Its been a minute,

April is officially over and its one month away from my first WSOP. I had a blast my first few weeks in LV and I managed to put in a lot of volume too. I also made a crucial mistake... I spent way too much of my liferoll! The hookers and blow got me.

Ok not really, but hanging out with mid-stakes crushers did. Going out to bars, strip clubs, karaoke spots, tourist dining (like this one crab place was bomb), a little bit of degening with the crew in the pits, and high-stakes sushi almost every night destroyed my roll. Good thing I won all my credit card roulettes and random prop bets like HU bowling matches Oh yeah and rent, I just paid my first full month of rent today.

After couch surfing for a little over a week, I decided I would see if I can get my own place. Bad credit? No credit? No problem! $400 a month? Utilities included? Month to month? Perfect! I got a little studio (0 bedroom) near the Stratosphere. The start of North Vegas.





No wonder it was so cheap, I live in the hood lol. I mean, I am sure it is mild compared to the roughest gang lands, but its definitely in the top 1% of most degen neighborhoods. Looks like a graveyard of people with shattered dreams, crackheads, and heck, maybe even grinders of the past that put it all on the line and missed. The place looks like crap, and LV locals give me the "I'm so sorry" face when I tell them what area I live in haha. Idk why, but I'm ok with it, keeps me focused and hungry to grind. I do take precautions to minimize damage in the event of a robbery or something.



The screaming I always heard when walking home is just the people at the top of the stratosphere on some sicko amusement ride, not ghosts or people getting shot thank goodness. Walking home was kind of creepy at first, but I worry less now that I am familiar with the area.

Anyway, back to poker. I unknowingly left ~$750 in one of my jeans back home and I am gonna get that sent to me in a few days. Running good, so that along with a couple loose bills will be my new life roll. My poker roll is gonna have to step up to the plate ASAP.






Not impressive by any means, but I'll take it for now. I realized that I have bip!-syndrome so I will not be beating 1/3 in this lifetime haha. 1/2 is definitely easily beatable for anyone that is trying to start from the bottom so I say go for it to those that are thinking about it on a small roll.

This month will be about playing in the capped 2/5 games at the Bellagio and sometimes at Planet Hollywood on the weekends when it runs. During the day hours throughout the week volume will be at any decent 1/2 or 1/3 game. If I drop to 6k, then all 2/5 is put on hold. Better money management will be forced upon me this month, I should have some comps saved up so hopefully that can help. Other than that, last run at it before the WSOP so I hope I can make something worthwhile happen. Time to run it up to 20 ****ing K

Thanks and welcome to the thread!

!!! nice post bro ! "Bad credit? No credit? No problem! $400 a month? Utilities included? Month to month? Perfect! I got a little studio (0 bedroom)" lololol

keep up the grizzly and say hi to yo buddy at aria from time to time. Oh! and, i was grinding the 2/5 bellagio for a solid two months before moving to aria so hit me with any questions or discussions if you'd like. the noodles place has roast duck and pork thats bombastic very fantastic. and some good fried rice dishes. have fun and crush souls. don't play loose like me!

Nice to here you are still doing well man! I haven't played near as much poker as you since getting out here, but will hopefully get on the grind soon. I've been playing at the Venetian mostly but heard the planet hollywood games are pretty solid so maybe I'll see you over there or at the Bellagio sometime before the series starts. Keep up the volume and plug those life leaks!

Nice work, glad you like it out here so far. I am just as excited as you that WSOP is around the corner. Watch those leaks and don't sweat the 1/3 loses over such a small sample.

Hey,
What app are you using to track your live progress? I have started playing live and want to track my winnings as well.

Haha thanks for showing me around the Bellagio, the noodle place was good. But it was fricken expensive again! Can't hang out with you anymore bro lol

I'll try, but you know I can't help spewing sometimes. Gotta 6-bet jam that 64 into AA

Thanks! I guess I am doing ok, but I am striving for even better so I'll be playing a lot this month. I think Venetian has the best food service at the tables from what I observed so far so its good to put in volume there to maximize food equity.

Your a reg at Venetian so you know this, but to the newbies lurking around:

Chicken parmesan= best bang for buck taste and volume. (Still expensive)

Shrimp scampi= best "envy" value, watch as everyone wishes they ordered one as you eat, Its good!

Thanks, and I don't think I scratched the surface yet, I still walk around with my eyes in the sky taking in the sights like a tourist. And yeah the 1/3 sample is small but dang it sucks!

The one I use is Poker Income for iOS, there is also one called Poker Journal which seems (more) popular for iOS.

If you have Android you have more options (some free) but I think Poker Income gets the job done.

(Poker Income is cross platform which is why I chose it, just in case I break my iPhone I can switch to my Note 3).

Weekend shot wasn't very exciting, went -64 (1/2), and -350 (2/5) at Planet Hollywood. A little recovery at Aria for +242 (2/5) followed by another kick in the nuts at Wynn -570 (1/3). Bellagio to the rescue with +228 (1/3) and +252 (2/5). Wrap it up at the Flamingo for a +810 at 1/2 for a weekend net of +548.

Some chip pron inspiration for the 1/2 grinders, in for $600:


Roll is at 9k, almost to that magical 5 figures. Gotta keep grinding, see ya at the 1/3 games this week!

0/2 on the weekend shots this month, gonna be grinding it out again this week.

I know one of my mental leaks is impatience when things don't go my way or is a little harder than I expected. It takes a lot of willpower on my part to keep my head on straight and not go on tilt on the table or in life. From some random readings, I learned that willpower is a limited resource, and every decision you make slowly drains your it. To refuel your willpower, you need motivation.

I'm sick of eating plain oatmeal and peanut butter toast everyday. I'm sick of catching the bus and walking in a creepy part of town to get home. I'm sick of not having the results I want. I want to build up a good BR where I can live comfortably. I want to be able to win a MTT or play in the higher stakes. I want to be the best poker player I can be.

Theres only one way to get what I want. Study hard off the table and make the correct decisions on the table, and have a little bit of luck to aid me the rest of the way.

150, 200, or 250 hours, I don't care what it takes but by the end of this month I will have over 10k and preferably 15k to have a stable BR for the WSOP. I need to be able to capitalize on the busiest poker gathering of the year. Result based goals aren't usually the best, but its what motivates me and the only thing stopping me is a career ending run of bad cards.

More study and less spew. For some reason I recently read all 100+ of the articles (they are pretty short) on CLP. They were really good, so I am gonna read them all again and type notes/summarize them for easy reference later. One part of my game I think I can work on is gaining a deeper understanding of combinatorics, it can lead to MUCH better decisions post flop.

Rest and having a clear mind is also going to be top priority, I've been pretty good about so far but I'll keep an eye on it since I will be engulfing myself in poker for the rest of the month. I mean, I already have been but even more so now.

Played for 86 hours so far in May, roll is at $8,866.

"When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you'll be successful."
-Eric Thomas

GL everyone.

It is good for you to recognize that impatience within yourself. Just remind yourself not to "autopilot" during each session.

If you need a pep talk, please give me a holler over Skype. At the very least, I can give you a pep talk to help you with the beginning of your live poker pro journey.

Thanks ATsai,

I'm gonna work extra hard this month so I can get some WiFi for my place, that way I can skype haha.

subbed. didn't realize you started a new goals thread, gl OP!

Thanks! And good to have you back ITT.

Woke up at 8pm tonight, decided tonight would be a good night to rest after a tiring but pretty much fruitless weekend at the tables.

For the past week or so, I've been sleeping during the day and playing through the graveyard hours so my sleep is completely reversed. I think it has its perks, but when I do this I don't do anything besides play poker. No working out, can't get any errands done, no human interaction. I think the best schedule for me would be wake up around 9am, workout/errands/people, nap around 2pm and wake up at 6pm, hit the poker at 8pm-3am (varies), sleep and repeat. I'm gonna give this template a shot, I know my life will never fit a perfect written schedule anyway.

Btw, still having a blast bricking all of the freerolls for the WSOP seat. Hurts my heart so much haha. Idk how MTT pros can do it, mad props. I get down to the final 14 players out of 120, 4BB's left, Jack Link's all in moment, pressure is on. Folded to me on the button, peel my cards... Duece... and uhhhh.... ACE! All IN! BB is squeezing his cards so I am fist pumping in my head until he says the dreaded words "I have to call". NOOOOO!!! ACE...... KING. gg. Tap the table twice, and its sad songs on my iPhone as I wait at the bus stop.

I did win a high hand of the hour promotion for $50 the other night when it was late (actually early morning) since there was not a single Limit table going. Kings full of fours with my pocket fours. It goes in my liferoll so I'm gonna walk over to Denny's right now and eat something decent for once. Then some study until I can sleep and get my day started tomorrow.

I've experienced the exact same thing since living out here. I tried the sleeping from 6 am -2/3pm routing once I got here and couldn't handle it.

Now...I play the 11am-5pm shift then come back to my place eat/nap/whatever and then play the night shift after if want to...rinse and repeat...I'm back on my normal wake up at 8 am and go to sleep at midnight routine again.

Not mad about it all tho...whatever works...make that paper!

GL...and we still need to meet up for beers after a session one night...I've been meaning to play at Aria...so after there perhaps?

Cool, I play 1/3 at the Aria during the week so that'll work. PM'd

Just found your thread, we should meet up sometime. I play at aria almost everyday but i don't have a phone right now..

Anyway good luck on the grind!!

Sounds good, I'll be at Aria tonight. Is Aria the reg's casino of choice or something? Seems like every pro I know plays there. I gotta find a new spot! Haha

[]JockBay actually showed up at Aria
[]Turntup74 actually showed up at Aria
[x]Varx goes to Aria and actually wins at 1/3 for once

[x]drawingdeadd7 showed up and bossed it up

Love the thread. Subscribed. Glglglgl

You were expecting a poker player to be responsible? Haha....my bad man I will definitely be through there sometime this week/weekend. I actually didn't play yesterday which is becoming too much of a norm...

Also, are the 1/3 games good there in your opinion? I always see they have a lot of tables going at night (right behind Venetian) but when I was playing at Venetian the games were reg filled and no one was ever drinking at the table. Like WTF?? Do people drink and play at Aria?

subbed. GL man

Haha yeah that was a sick session, you crushed it!

Thanks guys!

I know right, C'mon man, find some motivation and get on the grind! lol

I think the Aria is good overall, I had two drunks on my table last night after I table changed. Only reason I haven't been playing there much is because I see no benefit. (Only 100bb max, $300, and people still buy in short like a 1/2 game, I think its hard to get lots of money on the table initially until 2/5).

Most of my volume has been at 1/2 since I got here, but I noticed the 'bigger' casinos get more drunks/rec players just because of volume and the clubs. I don't think theres a actual higher % of drunks here vs here exactly, just need some table selection run good and to always be aware of your table and the ones around you. Be willing to move around a bit.

(NOTE: except Planet Hollywood, seems like I always find a 50% drunk table there if I go late into the night, must be the atmosphere there, could be sample size tho).

I think if you are playing 1/2 at the Venetian as your main spot, you may be missing value because other 1/2 games have the promos that kind of add to your bottom line, such as freerolls and tournament tickets. Even high hand of the hour bonuses and stuff help a little. Plus the bonus hunting nits don't give you any issues and you can snipe the 1-4 loose spots then move tables and repeat all night. (And overall, heard from several people that Venetian 1/2 sucks anyway, the 2/5 seemed good tho).

One thing that I am kind of struggling with is where I should be playing now. When my roll was $6xxx, easy decision to play 1/2 and bonus hunt a little. Good thing is the 1/2 games I played at is $300 max so I can always be deeper at 150+bbs which I think helps a TON once the table also gets deeper. Now that my BR is at $9xxx, I'm in a spot where I still want to bink a WSOP seat and bonus hunt at 1/2 (but my spirits are mostly broken), play deeper 1/3 $500 max at places like Wynn or Caesars, or TAG it up in Bellagio's 2/5 game ($500 max, 100bb's). All have their pros and cons so I am trying to weigh my options.

I say bonus hunt the 1/2 and pad the BR a little all while trying to get a WSOP ticket. When the WSOP is done, even if you don't get to play in it, the profit from you're 1-2 should have you plenty rolled for 2-5 full time. Also the 1-2 game should be a little less pressure right now so you can focus on the free rolls

And your not just limited to tagging it up at Ballagio's 2/5 bc it's 100bb cap. You could always just buy in for 500 at Aria, Wynn, or Vs 2/5 as well. Don't have to buy in full. At least that's what I did when I was shot taking 2/5 in Vegas.

Good point, I think I may go this route and continue to put in decent volume at 1/2 until I am at 12-15k ish?

Now that I think about I don't have to do one or the other, I can just do a mix of all three options. Do the minimum for the bonus, grind 1/3 where its safer, and play 2/5 once in a while.

Thanks for giving me the green light to degen at 2/5 Fogo.

Taking a Fogo inspired shot at Aria 2/5 right now since the 1/3's are very nitty and I saw a few good looking 2/5's. Five stacks of red and five black chips in my pocket just in case