to.as to a vegas report, i also haven't played limited hold them in nearly a month, barring a few HU sessions that went very well for the first few, then very poorly. been playing mostly unlimited hold them and omahahaha 8 and below in vegas, the former going very well, and the latter having lots of counterfeiting and a bit of losing of mobneys. up a couple grand on the month so far, but vegas is an expensive city and i'm looking like i'm gonna leave with about what i came with .

[MinhLyFan 1]

suprised this thread is still alive, im about to play limited holdem cash for first time in a while on bodog. hows everyone else doin this month?

On pace to have my best month...a huge month considering the # of hands I've played. currently running at 12+bb/100 at the highest limit I play and normal in others woooot

[FCP Bob 1,312]

suprised this thread is still alive, im about to play limited holdem cash for first time in a while on bodog. hows everyone else doin this month?

I haven't played very much but I'm up a couple thousand the last 2 days.You're a Super Star live tourney donk now so I'm surprised you want to associate with the little people playing minibet any longer.

[looshle 6]

I haven't played very much but I'm up a couple thousand the last 2 days.You're a Super Star live tourney donk now so I'm surprised you want to associate with the little people playing minibet any longer.

yea real huge superstar, the only thing i can cash at the series are the 1500 minefields.I really need to play more cash than I do, which is easy bc Im currently playing none. Surprised at how bad they are at Bodog, even the good players are terrible. Made like 1k while running poorly in the 30 game, guess I'm gonna have to help start the game more often.

[looshle 6]

On pace to have my best month...a huge month considering the # of hands I've played. currently running at 12+bb/100 at the highest limit I play and normal in others woooot

what limits you playing?

[CobaltBlue 662]

Fun times from 10/20 HULHE on Stars...First hand, I raise A4o on the button and he calls. Flop 755, he check-raises, I call...Turn 6...he bets, I call...River 3...he bets, I raise, he callsFishy said, "nice catch donk"I check hand history...he had 62o.CobaltBlueX said, "...says the guy with 6-high on the flop."Several hands later, I flop a set and CR/cap it on the flop. I bet the turn, he calls, I bet the river that brought a possible flush, and he folds.Fishy said, "nice catch"CobaltBlueX said, "Let's pretend like you think you know what I had."While later after busting him up some more...Dealt to CobaltBlueX [3h Th]SVRacer: raises $10 to $20CobaltBlueX: calls $10*** FLOP *** [Td Tc 7d]CobaltBlueX: checks SVRacer: bets $10CobaltBlueX: raises $10 to $20SVRacer: raises $10 to $30CobaltBlueX: raises $10 to $40Betting is cappedSVRacer: calls $10*** TURN *** [Td Tc 7d] [Kc]CobaltBlueX: bets $20SVRacer: calls $20*** RIVER *** [Td Tc 7d Kc] [6s]CobaltBlueX: bets $20SVRacer: calls $20*** SHOW DOWN ***CobaltBlueX: shows [3h Th] (three of a kind, Tens)SVRacer: shows [Kh 7c] (two pair, Kings and Tens)Fishy said, "you're sick"Fishy said, "i don't think i've ever been cold decked this bad before"Next hand, I raise an ace, he 3-bets with a king, I call the flop, he turns his gut-shot, and I river a flush...Fishy said, "no F'ing way"Fishy said, "what the f"Fishy said, "you call down with nothing...and runner runner ..every time"Some more hands, I bust him a second time...Fishy said, "******...jesus"Fishy said, "wtf is going on here"Don't recall tilting anyone so hard in a while. After he'd busted for the second time, I tried to "sympathize" with him and tell him that I was getting lucky so that he'd rebuy again...but no go.

[Flushgarden 0]

FG, i know you don't really want to hear this, but as someone who has played in the 3/6 to 5/10 range as a pro (with about 2500/mo in expenses) for 2+ years, i would STRONGLY recommend against doing so unless you're going to be playing mostly HU where your edges can be a lot larger and you can play more hands in a shorter period of time. granted, i play fewer hands than most "pros" at those limits (around 25-30k/mo unless i'm playing live also), but my experience with being a supergrinding pro has been altogether frustrating. knowing that you're going to be entirely unable to move up in limits unless you go on a super heater is disconcerting on its own, but knowing that a 20k hand bad run (and they do exist) over half a month or 2 breakeven months can basically send you to busto can be a little demoralizing when those periods start to happen. moreover, when you rely on poker for your entire income, your relationship with the game changes on a very profound level. beats and bad runs become more than just losses--they become threats to your very livelihood. to all but the most seasoned veterans of the game, that's an extremely tenuous psychological situation. despite the number of times i post "a;lsdkjfal;sdkfj" or some such thing in here, i actually consider myself to have a very high level of mental fortitude relative to most players, and i can say that in the last two years, i've still gone through multiple periods wherein i've felt lost, demoralized, or some such thing. and those periods aren't fun, to say the very, very least. and when things crop up that keep you from playing for an extended period of time (family commitments, etc.), going broke is going to be possible. for instance, i went broke in january because i was limited to playing just a few hundred hands in december due to family travel commitments and illness, and after spending half my bankroll on normal monthly expenses, i went on a pretty terrible run while playing underrolled and dropped to a dangerously low level in terms of br (which was an assumed risk of which i was entirely aware at the time--i'm just trying to say that there will always be things that arise that you simply can't foresee, and without a larger br cushion, you're going to be in danger occasionally).but that's not to say that it can't be done, obviously. i mean, i do it. but what i want to impart by saying all this is that being in grindmode for such an extended period of time, with very little hope of moving up to where you have more freedom with regard to schedules, etc., is far from being as glorious as it might seem to someone who hasn't given it that shot yet. does that mean it's not worth it? not necessarily--there are definitely things that i appreciate about my lifestyle as well. it's just that most people who are thinking of giving it a go are going to be more aware of the prospective positives than the negatives. i mean, that's only natural. however, i wish that i had been less naive about the lifestyle of a 3/6-5/10 pro grinder two years ago when i quit grad school to go full time. had i been smarter, i would have kept my winnings for increasing limits exclusively, gotten a job to pay the bills, and gotten back to at least 10/20 before giving it a real shot.take all that for what you will, but i hope that something in there might give you a little more insight into what you're looking to do. best of luck with whatever you decide!edit: it may also be worth saying that when i move to buffalo in august, i will be getting a job to cover my monthly expenses and rebuilding my bankroll with every cent i win. personally, i won't even consider returning to full time professional play until i'm rolled for 30/60 again.

Thanks for the thoughts, Checky. I know its going to be rough. I gotta do this right now though. I just need to make this work for a year. I know it might sound a little unmanly, but in a year my wife will be making $50-$60 an hour, and at that time I'll be able to keep more of what I make and use it to move up. I can spend this year plugging leaks, getting experience, and becoming a better player, so that when I do move up I can continue to be profitable.For this year, the games at 2/4 and 3/6, and even 5/10 on Full Tilt and Cake are not exactly tough. The poor play of my opponents will minimize the bad runs. I know bad runs and break even months are going to happen but I don't think I'm being unreasonable at all when I say I expect to make 1.5 BB/100. That 1.5 is taking into account the bad and the good. If I make 1.5 at 2/4 it should give me twice as much as what I need for a month as long as I play as much as I plan to. If I do have a breakeven month, I have rakeback to save me. If need be, there are more hours in the day. I know I need to not run bad in the beginning, but if I can make it through the first two months then I think I'll be fine. I think I'm going to start in full ring and play the most solid TAG style that I can. After my br is more comfortable I'll go back to shortanded tables. Its doable, right?With that said...I know I could be busto in a month. If so, I will get a job.

[GWCGWC 83]

I didn't think I'd be able to make a run to Vegas this year since the owner of the company I work for decided to take a month long vacation this June. Turns out, I'm gonna be there July 4th-8th. After taking a bath in the 15/30 kill game in Albuquerque my live roll has been decimated. A couple days ago I went ahead and cashed out my Stars roll only leaving like $100 + some T$. It kind of sucks since it forces me to play micro stakes again. I haven't had this little in my online BR for several years. I'm going to see if I can run it up from micro stakes playing on 100BB's since I really don't want to play anything less than .5/1 SHLHE. Funny story from Albuquerque. My seat in the game opens up. I've only played there a hand full of times but I recognize most of the players. I'm in the 1 seat and a player in the 3 seat is raking in a pot when one of the regulars asks him where he normally plays. He said usually online. Well me too, so I asked him what site. When he answered Absolute, I said I hated that he still plays there. After some more conversation, I shit you not, he asked if I was FCP. Yep, I was playing with the one and only MinhLyFan. Weird to accidentally play with someone from the boards.

With that said...I know I could be busto in a month. If so, I will get a job.

I think you should start at 2/4 SH and run good. Play fewer tables, (2) max, and focus on player tendencies. Beating the game for more than 1.5BB/100 and playing higher will accelerate the success/busto shot. Have you multi-tabled 6 hours a day for more than a couple days before? The focus required is exhausting and it'll really hit home that poker is just one long game. Read Steve's thread in the strat section if you haven't done that yet. Think about a training site like deuces cracked or cardrunners. One more thing you need to be aware of. Your wife needs to see you win and win consistently early on. She may say that she's cool with you playing a year from now, but when she has to grind out a job in her chosen profession, if you're not kicking into the checking account it's going to be hard for her not to feel some kind of resentment. Stay in tune with her feelings and thoughts or you may find your relationship in trouble.

[navybuttons 15]

I need your thoughts and advice...

fwiw, i think being a successful "professional" would look something like this:25%- how well you can actually play cards15% knowing when to play10% being able to play when you know you should30% mental toughness (or strong mental outlook)20% knowing how to think about the gameit's also requires an assload of character. if someone had all of the 75% except "how well you actually play cards" i would be more to likely recommend that they go "pro" over someone who can play hands really well but sucks in all other departments. i could list on and on everything i think a successful poker player has. being a "pro" has very little to do with cards. i would be more confident in saying that you should go pro if instead of your post saying "i could beat this game for this amount for this period of time," you'd said, "i never tilt, i work on my game 5 hours a day, i review all my sessions, etc." that stuff is way more relative to your decision in my opinion. don't just brush this off with "of course i'm mentally tuff and know how to think about the game." set your ego aside and give yourself an honest self examination. you'd be doing yourself a huge favor.if you have what it takes then being a professional is INCREDIBLY easy. if you don't it's a terrible life.goodluck.

hows everyone else doin this month?

loving life. i actually took some pride in joining the 200 club. this is monday through today, but i haven't had a chance to play in the last 3 days with all of my obligations in vegas.

3 seat is raking in a pot

i taught him him how to do that. :Dj/k. James is a great example of a young kid who has a lot of the intangibles. He has more character than 4/5ths of the people i've met online.

[Zach6668 513]

So this is why we never see you anymore?

[navybuttons 15]

So this is why we never see you anymore?

i was at your house through the last 700 hands or so. i'm home for a few days. i should be back tues or wed.

[looshle 6]

Was thinking of making some more vids. Let me know if interested bc I would have to purchase Camtasia.Up like 2500 1 tabling for like a combined 4-5 hours in 2 days. <3 bodog

[GWCGWC 83]

Was thinking of making some more vids. Let me know if interested bc I would have to purchase Camtasia.Up like 2500 1 tabling for like a combined 4-5 hours in 2 days. <3 bodog

I'd watch any and all vids you'd be willing to do. I'm pretty sure you already knew this but I thought I'd post it anyway.

[BellaireDrew 2]

I'd watch any and all vids you'd be willing to do.

[MinhLyFan 1]

what limits you playing?

Mostly 5-10, but I fill time playing 3-6 and 2-4. I play huhu

[MinhLyFan 1]

Everyday I wake up and pray this doesn't happen to me. So filthy dude

[MinhLyFan 1]

I didn't think I'd be able to make a run to Vegas this year since the owner of the company I work for decided to take a month long vacation this June. Turns out, I'm gonna be there July 4th-8th. After taking a bath in the 15/30 kill game in Albuquerque my live roll has been decimated. A couple days ago I went ahead and cashed out my Stars roll only leaving like $100 + some T$. It kind of sucks since it forces me to play micro stakes again. I haven't had this little in my online BR for several years. I'm going to see if I can run it up from micro stakes playing on 100BB's since I really don't want to play anything less than .5/1 SHLHE. Funny story from Albuquerque. My seat in the game opens up. I've only played there a hand full of times but I recognize most of the players. I'm in the 1 seat and a player in the 3 seat is raking in a pot when one of the regulars asks him where he normally plays. He said usually online. Well me too, so I asked him what site. When he answered Absolute, I said I hated that he still plays there. After some more conversation, I shit you not, he asked if I was FCP. Yep, I was playing with the one and only MinhLyFan. Weird to accidentally play with someone from the boards.

Yeah, pretty crazy running into fcp reg like that. I am pretty alone here in NM. Good to play with you, sorry to hear about what happened after I left. Sounded pretty gross.

[CobaltBlue 662]

Decided to grind a 5 hour session this morning. In addition to winning at NL, I played a bunch of HU and 3-handed Limit. Got kind of killed at 20/40 for 45BB. However, I also battled a guy at 30/60 for a long time. Started up 15BB on him quickly...and then got into a 45BB hole against him...and finally finished having busted him twice for a profit of 65BB.[x] amused by 110BB upswings

[navybuttons 15]

Everyday I wake up and pray this doesn't happen to me.

i wouldn't do that. bad downswings happen. easier to just be mentally prepared for them as opposed to just hope against them imo.

So filthy dude

i appreciate the thoughts.

[GWCGWC 83]

After cashing out and dropping way down in limits, I've done well. The .50/1 SHLHE is like a completely different game than the 5/10. It's just totally different and another impossible level to lose at in the long run. I've run it up a bit and I'm now short rolled to play the 1/2.

[MinhLyFan 1]

i wouldn't do that. bad downswings happen. easier to just be mentally prepared for them as opposed to just hope against them imo.i appreciate the thoughts.

Ok, so these were the proceeding days after I posted 150BB in like 350 hands. It was pretty intenseI was just kidding about the praying. Swongs have almost zero impact on me anymore. It's probably because I a really over rolled...

[MinhLyFan 1]

*** POCKET CARDS ***Dealt to SANDIALOSER [5c Js] SANDIALOSER - Raises $7 to $10HJACKOWI - Calls $5*** FLOP *** [3d Kh Ah]HJACKOWI - ChecksSANDIALOSER - Bets $5HJACKOWI - Raises $10 to $10SANDIALOSER - Raises $10 to $15HJACKOWI - Raises $10 to $20SANDIALOSER - Calls $5*** TURN *** [3d Kh Ah] [Ac]HJACKOWI - Bets $10SANDIALOSER - Raises $20 to $20HJACKOWI - Raises $20 to $30SANDIALOSER - Raises $20 to $40HJACKOWI - FoldsSANDIALOSER - returned ($10) : not called

[Flushgarden 0]

*** POCKET CARDS ***Dealt to SANDIALOSER [5c Js] SANDIALOSER - Raises $7 to $10HJACKOWI - Calls $5*** FLOP *** [3d Kh Ah]HJACKOWI - ChecksSANDIALOSER - Bets $5HJACKOWI - Raises $10 to $10SANDIALOSER - Raises $10 to $15HJACKOWI - Raises $10 to $20SANDIALOSER - Calls $5*** TURN *** [3d Kh Ah] [Ac]HJACKOWI - Bets $10SANDIALOSER - Raises $20 to $20HJACKOWI - Raises $20 to $30SANDIALOSER - Raises $20 to $40HJACKOWI - FoldsSANDIALOSER - returned ($10) : not called

lol, nh

[Flushgarden 0]

I finally was able to transfer little bit of money onto Full tilt, so yesterday was my first official day grinding it out.6/25/08 -Session 1 Morning: 377 hands, +33 BBs...games are softSession 2 Afternoon: 719 hands, -19 BBs...ran bad but thats okSession 3 Evening: 605 hands, +18 BBs...still running bad but playing well I think.Session 4 Night: 575 hands, -12BBs...tables fulll of donkeys. These people are horrible.Totals: 2276 hands, +20 BBs, Need to play a little bit tighter, and run better.

[Zach6668 513]

*** POCKET CARDS ***Dealt to SANDIALOSER [5c Js] SANDIALOSER - Raises $7 to $10HJACKOWI - Calls $5*** FLOP *** [3d Kh Ah]HJACKOWI - ChecksSANDIALOSER - Bets $5HJACKOWI - Raises $10 to $10SANDIALOSER - Raises $10 to $15HJACKOWI - Raises $10 to $20SANDIALOSER - Calls $5*** TURN *** [3d Kh Ah] [Ac]HJACKOWI - Bets $10SANDIALOSER - Raises $20 to $20HJACKOWI - Raises $20 to $30SANDIALOSER - Raises $20 to $40HJACKOWI - FoldsSANDIALOSER - returned ($10) : not called

woooooooooooooooooooooooooo reminds me of me!