You get coached by H2Olga right? You were a very solid winning reg before the coaching and now you are even better I think... so what benefits you get from Olga?
You get coached by H2Olga right? You were a very solid winning reg before the coaching and now you are even better I think... so what benefits you get from Olga?I was staked at 500+ on Stars for about 10 months prior to Black Friday by H2Olga. We had a coaching agreement as part of the stake, but only ended up doing maybe 3 or 4 hours total.I read a post Skates made on 2p2 about 1.5 years ago that said something like: "There are a lot of guys who are great professional poker players, but their aren't very many great poker players." (He was just referring to husng players) This statement was the "aha" moment of my career. Basically, I realized that I fell into the category that he was referring to that was great at making consistent money as a poker player, but I pretty much sucked when it come down to pure poker strategy. I just beat fish and avoided playing most regs at all costs.The lesson I learned from this quote didn't sink in for quite a while, but it definitely stuck with me in the back of my mind. I kept up my complacency at the 200/300 games for another 6 months or so, grinding out 10k month after 10k month. Then I ran into a nightmare stretch of variance. I had always made very consistent money with my high ROI, but the games had gotten harder over the past year or two and my roi had definitely dropped to 3-5% at 200/300s. I went on a 2000 game breakeven stretch where I ran about 75 buyins below EV...I just wasn't used to this.At first, I complained like everyone else does, blamed variance...the usual. Things continued to get worse and worse though and eventually I just made the decision that, if I'm going to run this bad, I'm going to at least work my hardest to improve as much as possible to increase my ROI and learn to deal with this kind of stretch better mentally. So I started the stake with H2Olga, challenged myself to move up to higher buyin levels even though I didn't expect myself to be a huge winner at them initially, got a BlueFire subscription (yes, cash videos are worthwhile if you think about them within husng parameters), bought a few sessions from mental coach Jared Tendler, got some H2Olga coaching, did weekly study/review sessions with some husng players, the list goes on... I was also overweight at this time, so I hired a personal trainer. Basically, the negative variance I experienced exposed so many of my weaknesses. Strategy weaknesses (the difference between my A and C game was enormous), I wasn't doing much to exploit regs, my mental game needed work. I decided to make a positive out of a very negative situation and attack weaknesses and just be on the offensive in all aspects of my life. Don't be the victim.Since then, I've improved a ton. I'm really tough vs regs now. I think about poker a lot better. My mental game is strong. I lost 45 pounds and feel great. Adversity is a great teacher. That stretch of variance continued for another 6 months or so and I eventually had run 220 avg buyins ($315) below EV over 6500 games. If I could have the 75k that I ran below EV back, at the cost of all the lessons I learned from that experience, I would decline it in a heartbeat. It was the most difficult period I've ever experienced in my life (I really questioned what I was doing for a living), but it made me a much stronger poker player and a more positive, confident person. This is extremely longwinded, but it's a story I think is important to share for you all to get to know me. My experience with H2Olga was positive, but he really only played a small (but important) role in my maturation as a poker player over the past 1.5 years.
At what stage would you recommend multitabling? A lot of your vids (especially lower stakes) are two tables. Personally i am hovering around the $15 and $30 games so i've got a long way to go in my game for sure, but i recognise that 2 tabling is a skill to be learned as much as any other, however generally people say "stick to 1 table when you're leaning".Would you recommend getting used to 2 tables early and even grinding with that, or is it better to single table up to $100s for example, then drop to $50s to adjust to 2tabling?
At what stage would you recommend multitabling? A lot of your vids (especially lower stakes) are two tables. Personally i am hovering around the $15 and $30 games so i've got a long way to go in my game for sure, but i recognise that 2 tabling is a skill to be learned as much as any other, however generally people say "stick to 1 table when you're leaning".Would you recommend getting used to 2 tables early and even grinding with that, or is it better to single table up to $100s for example, then drop to $50s to adjust to 2tabling?Good question. This is a huge, huge leak for so many people. Like many other results-based aspects of poker, it really depends what your long term goals in poker are. If your goal is to make it the 55 or 110 level and just make some decent cash while you're in school or something, and you have no long term plans to make poker a real career, then I would suggest learning to 2 table earlier on (at the 33s or 55s) and begin maximizing your profit expectation sooner. If you want to make poker a career, become the best poker player you can be, and build a skill-set that can allow you to play high stakes in the toughest times online poker has seen (i.e. the games are sick hard at 200+ compared to a year or 2 ago obv), then I would suggest 1 tabling until you have established yourself close to the high stakes levels that you are aiming for.1 tabling allows you more time to focus on decisions and adapting to your opponents. 2+ tabling is just about maximizing hourly rate. The problem with the average multitabler at the 55-330 levels in husngs over the past 2 years has been that they are only focusing on maximizing their short-term hourly rate. They do not realize what their auto-pilot style and lack of improvement/focus is doing to their long term profitability in the game. The guys that are 1-2 tabling, watching videos and learning to implement cutting edge strategy might not be as profitable as them yet, but eventually the average player will improve and their winrate will begin to suffer.Their are certainly some exceptions to this...it's not like it's impossible to dramatically improve your game while multitabling, I just believe that the success stories for this approach are pretty rare (Primo, Ricestud, Skates...who else?). I cut back on tables over the past year and I've seen the most rapid growth strategically in my career (pretty amazing since I was crushing 220/330 for 2 years prior). Livb, IceVenom, H2olga, Spamzor, Whasssuppp...all these guys spent huge amounts of their careers 1 tabling.So, again, what are your long term goals in the game? I think that's the key to answering this question.
Also, I plan on writing an article on improving skills such as multitabling, playing longer sessions, avoiding burnout, playing more hours per week. These are all skills that require gradual improvement, and I think a lot of players miss out on that and just try to "suck it up and focus more"...it's not that easy :)
How much experience do you have with STs and what are your results like? I don't have a ton of experience playing STs. 763 games on FT avg stake $189 with 4% ROI.312 games on Merge avg stake $244 with 6% ROI.Obviously pretty LOL-sample sizes for ST's, but I really just started getting into playing them about a month before Black Friday. I play entirely on Lock Poker now and get decent ST action their at the $250 level, so I am still active in them. I have worked hard on improving my <25bb play over the past 6 months. Even before starting ST's (I didnt play on FT at all until March approx), I had been working on my <25 play very hard for a few months...watching Mers vids, did a coaching session or 2 with Mers, lots of equity calcs, working with 3bet shove FE program, etc. Mers is a much better ST player than me, but I think I have absorbed a lot of the information he has put out there very quickly and have a very solid understanding of <25 play. I also talked a lot of <25 strategy with Primo during our month-long bootcamp in May in Austin. You won't find me posting any revolutionary Mers-like ST strategy in this forum, but I definitely believe I can answer the vast majority of questions you have to throw at me.I am very confident that if I was able to play on FT that I would be a solid winner at the 350/500 STs. Bold statement having no results, I know, but I am confident in my understanding of <25 play.
Ty for the long post Hokie...This thought is greatAt first, I complained like everyone else does, blamed variance...the usual. Things continued to get worse and worse though and eventually I just made the decision that, if I'm going to run this bad, I'm going to at least work my hardest to improve as much as possible to increase my ROI and learn to deal with this kind of stretch better mentally. I just beat fish and avoided playing most regs at all costs.Mainly, I'm playing on ps.it , on that site a strange situation is happening... there are I believe 6 Stars Online Team members who got a great deal... (at least 100% rb, yep at least, one of them got something like 130% till SNE) and we are paying 8% rake on every hu. In order to BE we nee to win 54%, that's a huge % winrate. I think I got an edge on them but I don't know if it justify sitting they... I'm risking too much and they are risking none... Also there is no chance, I repeat, no chance to get respected by them, you know they are printing money with that deal...What is your advice? Study them till death or just avoid them?
Mainly, I'm playing on ps.it , on that site a strange situation is happening... there are I believe 6 Stars Online Team members who got a great deal... (at least 100% rb, yep at least, one of them got something like 130% till SNE) and we are paying 8% rake on every hu. In order to BE we nee to win 54%, that's a huge % winrate. I think I got an edge on them but I don't know if it justify sitting they... I'm risking too much and they are risking none... Also there is no chance, I repeat, no chance to get respected by them, you know they are printing money with that deal...What is your advice? Study them till death or just avoid them?That is a tough situation. It would probably be tough for Mers and I to beat 8% rake vs a decent amount of thinking players. I'm interested to see what Mers says, but I think you're probably right. It is unlikely they will back down from you due to their rakeback deals, and very difficult for you to ever beat rake vs them. What is your rakeback on .it? I mean if you're getting 50%ish rakeback, and you think you have 52%ish winrate vs these guys...that might make it closer.
Hi Hokie, and cool to have you onboard !Where do you see the poker world in 2-3 years from now ? Will games at $200+ still be beatable ? Do you think there'll be any significant turbo speed action at higher stakes or will everyone be playing superturbos ?I'm currently a good $100 reg and was about ready to move up to $200 when Stars introduced the Hypers at higher levels, now I'm playing some $60 ST's and am not sure what to do in the long term. My original plan was to move up to $200 and higher, but I'm afraid I could be a Dinosaur by not adapting to the new format if ST's are really the future.So even if I make less money at the moment, what do you think would be the best thing to do in the long run ?
Where do you see the poker world in 2-3 years from now ? Will games at $200+ still be beatable ? Do you think there'll be any significant turbo speed action at higher stakes or will everyone be playing superturbos ?I'm currently a good $100 reg and was about ready to move up to $200 when Stars introduced the Hypers at higher levels, now I'm playing some $60 ST's and am not sure what to do in the long term. My original plan was to move up to $200 and higher, but I'm afraid I could be a Dinosaur by not adapting to the new format if ST's are really the future.So even if I make less money at the moment, what do you think would be the best thing to do in the long run ?This question has been asked over and over again. It's very hard to answer. I think the article that Mers wrote about where he sees the games heading is spot on.The beauty of heads up poker, as opposed to an ICM-festival like 6-max, is that it is virtually unsolvable. There is no doubt the games will get harder, but the average player will also continue to improve at about the same rate. Some of the advice that Mers and I give you today, we will likely look back on in 2 years and laugh at. Like Mers has said, since STs were first implemented people have been saying that the games will die...we shouldnt make strategy videos on <25 play bc edges are too thin and it's too easy for a bad player to become unexploitable...blah blah blah. As is always the case in poker, the average ST player has drastically improved over the last 1.5 years, but guys are still showing insane results and the games dont see even close to dying in my view.1.5 years ago guys like Primo were a lot better than the "marginal regs" that everyone worried about improving so much...the thing is though that guys like Primo/Mers/Livb's knowledge of ST strategy has not been stagnant either...it's improved at a rapid rate and they are still very far ahead of the vast majority of other regs. Also, STs will always be a super-attractive form of poker for fish chasing their losses or just looking to gamble.I really can't see STs, or any form of heads up poker for that matter, dying at any point. The curve is always expanding, there is always room to improve...just keep working and stay ahead of the average player and you will be fine.And yes, I think it's very important to be willing to adapt with the ever-changing poker environment and learn a new game if that is where the money is at. I play a mix of STs, regspeeds, turbos...wherever I can get action.
Hi Hokie,From all I'm reading in the posts you've made so far, I'm getting very excited to learn all I can from you in having a good all-around approach towards the game.For a start, I'm very curious about what your daily/weekly routine looks like when you're grinding. What's a typical working day for you?Thx :)
Do you have any pointers concerning the stars lobby system i know for turbos it is different, but as never having played any serious kind of husngs on stars before, im facing alot of trouble with the only 2 lobbys for one reg, im usually one of the first to regwar, or sit whoever i dont recognise in lobby, but now when u see people like R-Q or dibasio, or whoever just, sit 2x 200 2x 300 2x 500 and 2x 1000 that basically means 0 roi or wait untill he ends his session, and is annoying me superbadly, on top of thatif u sit some people who consider themselves lobby kings a few times, then they will sit you as well, and with the quite big regpool of ok to great regs at the 200-500$ ST level atm, (im not sure if u are aware, but lets face it, i can at least name 10 guys who i dont think i have any kind of edge on in longrun, and who im also not gonna push out of lobbys in long run and vice versa) But you should know, if u piss one of the (even slightly ok regs) like someone who is good in turbos, (2% roi at 300s+) and who has SNE, is not gonna stop sitting u in STs ever pretty much if u piss him off, while u might have (or think to have) an edge on him in STs.It just seems so hugely -EV to even put serious time in playing STs on stars right now. so many regs online, so often, and only 2 lobbies out there (while one person can sit both simultaneously)then again, u most likely best not sit that person because xxx (ill get back to the because later)now then, when u finally get some lobbys going if u have 1-2-3 regs pissed off because of you sitting em earlier to clear the lobbys a bit and getting a shot to play some fish as well u will most likely get spitesat by the regs from the xxx part earlier so basically to me, it seems near paradoxal and the more u fight over lobbys, the less lobbies ull actually get. How do you, as having alot of stars experience view this situation and think is the best way to navigate this interesting social dynamic? i hope im clear with explaining how st lobbies work on stars etc, because if im frank, im superblazed right now, but just figured lik ei should post some cuzz i havent in ages ;)
I have heard rumours that you live a balanced life.What's your sleeping pattern, do you put your alarm at the exact time every morning and get up immediately when it rings?Do you have some kind of morning ritual where you prepare yourself for the day?How many hours do you on average put on study // playing?When you study, what exactly are you studying can you give me an example of how that process looks like? HH review, talking to other players, watching poker vids, calculating stuff with pokerstove and such?Strong mental game you say, how did you achive that and what did your mental coach teach you more specifically?Do you keep some kind of schedule or do you just do what you feel like in a given day?How do you look at the future, do you think you are gonna play poker within 5 years or are you just gonna enjoy the lifestyle until you are forced to move on or just get bored?
1.Hokie can you post your sick downswing graph?Right now my bad run last for over one year... I'm continue to be sad and that's why I asked Jared an help... Just curious about yours, maybe looking at it will make me feel better ;) 2. In your 21th vid min 22 you talked about raising too see where we are at. You said we should raise only for that reason, because we usually play our hands for value or as a bluff and rarely for other reasons...Can you elaborate a bit on this and tell me what are the othre reasons?
Sorry for the lack of updates past few days. In Rome w my girl been doing some travelling/sightseeing type stuff. Back to work now though.@JackTheShipperRead this carefully... many of the regs you are worried about don't want a war just as much as you. Some are probably more fearful than even you are of them. They might put up a fight for a while, but I promise you if you play well and give them a hard time many will back down. If you play your best and you find that none of these guys are backing down from you, it's likely that you just aren't doing that well vs them. I do have a lot of experience 'fighting for lobbies' and with 'regwars' and my view is basically: Almost everyone is afraid. The reality of the current poker environment is that if you want to control lobbies when you are on at 200+, you almost certainly will have to go through a period where you fight for lobbies. Just accept that...play a bunch of games where you maybe don't even beat rake. It will make you a better player if you approach it in a positive way, people absolutely will fear you eventually(like i said, very few of these guys really want to play hundreds of games), and you will get a very clear assessment of where your game is at vs thinking players and where your mental game is at dealing with stressful situations. If things go poorly, move down and try again later (I did that a bunch between the 220-550 levels). You just can't worry too much about short term profits at 200+ if you are trying to establish yourself at 200+ these days. The point of establishing yourself at 200+ is obviously bc you want to maximize your long term profitability. Your long term profitability is then maximized by fighting for lobbies, scaring bitches off, and getting lobbies most of the time when you want (sharing with some people, and avoiding a select few of course...even mers and i still would do that -- livb types).If you want to just print money easily in the short term, stick to <200 stakes or just play 200+ when noone is on. I do feel for you guys who haven't worked your way up past 200 level and earned the respect from a lot of the tough players...it's absolutely not easy, but I truly believe that if you deal with this in the way that I am suggesting it will make you an infinitely better player long term both strategically and mentally.Just sit these guys, dont talk shit EVER, just accept and play your best and give them a hard time...keep putting up a fight. Eventually enough of them will start backing down that you can get lobbies a good amount.
@ Champaz:I believe that my life balance is one of my biggest strengths. Health and fitness, sleep, grinding schedule, prioritizing your life, etc. I could write about this forever. I am going to write a more in depth article/blog post in the forum in the next few days about this.
Uploaded with ImageShack.us@ Server: That is my 200-550 graph for about 12 months prior to Black Friday. I was staked at 1k+ the vast majority of the time also, but thats not reflected on that graph. My average buyin is about $295, so about 210ish buyins below ev at the end of the graph. Was a really, really difficult experience, but adversity is a hell of a teacher and it made me a much stronger person and poker player. Be careful not to refer to your downswings in terms of length of time (i.e. a year, or 3 months, etc). This is one of the biggest lessons I learned during my downswing, and pretty much the only reason my volume has improved since. At the beginning of that graph, 3 months for me was about 450 games a month. While a player like Primo could maybe play 1800 games in a month. OUR MONTHS ARE NOT EQUAL...but most poker players still use the month point as a benchmark to define their success in that 30ish day period, rather than just total volume. There is just so much variance in a few thousand game sample sizes. Players like Primo and Mers reached the longrun way faster than me, and I had to experience what seemed like neverending variance....but in reality, if my volume didn't suck, I would have gotten out of it a ton faster. I do think my downswing is pretty damn epic, and I seriously doubt Mers or Primo ever ran that many average buyins below ev in a 75bb structure, but it's just not really the point. If they did, they would have gotten out of it 4-5x faster than me. When I realized that, it really was an "aha" moment of my career, and I worked really hard to improve my volume (I'd like to do an article on improving volume soon as well).Times can get tough in poker, it's the nature of the game. Just be careful to keep a close eye on yourself, and avoid being the victim of variance. Variance is the reason we are able to make money in poker.Pressure exposes weakness, it doesn't create it. I had volume, confidence, risk-taking/complacency, and work ethic issues long before this downswing. The pressure of the situation finally exposed them and forced me to deal with them.
ty for the graph...regarding what you saidBe careful not to refer to your downswings in terms of length of time You are def right, my bad run last for over a year, because.... I didn't put enough volume ;(
Omg, looking at this graph and realizing that it took both of you an entire year to get out of it makes me really afraid and worried.Pressure exposes weakness, it doesn't create it. Well, I'm currently under this extreme pressure that I basically have to learn SuperTurbos by the end of July and then make some decent money in them in August. And the next 7 (well, 3 actually) weeks basically decide how much future will look like. Whether I can make a living by playing poker or take that job which will almost certainly leave me close to zero time for grinding, at least not in the next ~6 months or so.And me transitioning into ST's while also facing a downswing has really thrown me back a lot.So this entire situation is causing a lot of pressure to me.And I also can't talk to my family or close friends about the poker situation - which creates a life imbalance.I also know that ideally, I should only focus on long-term profits and not worry too much about short-term results, but it's just so damn hard when basically my entire future depends on how much money I can make playing poker within the next couple of weeks. However, I think my transitioning into ST's was already a good step forward towards higher long-term profit instead of whining about how these destroyed the games, all fish are gone, etc.Ryan actually called me a Dinosaur because of that a couple of months ago ;-)So I think I made the right choice by learning these. But it's still so damn hard to just forget about short-term results and play a game where I most likely only have a very small edge.Any advise on how to deal with this ?I already bought that new book from Jared and started to closely study it and I'm also thinking about booking a few sessions with him if that really helps improve my mental game.
That is a tough situation, Jack. I've thought about it a decent bit, and I'm just not comfortable giving you specific advice on such a big decision in your life. It's something you have to decide for yourself.One thing I have learned in my 28 years on this earth: Most everything in life is a choice. You don't HAVE to take a job, be in an unhealthy relationship, be out of shape, or even play poker for a living bc it seems cool etc etc. I just encourage you to aggressively pursue whatever it is that makes you happy. If that is financial stability and a structured, low-risk lifestyle that you will get through a normal job...that's great. If you want more creative freedom to make your life exactly how you want it (more risk involved here), then I'd encourage you to pursue poker. I really doubt that if you take this job, you can't ever play poker again and vice versa.Sustaining a career as a professional poker player is really difficult, and I think most "pros" are tremendously awful at it and very few have anything substantial to show from their efforts (lots of money, happiness, healthy lifestyle, etc). Being a pro is not just about making money. Along with the skill necessary to beat the games, a pro needs: to know how to manage his money responsibly, work ethic, sustainable confidence during difficult times, self-discipline, a balanced life, clearly defined priorities (if you are just playing for the money, thats probably the wrong reason).I'm not trying to discourage you at all. I think it's just really important that you take an honest assessment of yourself and see if you even come close to fitting that description. And if you don't, do you have the desire to change yourself enough to meet those required needs. I really believe that the majority of the most long-term successful players (aside from MTT luckboxes) have some pretty similar characteristics.
Hey Hokie, can you look up to comment 14? I think you missed it. Or else you just hate me and are ignoring me :(I just want to get a glimpse of what a healthy, balanced work ethic looks like in your case.Cheers.
Nico, I do not hate you :). I mentioned a few posts down from #14 that I am going to write an article/blog post on suggestions for weekly schedule, avoiding burnout, life balance, etc. It's a topic I could write about for days. I also think it's incredibly important, and a post in this thread wouldn't do that justice.Going to spend some time on that in the next few days!
Hey Hokie,was just kidding obv :)Really excited about that article, cause this last month has been pretty tough and I could use some inspiration. Bring it on!
Hey Nico. I actually wrote the rough draft for it today. I think you will like it :). Will have it up tomorrow or the next day 100%. I think it will help you.
I really hope you are gonna take the place of Mers... Obv I really like Mers, and I don't want to lose him, but we know he's gonna leave... so I hope you are really interested in continue this ;)
I am definitely intersted. I'm really glad to hear you are enjoying the advice I have given so far.I've been in Rome since the beginning of the month, so I've been completely out of my normal routine. Actually, I haven't been in my hometown Richmond, VA for more than 5 days in a row since mid-April.Ran Austin camp late April-May 24, then at beach outside Altantic City with my family, then a week in Rome to visit girlfriend, then Mexico for 2 weeks, then I moved to Rome early July to live with girlfriend. IT'S BEEN A CRAZY FEW MONTHS SINCE BLACK FRIDAY FOR HOKIEGREG! hahah. Girlfriend was planning on being here til December, but she is hating her job so we are heading back to Richmond on Saturday. Thank God! Can not wait to be back in my comfort zone, having a routine, some predictability for once. I've been living in resorts and hotels and beachhouses for months...it's a sick life, but I miss a less hectic/unpredictable lifestyle. Also, in the midst of all that travelling, I got a Lock Pro Elite deal, started hourly coaching again, and have started work with this forum. Crazy, crazy times.Just really excited to get home, play a lot of poker, post on here a lot, work out, and not eat pizza/pasta/croissants every day, lol.Kind of rambling, but that's what I've been up to since BF :)
I've been in Rome since the beginning of the monthgood, if for some strange reasons you are going to visit Genoa, let me know, me and RoccoGe (a Primo's friend, maybe you also know him, idk) we'll glad to meet you
i requested u as a friend on skype about a week ago & u havent accepted so i just assumed u hated me. i def wasnt being serious though....looking forward to meeting u in oct & possibly learning some things from u if u continue the program
Thanks a lot for doing this thread. A question about improving. One of the challenges that I (and I'm sure many others) face is that I have a limited amount of time to devote to poker as a result of other obligations (for me, my job is the largest consumer of my time). Assuming your goal is to improve as much as possible, how would you allocate your time spent on poker between playing, watching videos, reviewing hand histories, etc.? Thanks a lot for your thoughts.
@JeffDiezelIt comes down to what you want out of poker long term. Do you just want to improve a little, move up a level or 2, and make some cash that gets you by a little easier in the short term? Or do you want to really dedicate yourself to the game and give yourself the best possible chance of making a career out of it long term (if not a career, just maximizing your potential...making a lot)? The higher your aspirations are in this game, the more I would encourage you to invest into studying/reviewing both with your money and your time.Answer that for me, and I'll go into it a little further :)Hokie
Thanks Hokie. That's an easy one - my goal is to dedicate myself to improving my game as much as possible to maximize my potential. It would be great to make money and move up levels, but those are things I would definitely sacrifice for however long it took to improve my skills and give me the best long term outlook. Looking forward to your additional thoughts :)
@JeffThat's great man. " It would be great to make money and move up levels, but those are things I would definitely sacrifice for however long it took to improve my skills and give me the best long term outlook."This is a leak for so many people. Trying to sprint to results. Congrats on seeing this clearly early on in your husng career. It took me a long time :)I'm going to have an article coming out in the next few days that talks about scheduling your work -- allotting time for studying, grinding hard, taking breaks...just being really efficient but still being able to maintain a healthy life as a poker player.Basically, first you have to decide that you want to maximize your potential in the game (you want that), so that means you aer going to have to allot a good amount of studying. Then you need to figure out how to schedule studying and your volume goals into your life (still making time for other important things like: your job, family, friends, exercise, whatever else is important to you). That's a personal decision because everyone values things differently. Will try to complete article asap. I think it will help a lot.
"I'm going to have an article coming out in the next few days that talks about scheduling your work -- allotting time for studying, grinding hard, taking breaks" Awesome, looks like you have alot of good stuff coming out..One more thing, you said in our session that I should put in 1-2 tables more so I can reduce the time I'm playing.But I find that really hard, tried it out in the past, but I cant stay focused on so many tables while I already 4-table.Whats your advise? Put in an extra table then and then till I get used to it?
You get coached by H2Olga right? You were a very solid winning reg before the coaching and now you are even better I think... so what benefits you get from Olga?
You get coached by H2Olga right? You were a very solid winning reg before the coaching and now you are even better I think... so what benefits you get from Olga?I was staked at 500+ on Stars for about 10 months prior to Black Friday by H2Olga. We had a coaching agreement as part of the stake, but only ended up doing maybe 3 or 4 hours total.I read a post Skates made on 2p2 about 1.5 years ago that said something like: "There are a lot of guys who are great professional poker players, but their aren't very many great poker players." (He was just referring to husng players) This statement was the "aha" moment of my career. Basically, I realized that I fell into the category that he was referring to that was great at making consistent money as a poker player, but I pretty much sucked when it come down to pure poker strategy. I just beat fish and avoided playing most regs at all costs.The lesson I learned from this quote didn't sink in for quite a while, but it definitely stuck with me in the back of my mind. I kept up my complacency at the 200/300 games for another 6 months or so, grinding out 10k month after 10k month. Then I ran into a nightmare stretch of variance. I had always made very consistent money with my high ROI, but the games had gotten harder over the past year or two and my roi had definitely dropped to 3-5% at 200/300s. I went on a 2000 game breakeven stretch where I ran about 75 buyins below EV...I just wasn't used to this.At first, I complained like everyone else does, blamed variance...the usual. Things continued to get worse and worse though and eventually I just made the decision that, if I'm going to run this bad, I'm going to at least work my hardest to improve as much as possible to increase my ROI and learn to deal with this kind of stretch better mentally. So I started the stake with H2Olga, challenged myself to move up to higher buyin levels even though I didn't expect myself to be a huge winner at them initially, got a BlueFire subscription (yes, cash videos are worthwhile if you think about them within husng parameters), bought a few sessions from mental coach Jared Tendler, got some H2Olga coaching, did weekly study/review sessions with some husng players, the list goes on... I was also overweight at this time, so I hired a personal trainer. Basically, the negative variance I experienced exposed so many of my weaknesses. Strategy weaknesses (the difference between my A and C game was enormous), I wasn't doing much to exploit regs, my mental game needed work. I decided to make a positive out of a very negative situation and attack weaknesses and just be on the offensive in all aspects of my life. Don't be the victim.Since then, I've improved a ton. I'm really tough vs regs now. I think about poker a lot better. My mental game is strong. I lost 45 pounds and feel great. Adversity is a great teacher. That stretch of variance continued for another 6 months or so and I eventually had run 220 avg buyins ($315) below EV over 6500 games. If I could have the 75k that I ran below EV back, at the cost of all the lessons I learned from that experience, I would decline it in a heartbeat. It was the most difficult period I've ever experienced in my life (I really questioned what I was doing for a living), but it made me a much stronger poker player and a more positive, confident person. This is extremely longwinded, but it's a story I think is important to share for you all to get to know me. My experience with H2Olga was positive, but he really only played a small (but important) role in my maturation as a poker player over the past 1.5 years.
At what stage would you recommend multitabling? A lot of your vids (especially lower stakes) are two tables. Personally i am hovering around the $15 and $30 games so i've got a long way to go in my game for sure, but i recognise that 2 tabling is a skill to be learned as much as any other, however generally people say "stick to 1 table when you're leaning".Would you recommend getting used to 2 tables early and even grinding with that, or is it better to single table up to $100s for example, then drop to $50s to adjust to 2tabling?
At what stage would you recommend multitabling? A lot of your vids (especially lower stakes) are two tables. Personally i am hovering around the $15 and $30 games so i've got a long way to go in my game for sure, but i recognise that 2 tabling is a skill to be learned as much as any other, however generally people say "stick to 1 table when you're leaning".Would you recommend getting used to 2 tables early and even grinding with that, or is it better to single table up to $100s for example, then drop to $50s to adjust to 2tabling?Good question. This is a huge, huge leak for so many people. Like many other results-based aspects of poker, it really depends what your long term goals in poker are. If your goal is to make it the 55 or 110 level and just make some decent cash while you're in school or something, and you have no long term plans to make poker a real career, then I would suggest learning to 2 table earlier on (at the 33s or 55s) and begin maximizing your profit expectation sooner. If you want to make poker a career, become the best poker player you can be, and build a skill-set that can allow you to play high stakes in the toughest times online poker has seen (i.e. the games are sick hard at 200+ compared to a year or 2 ago obv), then I would suggest 1 tabling until you have established yourself close to the high stakes levels that you are aiming for.1 tabling allows you more time to focus on decisions and adapting to your opponents. 2+ tabling is just about maximizing hourly rate. The problem with the average multitabler at the 55-330 levels in husngs over the past 2 years has been that they are only focusing on maximizing their short-term hourly rate. They do not realize what their auto-pilot style and lack of improvement/focus is doing to their long term profitability in the game. The guys that are 1-2 tabling, watching videos and learning to implement cutting edge strategy might not be as profitable as them yet, but eventually the average player will improve and their winrate will begin to suffer.Their are certainly some exceptions to this...it's not like it's impossible to dramatically improve your game while multitabling, I just believe that the success stories for this approach are pretty rare (Primo, Ricestud, Skates...who else?). I cut back on tables over the past year and I've seen the most rapid growth strategically in my career (pretty amazing since I was crushing 220/330 for 2 years prior). Livb, IceVenom, H2olga, Spamzor, Whasssuppp...all these guys spent huge amounts of their careers 1 tabling.So, again, what are your long term goals in the game? I think that's the key to answering this question.
Also, I plan on writing an article on improving skills such as multitabling, playing longer sessions, avoiding burnout, playing more hours per week. These are all skills that require gradual improvement, and I think a lot of players miss out on that and just try to "suck it up and focus more"...it's not that easy :)
How much experience do you have with STs and what are your results like?
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How much experience do you have with STs and what are your results like? I don't have a ton of experience playing STs. 763 games on FT avg stake $189 with 4% ROI.312 games on Merge avg stake $244 with 6% ROI.Obviously pretty LOL-sample sizes for ST's, but I really just started getting into playing them about a month before Black Friday. I play entirely on Lock Poker now and get decent ST action their at the $250 level, so I am still active in them. I have worked hard on improving my <25bb play over the past 6 months. Even before starting ST's (I didnt play on FT at all until March approx), I had been working on my <25 play very hard for a few months...watching Mers vids, did a coaching session or 2 with Mers, lots of equity calcs, working with 3bet shove FE program, etc. Mers is a much better ST player than me, but I think I have absorbed a lot of the information he has put out there very quickly and have a very solid understanding of <25 play. I also talked a lot of <25 strategy with Primo during our month-long bootcamp in May in Austin. You won't find me posting any revolutionary Mers-like ST strategy in this forum, but I definitely believe I can answer the vast majority of questions you have to throw at me.I am very confident that if I was able to play on FT that I would be a solid winner at the 350/500 STs. Bold statement having no results, I know, but I am confident in my understanding of <25 play.
Ty for the long post Hokie...This thought is greatAt first, I complained like everyone else does, blamed variance...the usual. Things continued to get worse and worse though and eventually I just made the decision that, if I'm going to run this bad, I'm going to at least work my hardest to improve as much as possible to increase my ROI and learn to deal with this kind of stretch better mentally. I just beat fish and avoided playing most regs at all costs.Mainly, I'm playing on ps.it , on that site a strange situation is happening... there are I believe 6 Stars Online Team members who got a great deal... (at least 100% rb, yep at least, one of them got something like 130% till SNE) and we are paying 8% rake on every hu. In order to BE we nee to win 54%, that's a huge % winrate. I think I got an edge on them but I don't know if it justify sitting they... I'm risking too much and they are risking none... Also there is no chance, I repeat, no chance to get respected by them, you know they are printing money with that deal...What is your advice? Study them till death or just avoid them?
+1 to bacon's question, what's your ST experience?Loved the long post, gratz on life growth.
Mainly, I'm playing on ps.it , on that site a strange situation is happening... there are I believe 6 Stars Online Team members who got a great deal... (at least 100% rb, yep at least, one of them got something like 130% till SNE) and we are paying 8% rake on every hu. In order to BE we nee to win 54%, that's a huge % winrate. I think I got an edge on them but I don't know if it justify sitting they... I'm risking too much and they are risking none... Also there is no chance, I repeat, no chance to get respected by them, you know they are printing money with that deal...What is your advice? Study them till death or just avoid them?That is a tough situation. It would probably be tough for Mers and I to beat 8% rake vs a decent amount of thinking players. I'm interested to see what Mers says, but I think you're probably right. It is unlikely they will back down from you due to their rakeback deals, and very difficult for you to ever beat rake vs them. What is your rakeback on .it? I mean if you're getting 50%ish rakeback, and you think you have 52%ish winrate vs these guys...that might make it closer.
Right now I got 40ish, at the end, when I will reach SNE I will get 57,2... 57,2 from supernova to sne.
I would just avoid at that rake, definitely not an ideal situation.
Hi Hokie, and cool to have you onboard !Where do you see the poker world in 2-3 years from now ? Will games at $200+ still be beatable ? Do you think there'll be any significant turbo speed action at higher stakes or will everyone be playing superturbos ?I'm currently a good $100 reg and was about ready to move up to $200 when Stars introduced the Hypers at higher levels, now I'm playing some $60 ST's and am not sure what to do in the long term. My original plan was to move up to $200 and higher, but I'm afraid I could be a Dinosaur by not adapting to the new format if ST's are really the future.So even if I make less money at the moment, what do you think would be the best thing to do in the long run ?
Where do you see the poker world in 2-3 years from now ? Will games at $200+ still be beatable ? Do you think there'll be any significant turbo speed action at higher stakes or will everyone be playing superturbos ?I'm currently a good $100 reg and was about ready to move up to $200 when Stars introduced the Hypers at higher levels, now I'm playing some $60 ST's and am not sure what to do in the long term. My original plan was to move up to $200 and higher, but I'm afraid I could be a Dinosaur by not adapting to the new format if ST's are really the future.So even if I make less money at the moment, what do you think would be the best thing to do in the long run ?This question has been asked over and over again. It's very hard to answer. I think the article that Mers wrote about where he sees the games heading is spot on.The beauty of heads up poker, as opposed to an ICM-festival like 6-max, is that it is virtually unsolvable. There is no doubt the games will get harder, but the average player will also continue to improve at about the same rate. Some of the advice that Mers and I give you today, we will likely look back on in 2 years and laugh at. Like Mers has said, since STs were first implemented people have been saying that the games will die...we shouldnt make strategy videos on <25 play bc edges are too thin and it's too easy for a bad player to become unexploitable...blah blah blah. As is always the case in poker, the average ST player has drastically improved over the last 1.5 years, but guys are still showing insane results and the games dont see even close to dying in my view.1.5 years ago guys like Primo were a lot better than the "marginal regs" that everyone worried about improving so much...the thing is though that guys like Primo/Mers/Livb's knowledge of ST strategy has not been stagnant either...it's improved at a rapid rate and they are still very far ahead of the vast majority of other regs. Also, STs will always be a super-attractive form of poker for fish chasing their losses or just looking to gamble.I really can't see STs, or any form of heads up poker for that matter, dying at any point. The curve is always expanding, there is always room to improve...just keep working and stay ahead of the average player and you will be fine.And yes, I think it's very important to be willing to adapt with the ever-changing poker environment and learn a new game if that is where the money is at. I play a mix of STs, regspeeds, turbos...wherever I can get action.
Hi Hokie,From all I'm reading in the posts you've made so far, I'm getting very excited to learn all I can from you in having a good all-around approach towards the game.For a start, I'm very curious about what your daily/weekly routine looks like when you're grinding. What's a typical working day for you?Thx :)
"Some of the advice that Mers and I give you today, we will likely look back on in 2 years and laugh at. "This is undoubtedly true.
Do you have any pointers concerning the stars lobby system i know for turbos it is different, but as never having played any serious kind of husngs on stars before, im facing alot of trouble with the only 2 lobbys for one reg, im usually one of the first to regwar, or sit whoever i dont recognise in lobby, but now when u see people like R-Q or dibasio, or whoever just, sit 2x 200 2x 300 2x 500 and 2x 1000 that basically means 0 roi or wait untill he ends his session, and is annoying me superbadly, on top of thatif u sit some people who consider themselves lobby kings a few times, then they will sit you as well, and with the quite big regpool of ok to great regs at the 200-500$ ST level atm, (im not sure if u are aware, but lets face it, i can at least name 10 guys who i dont think i have any kind of edge on in longrun, and who im also not gonna push out of lobbys in long run and vice versa) But you should know, if u piss one of the (even slightly ok regs) like someone who is good in turbos, (2% roi at 300s+) and who has SNE, is not gonna stop sitting u in STs ever pretty much if u piss him off, while u might have (or think to have) an edge on him in STs.It just seems so hugely -EV to even put serious time in playing STs on stars right now. so many regs online, so often, and only 2 lobbies out there (while one person can sit both simultaneously)then again, u most likely best not sit that person because xxx (ill get back to the because later)now then, when u finally get some lobbys going if u have 1-2-3 regs pissed off because of you sitting em earlier to clear the lobbys a bit and getting a shot to play some fish as well u will most likely get spitesat by the regs from the xxx part earlier so basically to me, it seems near paradoxal and the more u fight over lobbys, the less lobbies ull actually get. How do you, as having alot of stars experience view this situation and think is the best way to navigate this interesting social dynamic? i hope im clear with explaining how st lobbies work on stars etc, because if im frank, im superblazed right now, but just figured lik ei should post some cuzz i havent in ages ;)
I have heard rumours that you live a balanced life.What's your sleeping pattern, do you put your alarm at the exact time every morning and get up immediately when it rings?Do you have some kind of morning ritual where you prepare yourself for the day?How many hours do you on average put on study // playing?When you study, what exactly are you studying can you give me an example of how that process looks like? HH review, talking to other players, watching poker vids, calculating stuff with pokerstove and such?Strong mental game you say, how did you achive that and what did your mental coach teach you more specifically?Do you keep some kind of schedule or do you just do what you feel like in a given day?How do you look at the future, do you think you are gonna play poker within 5 years or are you just gonna enjoy the lifestyle until you are forced to move on or just get bored?
1.Hokie can you post your sick downswing graph?Right now my bad run last for over one year... I'm continue to be sad and that's why I asked Jared an help... Just curious about yours, maybe looking at it will make me feel better ;) 2. In your 21th vid min 22 you talked about raising too see where we are at. You said we should raise only for that reason, because we usually play our hands for value or as a bluff and rarely for other reasons...Can you elaborate a bit on this and tell me what are the othre reasons?
Sorry for the lack of updates past few days. In Rome w my girl been doing some travelling/sightseeing type stuff. Back to work now though.@JackTheShipperRead this carefully... many of the regs you are worried about don't want a war just as much as you. Some are probably more fearful than even you are of them. They might put up a fight for a while, but I promise you if you play well and give them a hard time many will back down. If you play your best and you find that none of these guys are backing down from you, it's likely that you just aren't doing that well vs them. I do have a lot of experience 'fighting for lobbies' and with 'regwars' and my view is basically: Almost everyone is afraid. The reality of the current poker environment is that if you want to control lobbies when you are on at 200+, you almost certainly will have to go through a period where you fight for lobbies. Just accept that...play a bunch of games where you maybe don't even beat rake. It will make you a better player if you approach it in a positive way, people absolutely will fear you eventually(like i said, very few of these guys really want to play hundreds of games), and you will get a very clear assessment of where your game is at vs thinking players and where your mental game is at dealing with stressful situations. If things go poorly, move down and try again later (I did that a bunch between the 220-550 levels). You just can't worry too much about short term profits at 200+ if you are trying to establish yourself at 200+ these days. The point of establishing yourself at 200+ is obviously bc you want to maximize your long term profitability. Your long term profitability is then maximized by fighting for lobbies, scaring bitches off, and getting lobbies most of the time when you want (sharing with some people, and avoiding a select few of course...even mers and i still would do that -- livb types).If you want to just print money easily in the short term, stick to <200 stakes or just play 200+ when noone is on. I do feel for you guys who haven't worked your way up past 200 level and earned the respect from a lot of the tough players...it's absolutely not easy, but I truly believe that if you deal with this in the way that I am suggesting it will make you an infinitely better player long term both strategically and mentally.Just sit these guys, dont talk shit EVER, just accept and play your best and give them a hard time...keep putting up a fight. Eventually enough of them will start backing down that you can get lobbies a good amount.
@ Champaz:I believe that my life balance is one of my biggest strengths. Health and fitness, sleep, grinding schedule, prioritizing your life, etc. I could write about this forever. I am going to write a more in depth article/blog post in the forum in the next few days about this.
Uploaded with ImageShack.us@ Server: That is my 200-550 graph for about 12 months prior to Black Friday. I was staked at 1k+ the vast majority of the time also, but thats not reflected on that graph. My average buyin is about $295, so about 210ish buyins below ev at the end of the graph. Was a really, really difficult experience, but adversity is a hell of a teacher and it made me a much stronger person and poker player. Be careful not to refer to your downswings in terms of length of time (i.e. a year, or 3 months, etc). This is one of the biggest lessons I learned during my downswing, and pretty much the only reason my volume has improved since. At the beginning of that graph, 3 months for me was about 450 games a month. While a player like Primo could maybe play 1800 games in a month. OUR MONTHS ARE NOT EQUAL...but most poker players still use the month point as a benchmark to define their success in that 30ish day period, rather than just total volume. There is just so much variance in a few thousand game sample sizes. Players like Primo and Mers reached the longrun way faster than me, and I had to experience what seemed like neverending variance....but in reality, if my volume didn't suck, I would have gotten out of it a ton faster. I do think my downswing is pretty damn epic, and I seriously doubt Mers or Primo ever ran that many average buyins below ev in a 75bb structure, but it's just not really the point. If they did, they would have gotten out of it 4-5x faster than me. When I realized that, it really was an "aha" moment of my career, and I worked really hard to improve my volume (I'd like to do an article on improving volume soon as well).Times can get tough in poker, it's the nature of the game. Just be careful to keep a close eye on yourself, and avoid being the victim of variance. Variance is the reason we are able to make money in poker.Pressure exposes weakness, it doesn't create it. I had volume, confidence, risk-taking/complacency, and work ethic issues long before this downswing. The pressure of the situation finally exposed them and forced me to deal with them.
ty for the graph...regarding what you saidBe careful not to refer to your downswings in terms of length of time You are def right, my bad run last for over a year, because.... I didn't put enough volume ;(
Omg, looking at this graph and realizing that it took both of you an entire year to get out of it makes me really afraid and worried.Pressure exposes weakness, it doesn't create it. Well, I'm currently under this extreme pressure that I basically have to learn SuperTurbos by the end of July and then make some decent money in them in August. And the next 7 (well, 3 actually) weeks basically decide how much future will look like. Whether I can make a living by playing poker or take that job which will almost certainly leave me close to zero time for grinding, at least not in the next ~6 months or so.And me transitioning into ST's while also facing a downswing has really thrown me back a lot.So this entire situation is causing a lot of pressure to me.And I also can't talk to my family or close friends about the poker situation - which creates a life imbalance.I also know that ideally, I should only focus on long-term profits and not worry too much about short-term results, but it's just so damn hard when basically my entire future depends on how much money I can make playing poker within the next couple of weeks. However, I think my transitioning into ST's was already a good step forward towards higher long-term profit instead of whining about how these destroyed the games, all fish are gone, etc.Ryan actually called me a Dinosaur because of that a couple of months ago ;-)So I think I made the right choice by learning these. But it's still so damn hard to just forget about short-term results and play a game where I most likely only have a very small edge.Any advise on how to deal with this ?I already bought that new book from Jared and started to closely study it and I'm also thinking about booking a few sessions with him if that really helps improve my mental game.
That is a tough situation, Jack. I've thought about it a decent bit, and I'm just not comfortable giving you specific advice on such a big decision in your life. It's something you have to decide for yourself.One thing I have learned in my 28 years on this earth: Most everything in life is a choice. You don't HAVE to take a job, be in an unhealthy relationship, be out of shape, or even play poker for a living bc it seems cool etc etc. I just encourage you to aggressively pursue whatever it is that makes you happy. If that is financial stability and a structured, low-risk lifestyle that you will get through a normal job...that's great. If you want more creative freedom to make your life exactly how you want it (more risk involved here), then I'd encourage you to pursue poker. I really doubt that if you take this job, you can't ever play poker again and vice versa.Sustaining a career as a professional poker player is really difficult, and I think most "pros" are tremendously awful at it and very few have anything substantial to show from their efforts (lots of money, happiness, healthy lifestyle, etc). Being a pro is not just about making money. Along with the skill necessary to beat the games, a pro needs: to know how to manage his money responsibly, work ethic, sustainable confidence during difficult times, self-discipline, a balanced life, clearly defined priorities (if you are just playing for the money, thats probably the wrong reason).I'm not trying to discourage you at all. I think it's just really important that you take an honest assessment of yourself and see if you even come close to fitting that description. And if you don't, do you have the desire to change yourself enough to meet those required needs. I really believe that the majority of the most long-term successful players (aside from MTT luckboxes) have some pretty similar characteristics.
Hey Hokie, can you look up to comment 14? I think you missed it. Or else you just hate me and are ignoring me :(I just want to get a glimpse of what a healthy, balanced work ethic looks like in your case.Cheers.
Nico, I do not hate you :). I mentioned a few posts down from #14 that I am going to write an article/blog post on suggestions for weekly schedule, avoiding burnout, life balance, etc. It's a topic I could write about for days. I also think it's incredibly important, and a post in this thread wouldn't do that justice.Going to spend some time on that in the next few days!
Keep the questions coming guys!
Just saw that you made two new videos - so excited to watch them :-)
Hey Hokie,was just kidding obv :)Really excited about that article, cause this last month has been pretty tough and I could use some inspiration. Bring it on!
Hey Nico. I actually wrote the rough draft for it today. I think you will like it :). Will have it up tomorrow or the next day 100%. I think it will help you.
I really hope you are gonna take the place of Mers... Obv I really like Mers, and I don't want to lose him, but we know he's gonna leave... so I hope you are really interested in continue this ;)
I am definitely intersted. I'm really glad to hear you are enjoying the advice I have given so far.I've been in Rome since the beginning of the month, so I've been completely out of my normal routine. Actually, I haven't been in my hometown Richmond, VA for more than 5 days in a row since mid-April.Ran Austin camp late April-May 24, then at beach outside Altantic City with my family, then a week in Rome to visit girlfriend, then Mexico for 2 weeks, then I moved to Rome early July to live with girlfriend. IT'S BEEN A CRAZY FEW MONTHS SINCE BLACK FRIDAY FOR HOKIEGREG! hahah. Girlfriend was planning on being here til December, but she is hating her job so we are heading back to Richmond on Saturday. Thank God! Can not wait to be back in my comfort zone, having a routine, some predictability for once. I've been living in resorts and hotels and beachhouses for months...it's a sick life, but I miss a less hectic/unpredictable lifestyle. Also, in the midst of all that travelling, I got a Lock Pro Elite deal, started hourly coaching again, and have started work with this forum. Crazy, crazy times.Just really excited to get home, play a lot of poker, post on here a lot, work out, and not eat pizza/pasta/croissants every day, lol.Kind of rambling, but that's what I've been up to since BF :)
I've been in Rome since the beginning of the monthgood, if for some strange reasons you are going to visit Genoa, let me know, me and RoccoGe (a Primo's friend, maybe you also know him, idk) we'll glad to meet you
why do u hate me?
I do not hate you. Why do you think I hate you!?!?
i requested u as a friend on skype about a week ago & u havent accepted so i just assumed u hated me. i def wasnt being serious though....looking forward to meeting u in oct & possibly learning some things from u if u continue the program
Thanks a lot for doing this thread. A question about improving. One of the challenges that I (and I'm sure many others) face is that I have a limited amount of time to devote to poker as a result of other obligations (for me, my job is the largest consumer of my time). Assuming your goal is to improve as much as possible, how would you allocate your time spent on poker between playing, watching videos, reviewing hand histories, etc.? Thanks a lot for your thoughts.
@JeffDiezelIt comes down to what you want out of poker long term. Do you just want to improve a little, move up a level or 2, and make some cash that gets you by a little easier in the short term? Or do you want to really dedicate yourself to the game and give yourself the best possible chance of making a career out of it long term (if not a career, just maximizing your potential...making a lot)? The higher your aspirations are in this game, the more I would encourage you to invest into studying/reviewing both with your money and your time.Answer that for me, and I'll go into it a little further :)Hokie
Thanks Hokie. That's an easy one - my goal is to dedicate myself to improving my game as much as possible to maximize my potential. It would be great to make money and move up levels, but those are things I would definitely sacrifice for however long it took to improve my skills and give me the best long term outlook. Looking forward to your additional thoughts :)
@JeffThat's great man. " It would be great to make money and move up levels, but those are things I would definitely sacrifice for however long it took to improve my skills and give me the best long term outlook."This is a leak for so many people. Trying to sprint to results. Congrats on seeing this clearly early on in your husng career. It took me a long time :)I'm going to have an article coming out in the next few days that talks about scheduling your work -- allotting time for studying, grinding hard, taking breaks...just being really efficient but still being able to maintain a healthy life as a poker player.Basically, first you have to decide that you want to maximize your potential in the game (you want that), so that means you aer going to have to allot a good amount of studying. Then you need to figure out how to schedule studying and your volume goals into your life (still making time for other important things like: your job, family, friends, exercise, whatever else is important to you). That's a personal decision because everyone values things differently. Will try to complete article asap. I think it will help a lot.
"I'm going to have an article coming out in the next few days that talks about scheduling your work -- allotting time for studying, grinding hard, taking breaks" Awesome, looks like you have alot of good stuff coming out..One more thing, you said in our session that I should put in 1-2 tables more so I can reduce the time I'm playing.But I find that really hard, tried it out in the past, but I cant stay focused on so many tables while I already 4-table.Whats your advise? Put in an extra table then and then till I get used to it?
@mrbambocha:funny timing. read the article i just posted titled "improving non-strategy skills"