I Turned "pro" Today

[koolromeo 0]

you guys seem to be hung up on this $180. i saw i was up about $200 after a couple of hours and quit just to start off on a positive note. i was by no means bragging about $180. i plan on playing an average of 25k hands a week when i play online. i plan to play about 20% of the time live in atlantic city there i will be playing 15-30-45 hi lo ,which is like 20-40. i usually 12 table online. i've found that i really don't have to play over 1-2 nl to win the money i want. 12 tabling these stakes also seems to keep my variance in an acceptable range. i really have no desire to play 5-10nl or higher on a consistent basis. everyday i read somewhere about a player that " worked his way up" to the bigger games, only to have a downswing and get destroyed. based on bankroll, i should be playing 5-10 nl or 75-150 limit. i just don't want the stress. i'm more than happy to grind out 5k a month with very little risk. anyone who thinks 60k a year is peanuts, is foolish. most people don't make20 hour at a job, and thats only $40k a year.

[chgocubs99 0]

i made $182 in a few hours tonight. i intended to play longer, but thought that it would be nice to start off with a decent win. i don't know how this will turn out, but i'm quite excited about the challenge. if anyon has any questions or advice for me, i would appreciate anything you have to offer.dave

Most people here (including me) took this sentence to mean you were open to critique. People are giving honest advice to you, which you asked for. Don't get defensive and close your mind to advice from people after you asked for it. On top of all of that, a lot of it is really good advice, especially the post about getting burned out. I'd re-read it without the defensive attitude.

[The Bwaves 0]

$4,800 a month is pretty small goals so you should EASILY attain it. You can really live comfy off of that?

Avatar +EV

[checkymcfold 0]

wow, you guys are animals. either that or i'm an insanely lazy *******.i've been full time for about 4 months and 90% pro for 2 years, and i'm usually lucky if i get in 300 hands a day. but i play LO8 almost exclusively, and that plays waaaay slower, so yeah...anyway, i think that psychological stuff that chucksty mentioned absolutely cannot be quantified in terms of its value. if even the idea of running bad crosses my mind, i quit a session, plain and simple. that undoubtedly sounds excessive, but it's what i do and it works for me.OP, there are lots of ways to be a successful pro, and you'll likely feel out which one works for you as you go. some people like to grind out lots of hands with RB and bonuses, etc., and that's fine. i prefer to play limited sessions of one table but always at my absolute best in terms of focus, reading ability, etc., and that's fine too. most people playing for a living are somewhere in between. i wish you the best of luck, and keep us updated on your progress!

[David_Nicoson 1]

It is a great salary. It's crap when you have to split it between buffing up your bank roll and paying yourself.

If he's already making a good salary, he doesn't need to increase the bankroll.

[hob goblin 0]

Here is the point, if your mentallity is SOOOO WEAK that you need to stop at being up a veeery low $180, then you are SCREWED and have no business turning pro, you will get eaten alive.It is my beliefe that the hardest thing in poker is playing through the winning sessions, trying to make them as big as they need to be.Stop being lazy find a job that pays the bills and play poker on top of it to make your life more comfortable

[MadKennedy420 0]

it is hard to find a 15-30-45 game in town daily but you will propably find it 4 days a week..... check out the lower limit split games at the trop during the day

[hob goblin 0]

Also wtf are you going to do in 100 days when poker dries up from the poker banAnd don't anyone get on me about how it will go on and ways around cause i know there will be, BUT poker is going to DRY up severally when FISH give up trying to jump in the POOL because of legal hastlesshortest career ever!

[James D 0]

If he's already making a good salary, he doesn't need to increase the bankroll.

I think the point was that if he was just earning $180 a day then it would be fine. But he's not, because that $180 has to be used to play with (and deal with downswings), as part of your bankroll, AND living off.

[Dratj 0]

you guys seem to be hung up on this $180. i saw i was up about $200 after a couple of hours and quit just to start off on a positive note. i was by no means bragging about $180. i plan on playing an average of 25k hands a week when i play online. i plan to play about 20% of the time live in atlantic city there i will be playing 15-30-45 hi lo ,which is like 20-40. i usually 12 table online. i've found that i really don't have to play over 1-2 nl to win the money i want. 12 tabling these stakes also seems to keep my variance in an acceptable range. i really have no desire to play 5-10nl or higher on a consistent basis. everyday i read somewhere about a player that " worked his way up" to the bigger games, only to have a downswing and get destroyed. based on bankroll, i should be playing 5-10 nl or 75-150 limit. i just don't want the stress. i'm more than happy to grind out 5k a month with very little risk. anyone who thinks 60k a year is peanuts, is foolish. most people don't make20 hour at a job, and thats only $40k a year.

150x200=30K? I'm assuming you at least have a 30 k bankroll then?

[David_Nicoson 1]

i've done quite a bit of planning over the last few months. i know i need to get on a schedule . it's too easy to just not play or play 18 hours a day for that matter. i'm going to split my time between online and atlantic city. ac is a bout 2.5 hours away, which is a problem.

That's a big problem, especially if you want to have a social life with people in your hometown. That's the same distance for me to Caesar's Indiana. That's not a bad drive with a bunch of friends on a trip. It sucks *** when you drive it alone several times a month. Hotel bills add up, even if you stay in dumps like I do.So, my advice is move. If you have friends or family you don't want to leave, then find a partner to make these trips with you.It's very unlikely that you can make the same hourly rate when you play 8-10 hours a day compared to 3-4 hours a day. Take that into account.

[pezeveng 207]

since sept I decided to take my sports betting seriously to see if I can do it for a living and how well controlled I am. For anyone considering gambling as a future job should always do a 1 or 2 year trial run while still holding on to a guarenteed income job. So far Iam up and haven't had any losing weeks. I just find that placing bets is alot easier when Iam not dependent on the cash. My goal is to build a bankroll big enough that will cover 2 years of living expenses however long this takes. Ive banked $12,000 so far and find money management is the key. I bet $200 a game usually 2-4 games a day. I start with $500 build it up to $2000 than withdraw. With sportsbetting you can make a living betting small and keeping the risk minimal . With the speed of NL on-line poker losing a huge chunk of your bankroll can happen in 1 day, so alot more discipline is needed.Good Luck

[shrimp4789 0]

best of luck, keep us posted with the progress

[ahosang 0]

the game i have chosen is the 15-30-45 two way at the taj. it's a half hour of o8 and a then a half hour of stud 8. the players are pretty bad.

Haven't read any more of this thread, but once I saw this, I knew you're serious. Good Luck. I think you'll make it.

[fleung22 1]

40-50 hours online, 12-table, 25k hands per week, trips to AC for 10 days a week...to average $200 a day?!!?Somthing is very wrong here.When multi-tabling like that it's really tough to put in more than 30 "A-game" hours every week for 50+ weeks a year. My buddy plays about 25-30 hours a week and makes 3-4 trips to Vegas a year and makes a 6-figure income. He has played 80/160 LHE and 25-50 NLH but it may surprise many to know that he is often found playing .50-1.00 NLH. Perhaps you'd consider playing a lower limit where you can beat the game more easily and play a little higher when chasing a fish who's stuck. Like D-Nic said...the trips to AC can get pretty rough after a while.Nothing in life is impossible but the schedule you've presented yourself is very difficult and if you're not putting in quality hours then some of those hours will actually be harmful. Sometimes less is more.

[mikeysong 0]

gl man

[ChuckSty 0]

i proby play 75 hrs a week and i don't get burnt out cept when i take too many bong hits.oh and this thread is on p5's as well.

[KHSPoker21 0]

since sept I decided to take my sports betting seriously to see if I can do it for a living and how well controlled I am. For anyone considering gambling as a future job should always do a 1 or 2 year trial run while still holding on to a guarenteed income job. So far Iam up and haven't had any losing weeks. I just find that placing bets is alot easier when Iam not dependent on the cash. My goal is to build a bankroll big enough that will cover 2 years of living expenses however long this takes. Ive banked $12,000 so far and find money management is the key. I bet $200 a game usually 2-4 games a day. I start with $500 build it up to $2000 than withdraw. With sportsbetting you can make a living betting small and keeping the risk minimal . With the speed of NL on-line poker losing a huge chunk of your bankroll can happen in 1 day, so alot more discipline is needed.Good Luck

Do you bet just single games at a time? Ive always heard that teaser bets were +EV. Just curiousAnd to the OP...Sounds like you have a good plan. 1200$ a week is what alot of business people make so why not? What sites, limits, rake% do u have??

[pezeveng 207]

Do you bet just single games at a time? Ive always heard that teaser bets were +EV. Just curiousI always bet single games stright up usually risk 220 to win 200. Some games you pay more juice like yesterday had the Wings at -120 where I risked 240 to win 200. Teasers imo are a ripoff and parlays are nice when you hit but in the long run will cost you. Every once in a while I do some crazy parlays just because Iam up and I take a stab. The only way to win in sports betting is straight games with unit values which are all constant. This way one game never destroys you like last weeks giants game. Each loss and each win is the same so the emotional highs and lows dont exist.

[ChuckSty 0]

if you use any kind of bankroll management you can't lose a huge chunk of you're roll in a day in an nl cash game. just food for thought. woudlnt' you also want to bet more on games you felt better about (push edges) and also bet more as your bankroll grows.those are real questions i bet sports for fun and suck at it. but i'm alright at nl holdem

40-50 hours online, 12-table, 25k hands per week, trips to AC for 10 days a week...to average $200 a day?!!?Somthing is very wrong here.When multi-tabling like that it's really tough to put in more than 30 "A-game" hours every week for 50+ weeks a year. My buddy plays about 25-30 hours a week and makes 3-4 trips to Vegas a year and makes a 6-figure income. He has played 80/160 LHE and 25-50 NLH but it may surprise many to know that he is often found playing .50-1.00 NLH. Perhaps you'd consider playing a lower limit where you can beat the game more easily and play a little higher when chasing a fish who's stuck. Like D-Nic said...the trips to AC can get pretty rough after a while.Nothing in life is impossible but the schedule you've presented yourself is very difficult and if you're not putting in quality hours then some of those hours will actually be harmful. Sometimes less is more.

i know at least 25 peopel who play more than 40 hrs a week online make 6 figure incomes and are not burnt out to the point when you talk to them in real life thye won't shut up about poker. but i do't know anyone who would play .5/1 nl online as part of their income unless to blow off steam. i mean if you are a pro and you are making more per hour playing .5/1nl than someting is fkd

[showstopper24 0]

gl, and i have a question. How did you get the money to run a video store? or was it like a family thing?

[KHSPoker21 0]

The only way to win in sports betting is straight games with unit values which are all constant.What percentage are you winning to be able to beat the juice?

[fatman 1]

Also wtf are you going to do in 100 days when poker dries up from the poker banAnd don't anyone get on me about how it will go on and ways around cause i know there will be, BUT poker is going to DRY up severally when FISH give up trying to jump in the POOL because of legal hastlesshortest career ever!

Carefull, The sky is falling

[Abbaddabba 0]

i know at least 25 peopel who play more than 40 hrs a week online make 6 figure incomes and are not burnt out to the point when you talk to them in real life thye won't shut up about poker. but i do't know anyone who would play .5/1 nl online as part of their income unless to blow off steam. i mean if you are a pro and you are making more per hour playing .5/1nl than someting is fkd

You can do pretty well at that level in a way that's pretty much risk free.6 figures can be realistic for some. Though the people who can make 6 figures at that level _generally_ can make a lot more at bigger games.A reliable income is important to some people. Never having a losing week has it's appeal.

[HoosierAlum 0]

Its actually amazing that I'm not burnt out yet. I put in alot of hours, but still think and talk about poker every moment I can.I guess I'm obsessed.