The rake and structure in vegas are better than what I saw in California. But I don't know that that makes that much of a difference. I also think that you're overestimating the speed with which you'll be able to save up a roll for higher stakes by grinding $1/2. 6 months seems very unrealistic to me when you're using your winnings to pay your expenses. I'd triple that to 18 months, and even that requires you to not run bad for any significant amount of time.

You can win $2K-$3K a month playing $1/$2 but that doesn't leave much of anything to add to your roll. And at $4K-$5K liferoll, one bad month + all your bills and you could be down to $2K and playing scared. And what happens if the next month is breakeven and you have another $1K in bills to pay?

$8K-10K would be the minimum I would want to try.

I think having at least 6 months worth of living expenses in addition to a big bankroll would've the minimum I'd want to take a shot for a living.

I use a 40 buy in rule, but that's because I don't have another source of income.

So for example: If your monthly nut in LV is $1,500, I'd keep roughly 10k in the bank or safety deposit box. Then I'd want to have another 8k or so for poker.

But again I personally prefer more conservative bankroll requirements.

I started thinking the other night: Where would I go if I lost my job and wanted to play 40 hours per week? Would I just stay at Harrah's Philadelphia? Go to New Orleans? Mississippi? Charles Town? Vegas? LA?

Why not just stay where you are until you are properly rolled and then if you want to take a month, visit Vegas and see if you like it?

Op go for a weekend. Your stay might stay longer depending how you do. I have heard stories of pros going to vegas for a weekend and never left.

I plan on going to the wsop. I don't have a dream plan to grind the whole series. But ima try and go with 3k and see if I last for more than a weekend.

I suggest you do the same.

Realistically, option 1 is somewhere you can live for free.

If it's a choice of paying, it depends upon what you want and where you could live with others. I'd think FL should be high on the list.

I figure I can get a month to month room for real cheap and get my expenses down to 1k. So that leaves me 20 buy in shot and I doubt I'll lose even half that but I do understand I could run bad and go into scared money territory. It's gonna take me at least another year of working to get a "proper" bankroll and I just don't wanna live like a poor college student that long since my earning potential is much larger assuming I have bankroll. I agree with the above poster that 5k may be too risky and 7-8 might be minimum to try it.

Start with a couple of buyins from your paycheck and build a roll like that. With the extra income you can save a bankroll.

Yeah, ILCD is right. I don't mind aspiring pros moving to Vegas and the current ones staying there. Place is a nitfest at LLSNL. California trumps Vegas in most every way possible.

If you can beat 1-2 (only one way to find out) then i say go for it!

5k is enough, I have never gone on much more than a 10 buyin downswing.

Its up to you, but it is %100 possible.

I started with 2k 5 months ago and have made more than 10k playing part time.

This is a good suggestion. Every time I've gone been out there for a vacation I've covered my entire trip and made a profit. Then in the cab back to McCarran think top my self "why don't I just stay here?"


Many have. I burned through $3k+ last year at $1/2 during a sick downswing. Then once you start taking money out to pay for food and shelter it becomes very easy to blow $5k+.

So, small sample size then.

All it takes is one bad run, one bad decision, and one bad circumstance.

True 5k @ 200 buyins is 25, once we go on a 10 bi downswing were going to be playing on a very short life roll.

Good luck, man. *opens door of taxi*

Weewees,

What casino or casinos in LA were you playing?

I was a house player at Normandy casino during the day. Bunch of bad regs who usually buy in for 40 and capped at 100 buyin. Terrible place for 1/2nl but I was paid to play.

I know Saturday night at commerce would be much better but still the blind structure sucks and rake is nasty everywhere. That's why I figured vegas would still be better than commerce just because the rake is so much better

^Did you ever check out The Bike? The 1/3 is 100-300, 2/5 is 200-500, and 5/5 is 300-1000. Also, those games get food comped.

If you can come back to LA and possibly live rent free with someone(relative/friend) then return and put in some serious volume. Getting some part time job to have a constant income should also be considered.

GL

I played the 1-3 at bike once on the weekend. It seemed decent but not great. Rake still sucks but at least the buy in is good. If $20/hr is achievable at that then it may not be a bad idea.

I got no one to crash with for free but do have a job if I need it

Is the difference in rake between LA and NV that big, that a breakeven player over 600 hrs in LA would make 20/hr in Vegas?

For those of you that regularly make the trip to the wsop every year What percentage of your bankrolls do usually bring out to grind with? Or do you just bring the lot?

I hear LA rake is more, also LA takes a drop rather than a rake. So in LV it would be something like 10% to $3+1 for the jackpot. So a $20 pot would have $3 taken out, a $40 pot would have $4 taken out. Also many rooms have a "no flop, no drop" rule. Whereas in LA it's $5+$1 regardless of the size if there's a flop (I think most rooms also have a reduced drop if there is no flop). So a $40 pot would have $6 taken out, as would a $20 pot.

I don't know about LA casinos, that's only what I think I remember hearing. But if that's really how they do it, then yes at 1/2 that rake is absolutely crippling and breaking even would be an accomplishment.

It was in a casino playing against bad nitty regs during day for shallow stacks. In LA, they take 4 dollars on flop no matter size of pot plus 1$ jackpot drop on every hand preflop. In vegas in big rooms, my understanding is they take 10% up to 4$ and no jackpot drop which is a huge difference. And vegas buy in structures are deep compared to shallow in LA which is also much better.

If I had played loose games at night in LA at commerce I'm sure I would have been a winner. But I still think vegas would be more profitable because the rake is such a big deal at low stakes.

Another thing that got me was tipping too much because I became friends with the dealers. I learned that tipping more than a buck a hand at 1/2 is insane but it took me a while to figure that out.

tipping at all in that structure makes it unbeatable, my advice: find a better path for your life than playing cards

Insta taking $4+$1 at 1/2 is just criminal.