Hey guys,
I have finally decided to start participating in these forums after lurking around here for last part of the year or so. And what a better way to start doing this other then creating my own blog and let other people laugh at my bad play. Also hopefully this will motivate me to keep a better mindset and not stray away from the path to success.
Anyhow a bit about myself…
My name is Alex and Im originally from Russia although I have lived in UK for about 12 years. I have started playing poker about 4-5 years ago when I had a lot of spare time. About a year later I have made about 5K+ in MTT wins as well and playing 50 NL / 100NL at Ladbrokes. Also a large part of my winnings came from playing 7 Stud PL, which was a sick game where it was fairly easy to make a profit with correct hand selection and aggression. I doubt many people have played it and as far as I know only Ladbrokes had the PL game variant running at that time. I still think they do now but no one plays it anymore or stakes are painfully low. For me the excitement of playing big pots at 7 Stud was just as exciting as, say, last table in a big MTT.
Anyways, that game is sadly dead but if anyone has had any fun experiences with it please do share the good old times.
Now to what really matters…
Since playing at Ladbrokes and few other sites I have taken a big break of about 2-3 years from playing poker due to university and work commitments as well as other stuff. I obviously played a little bit from time to time at a number of different sites on different nicks, but we are talking hundreds of hands leading either into a withdrawal or a bust with no considerations given to bankroll management, solid play or making a profit long term. Stupid stuff like playing 1/2 NL with 2 BI’s, making 1000$ in an evening and then blowing it all away in a matter of few hands, or withdrawing it just in time if I was feeling smarter on the night.
About few months ago I decided to start playing poker seriously for once and for all, plus I have the time now to put in the required volume, as well as getting an extra income wouldn’t hurt. Also I really enjoy the game which helps with those long grinding hours. If you don’t have at least some passion for something – you won’t succeed at it.
Few months ago:
Unfortunately, it started off quite badly as I got my ass handed to me on NL50. Considering the stakes involved and realisation of how much tougher the game has become then few years ago it was a bit of a shock. Obviously I wasn’t as good as I once thought and that I am actually a losing player. Facing those facts was to say the least, an interesting experience, but hey what doesn’t kill you – makes you stronger right? Maybe (and hopefully!) losing a bankroll would make me a better player and a winning player so I had to go back to basics and re-analyse my game, which I was doing for a month or so leading up to Christmas.
I have decided to start off on NL20 / NL25 at poker heaven since it gives me a chance to clear a first deposit bonus as well as them offering 30% rake. From what I have seen the traffic isn’t awesome but should be enough to play 9 tables at a time. Again if anyone else has any feedback on PH please let us know! All the help and advice is appreciated. Or any other site to start on except stars and full tilt.
As I was saying im going to start off on nl20 FR with a 400-500 euro bankroll (bit on a small side but hopefully 20 BI’s should be enough for the limit). It’s about as much as I can start off with at the moment and I fear I won’t have as much motivation playing NL10 or lower. I have the next week off work so it’s a perfect time to start playing properly and gives me enough time to set up db, hud etc… So you can expect more actual poker updates starting next week! Also I like graphs and tables so you can guess what’s coming!
Short term targets for Jan-Feb:
- Build up a decent bankroll at NL20 and preferably not go bust again!
- Learn and improve my mindset as I believe it’s my biggest problem or leak!
- Play at least 20-30k hands per month ( hopefully more playing 9 tables)
- Become part of the community although I have been lurking around here for awhile.
- Update the blog as often as possible.
- Find a nice signature for my posts. / maybe re-strcuture the opening blog post – add some pictures to the blog.
Mid term targets:
- Switch to NL50
- Play more MTT’s where I think I have a greater edge then CGs.
- Move up to NL100
- In-depth study of Omaha during a small break holdem.
- Get an alienware laptop even though I really like my slick Samsung r780.
- Continue updating the blog.
Long term targets:
- To be updated as it’s probably way too early to even think about it.
Good luck at the tables everyone and see you around! I ll add some colours and make the post a bit more user friendly later!
Kind Regards
Daenerys
, A
and still about even in terms of profit. Hopefully it ll change. Once i get a 500 boost i may have to rethink the limits and my general strategy.
