You’re starting out at 2NL and this is your full time job now!?!! I think my wife would leave me immediately. GL
Well, we have savings to last us quite a long time out here. We didn't move here for poker, we moved here because we despise the UK, and it's only now that we are actually HERE that I decided to supplement some of our passive income streams with poker
I think if the average person said to their wife they wanted to leave their finance job in London and move to Central America to play 2nl, they'd get a divorce on the spot haha.
Long time since I caught up on this thread, couple of years even. Wow!! Great effort, and a very good read through the past couple of years progress. Hope the next chapter is just as successful
I have a couple of questions on how you handle the ups and downs of specific sessions, and how your management of that helps to keep your mind on the long game, rather than get upset at the swings.
I'm really keen to get it together to move up the stakes as you've down multiple times, but the tilt monkey on my back is usually biding his time, just waiting to smack me back down after every good run of a couple of weeks. I've busted bankrolls numerous times after getting to around $100 and quit, even self excluded couple of times, only to come crawling back weeks, months or years later to try again.
Bit of background, I've studied from all the usual sources people recommend, put in a lot of hands and have had periods of decent success. I'm honest that I am not a world beater, but my A game is enough to beat the fish on 888 poker for certain. I've got limited time but can usually get in 30 minutes to a maximum of 2 hours per night. My most recent 180,000 hands in Pokertracker really show the extent of my ups and downs, and showcase my tilt and terrible shot taking pretty nicely too... BB/100 of a massive 2, but in actual cash a loss of $80. If I filter down to just 2 and 5nl it looks more reasonable, the BB/100 is not much better, but I am up about $130. My stats look fine and my general play is reasonable.... it is just the insane tilted sessions ruining all the progress that come along once or twice a month that are stopping me progressing beyond 2 and 5nl.
I've made a few changes lately, and am really trying hard to get the mental game right as well. I've quit fast fold and only play regular tables. I target fish without remorse and avoid a lot of spots vs regs, or just leave the bad tables. I focus on 2-3 tables max in order to not feel rushed and make good decisions. I've also started using the feature on 888 to show BB on the table instead of $, to try to stop thinking so much about money and just focus on good decisions.
My session management though seems a bit of an issue. As I said above, I don't have tons of time, so I need to make the most of it. Typically I win anywhere from $0 to 1.5 buy-ins of an evening. Then the killer night comes along once a week or so where I just crash, and chase my losses, playing maybe a 4 or 5 hour session to either get back to break even or make it worse haha! Those long tilted chasing sessions are bad for my sleep patterns, my relationship and obviously my bankroll!
So anyway, my questions around individual sessions are as follows:
- Do you set time limits on your sessions and adhere to them?
- Do you have a stop loss on any given day/session?
- Do you ever win a few buy-ins within half an hour and decide to just quit for the day? I find myself doing this because I get quite annoyed and disheartened if I am up very quickly but then finish break even after another hour or so. Play the long game... I know, but struggling to get this through my head.
- How often do you look at your results/graph?
- Basically, what is your strategy when it comes down to this aspect of the game? What have you learnt over the years that has improved you here?
I really feel this could be a major area of improvement for me that could finally see me make some decent profit over time. Attached my past two weeks to show exactly what is going on, note the long tilted session of doom! Appreciate any insights you might have, or anyone else reading too.
Anyway, congrats again. Genuinely one of the most inspiring threads I have ever read on this forum.
Thank you for sharing your story with me, I enjoyed reading it and I'm really pleased you found it inspiring. I know I've only managed to reach 25nl, but this time I think I'll go further because last year I cashed it all out because it was taking up too much time. Now that I'm literally jobless and living in a low-cost country, I have the perfect setting to take it all the way.
Sadly, your story is all too common. The good news is that, if you read back through this thread which I think you have, you'll see that I have a history of rage-quitting and cashing out my bankroll and I have overcome this.
I think you are approaching your tilt from the wrong angle. Overcoming tilt is not something you do at the poker table, it is something you need to work on away from it. I'm an angry person, I had a stressful childhood, I was also in the military and have done an oversees tour. I think you should look at the issues in your own life away from the table that cause the tilt in the first place. Why do you get angry when you lose, knowing that it is a game of chance and probability? If you can answer this, you will find peace at the poker table.
"- Do you set time limits on your sessions and adhere to them?"
No, see the above point. Poker is all about your bb/100 or your hourly. If you are a winning player, the longer you play, the more you win. I do play between 1pm ad 7pm, because this is when my wife is also busy. I treat it like a job almost.
- Do you have a stop loss on any given day/session?
No, just last week, I had a 12.5 buyin downswing in one session. Went from +$15 to -$20 but I played through it and finished down just -$11 The session is the session. I stop at 7pm. I was a bit frustrated being down so much, but not so much it affected my play.
- Do you ever win a few buy-ins within half an hour and decide to just quit for the day?
Again, no. As a winning player, the more you play, the more you win in the long run. Stopping early just delays the downswing for another day.
- How often do you look at your results/graph?
A ****ing ridiculous amount. Like every 10-20 seconds or after every pot. This is totally wrong, and should not be done. I have really awful OCD, and it's something I'm trying to work on. Some sessions, I'll manage more than others. The less you look, the happier you'll be. I know lots of pros don't check for an entire week, or until they hand review.
- Basically, what is your strategy when it comes down to this aspect of the game? What have you learnt over the years that has improved you here?
Find peace away from the table. Remove other stresses and pressure from your life. The reason you tilt at the poker table could be because you want the money fast and are impatient, or perhaps you want validation that you're a good player, and you feel hurt when you lose because it bruises your ego. (Just guessing, no judgement)
Be patient, that is my best advice. Trust in your skill, and don't try and force results. The bankroll will increase naturally over time.
Finally, if you don't meditate, I suggest you start. 20 minutes at a time or more is optimal. Any less and it doesn't really give you enough time to really disconnect. Start small, but build up. I meditate most days, especially before my long 6 hour sessions.
ps, I have a suspicion your game could use some work, (Mine too of course). Try and study more. Single biggest piece of advise I have for micro stakes having played them for 12 years is this:
If you have a HUD, seriously consider folding agaist aggression from nits. They're everywhere in Zoom, and they ALWAYS have a massive hand when they bet. Yesterday, I folded AK on AK22 safe board, facing a 100bb shove on turn (we were 200bb deep) Dude clearly had a full house by the way he played the hand. He showed me AA after and asked how the **** I folded top 2 pair on that board. Nits gonna nit, that's why.
Big hand, big pot. Small hand, small pot. Bet with your large hands, check with your medium strength and
bluff with your total air.
Good luck.
