What's the head count for 1/2 and 1/3 Vegas Grinders on Here? I mean if your main source of income is from grinding 1/2 or 1/3 in Vegas.......

I was an online player and turned 21 right before april. I had to grind 1/2 for the last 5 or 6 months full time. Absolutely obliterated the game for $37.02/ hour for over a 500 hour sample. I'm now playing 2/5 for a slightly higher win rate. I've been considering moving back down to 1/2 because the swings are minimal and the money is easy. I live in vegas and have a bunch of friends who also play professionally. Most of them play bigger but the ones who grind 1/2 in general are just way too nitty for the game. I couldn't disagree more with people who think its "miserable" to play 1/2 for a living. The game is just above their head. If you want to learn how to beat live games, there's plenty of info out there to help you improve. My range has tightened up at 2/5 and there's for sure a noticeable difference in the game play. If anyone has any questions you can pm me!

Just looking for some buddies, most my friends play higher and it's not fun asking them how much they made for the day...."I made $300 today" versus "I made $2000".....lol

I also crush low limits.....good luck at $2/5. We should meet up sometime. We probably already played each other at some point. Where do you mostly play?

To the original question...how many small stake grinders. I agree its imposible to get an accurate number -I have tried. Small stakes grinders come and go, certain times of year there are more than others -for various reasons.

That said, I have heard the number of 400 thrown around a bit, some insiders claim there may be as many as 700 small stakes grinders in Vegas right now....I'm not sure about that many. Some people claim there are over a 1,000, I just can't imagaine.

Pretty much everyone I have talked to about this subject, people in the *know* -floor people, dealers, card room managers, waitresses that keep track of faces & names, other players, ect, ect....seem to all agree that its VERY RARE for a small stakes 1/2 or 1/3 grinder to ever break away from this level and move up. Sure, a lot *claim* they have, or know people that have, and maybe some do for a few months, maybe a year, but Its nearly imposible to build a big enough bank roll AND maintain a lifestyle with your only income from playing 1/2 - 1/3.
We've all heard lots of different numbers in regards to how much someone *makes* at low stakes, one of the very best 1/2 grinders I know averages around $3,000 per month.....which I think is higher than most.

Hope this helps..merry christmas

hey Jedi, im a grinder at MGM, i play about 3 days of the week, im not too good at poker but i enjoy it very much.

I used to be a male prostitute until i aged, im now 32 yrs old, i pretty much set for life, own my house, i own a business, a 10 room nursing facility for injured old folks, i get about 6k per month on my business which i use for eveything.

The problem i have at poker is i have a killer smile and that throws off a lot of players, people just want to stare at me and kept asking me how i should be thankful that im so goodlooking.

Also women are over me all the time, dont get me wrong i like women but im there to play poker and not to pick up women, i guess you could say my life is miserable.

Anyway maybe well meet one of this day, if u see a very goodlooking man which is around 30's then that might be me.

U know the grinders at 1/2 are also the ones who grind freerolls around town so I would put the number at 100-200 and im talking true grinders with no job and just this, I deal and floor in vegas so this would be my educated guess. But most grinders are doing every freeroll in town

Chuck, pretty funny. How long you been doing stand up?
Yeah not sure where all the hate for the 1/2 grinders comes from. Maybe it's not hate, but people just stating their opinions and it just comes off that way.

Yeah I think the number is in constant flux because at those limits people are either going broke or moving up to 2-5 constantly probably every 4 or 5 months. So it seems it would be a very transient group.

I think Vegas is the only place it would even be feasible to play 1/2 for a living. California forget it.

Players who do this aren't miserable. It's the tight ABC players making $10/hr who are miserable.

Those in this thread bagging on $37/hr cash should look up where $50,000/yr gets you on the U.S. individual income charts. At age 24. Plus you have no boss, and if you're 24 and healthy you can get decent health insurance for $220/month. 401K? Open a Roth IRA whenever you want. Roth > 401K at low reported income anyway.

Just don't let the grind and geezers get to you, and you'll be fine. Be a time balla: play when you want (poker and otherwise) and save money. Travel cheap, live cheap, have life experiences. Don't eat junk food, don't get fat, exercise daily, save. It's a solid life strategy.

You are right that $37/hr is more then fine, to live off of, and you wouldn't be miserable if you made that per hour.

The thing is, there is no way, that poster, or anyone is actually making $37 an hour at $1/$2 over a large sample size. That's 18 1/2 bb's an hour. That just isn't a realistic winrate long term.

It is possible he has made that over 500 hours, but next to impossible he would still be making that over 3000 hours.

$37 an hour at $2/$5 is easily possible.

At $1/$2, even crushing the game, you aren't going to do much better then $15 - $18 an hour, over a large enough sample size.

No offense dude, but there is no way your friends paid off homes and nice cars playing primarily $1/2 live no limit. If they ere 8 tabling $1/2 nlh online then I can see that.

Not many do it, but it is certainly possible in many $1-$2 games. It is also possible the Vegas games are too tight for this, but that hasn't been my experience when slumming it with friends in Vegas. In a couple games near me, I would be embarrassed to make that were I sober and trying. Game selection is everything.

I'm a 2+2 no-limit author (PNL, SSNL) if that helps. -Matt Fl ynn

I said at "one point", of course he plays higher now. I'm just saying, you have to start somewhere......

Oh OK, yeah I must have misread that.