Rounded out the month with a card dead/uneventful mostly 5/5 session, but one where I played very well. I am happy March is over and ready for April. I had a friend I met in free bar poker join me again, she likes to watch me play, her husband gives me trading advice and I give them poker advice, and my sessions give her time away from the kids, plus people are wondering why I am sitting next to this chick ("I thought he was gay?"). Never fear, I'm still queer.

I do really like hanging out with her, we have the same vibe/wavelength and energy, plus she's a really kind person. I like surrounding myself with positive energy, what can I say?

I made the correct laydown ott with top set against a wheel wrap after c/r flop, chopped with AA AI pre once, and 3/4 someone with 79TJQds after flopping top pair+wraparound+fd (he had 9+gs+nfd), he had 55 to my 45 but spr was 1.2 or so so meh. That's pretty much it.

I think this mix is pretty dope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2YPnhFGYC8, or at least the first 3-4 minutes.

I finally decided to quit my job today and just play full-time again. Emailed my boss 2 weeks' notice. It's been a long time coming but I think focusing on just one thing that maximizes my earnings is probably best in the long term. I will have high health care costs that my insurance does not cover, possibly for my entire life, and I need to ensure I can afford my mental health treatment as long as possible. I will miss contributing to society with my legal skills but I really need to think about what's important, and that's making as much money as possible.

Gl with the grind DT.

Have you seen RoadToPro's thread, with his estimate of his productive hours? I'm curious what you would estimate your productive hours to have been whilst working full time + playing poker.

Just curious, about what do you keep your roll at currently?

Thank you. Last month was below what I strive for but still satisfied given poker is a side hustle.

Re: RTP volume: I probably put in a fraction of what he's putting in, if that, busier work months even less. His volume is closer to what I was devoting before the jobs though and I applaud his productivity and drive to improve.

Rather not say in a public forum where who knows who is reading. Suffice to say it's big enough to play the stakes I do consistently without worrying too much about RoR.

Fair enough, nice run from the beginning. Take breaks if stuff is getting to you is all I would say. Good luck!

Yes, thank you! Good idea. It has been a nice run so far. Starting to face another difficult stretch lately it seems, however. Still making money though overall somehow, just not as much due to a lot of runbad (which normally is accompanied by some playbad, ofc). I've also been playing 5/5 less (runs less often/running worse) and mixed games more, so I guess I should not be surprised by last month's below average profit. I am really glad I've started getting into mixed games, keeps things fresh and interesting. Really cool that I am getting feedback in the other poker games forum from Greg Raymer of all people!!

Yesterday's Friday evening session was also pretty bleh, lost with AA in 3! pots twice in 5/5, 3! ds QQ against an action player and flopped the nut straight multiway but lost to a wrap, and lost with a very strong high draw in the big big o $1,500 cap game (KKQT8ddhhh on AhJs3h). I was running very well until this hand and was then called over to 5/5 which I begrudgingly went to since I still don't exactly know what I am doing in big o, although I am improving. I tried to play small ball with good hands mostly. I did flop the nut low once but folded three ways because I thought I was being freerolled on A57 (I had 23). Like I said, don't really know what I'm doing. That's pretty much it.

Just finished watching rampage's latest vlog about the hustler live stream . . . he was happy with how he played yet said things could have gone better . . . . I'll go with the latter (under)statement. Cannot fault the dude for pushing his limits like other vloggers have been doing lately, and he brings amazing entertainment value, but he needs to make serious adjustments to his strategy or he's going to go broke if he continues playing the nosebleeds, and who wants to watch him play 2/5 again if he's forced to drop back down? RoR will impact his youtube bottom line too, not just his poker profits. Plus, it's more entertaining to watch someone win than to lose.

He seems really image unaware. He was caught bluffing big - is probably known for bluffing more than most - he flaunts them all over his vlogs - and then tries to pull off another big one against a thinking player like Garrett; not gonna end well. (I cannot even fathom how Nik folded KK to him there . . . unreal. "Watch money," he said. Lol. At least he's a slow-roller so I don't mind that he lost.)

He also hero calls way too much. People are less likely to bluff known calling stations, yet he seems unaware of this too. I hope his youtube profits more than make up for the poker losses. I really feel bad for the guy. He's trying to put out good content but he's doing it at his own expense. I don't like seeming a game hurt people are much as it has harmed him financially lately. I hope he makes some serious changes soon. And that goes for anyone playing bigger games. At some point a person can lose so much that the game stops being fun, and that's a terrible place to be.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0ndzxDyRKQ

Edit: if he just switches gears more and stick to a value-heavy strategy, he will start making bank given the bluffy image he has cultivated.

Saturday session was bleh, after a fun date night - had a home-cooked meal and watched Fun with Dick and Jane - but despite being in a good mood and not on tilt, couldn't win a pot at 5c, none of my aces improved or got really bad flops like 7JT with a suit I didn't have, and my one set didn't hold. Oversetted someone at 2/5, lost some at 5/T (short-handed...!), for a modest loss but still a loss nevertheless. I will keep paying my best until things turn around again...how it goes.

Finally got a pokergo subscription for the new high stakes poker episodes. Stoked.

High stakes poker quote of the day:

Phil Ivey recounts story of playing with grandpa as a child....

Gabe Kaplan (host): "You know my grandfather, this is a touching family story. My grandfather on his death bed had this watch, and he sold it to me."

!!!

"He seems really image unaware."

Pot meet kettle.

Yesterday went to a home game, really card dead, lost one multiway all pre with AKQQJds (the best hand of the lot by far), then decided to leave a little early and play a smaller big o game (needed the practice) which was running at mdl and crushed in the hour I played, getting lots of nut lows with my A2s and scoops. This random older man kept 3! me relentlessly preflop but he showed up with garbage at showdown; I think he was tilted that such a confident and not too shabby young man was playing in his game. That's fine, I just laughed inside and left with a little extra money for the road after finishing what I came there to do. Played a great session and ran good!

Ran KK<AA pre at 2/5 180bb deep utg1/utg2...V iso'd a short stack limp to $80 (he was choosing crazy sizings)...I 3! small and V 4! jammed. I think if there is a case for folding KK it is in this sort of situation (EP/deeper stacked). The ridiculous sizing pre threw me off, seemed like a "please don't call" raise with a middling pocket pair or more vulnerable hand. But I cannot expect perfection of myself in a period of runbad, probably a bit too much to ask of myself to fold KK against someone wearing sunglasses and a Rastafarian hat who would later make it $300 pre with TT. I tank called but I really was trying to find a fold.

Ran good at plo5 flopping wrap+nfd against bottom set and top two (bottom set folded flop) and made it back, then bled down at 5/T/Q uneventfully for a couple hours before calling it. All in all lost $300. Meh.

Up some today. Yippie! Big o and PLO5, won an AA hand in the latter. Kinda a boring session. It’s crazy how poorly many people play no matter what the game. There are so many ways to learn and improve! Thank goodness the games I have learned and am learning have not been studied and mastered up the wazoo like hold ‘em has.

Played a little bit of everything, trying to keep poker interesting, branch out, and enhance my repertoire to work on becoming a great all-around player, played the big-o 25/25 25 bb ante $1,500 cap again, pretty card dead, and the few decent hands I got bad flops or runouts. Host of MDL exclusive "private" 5/5 game made an appearance and was name dropping a bunch of famous poker players, must be nice...!

Ran better at plo5 and just the same old at 5/T (def. coldest run of my career). Playing certain games lately has cost me somewhat but there is a purpose behind it and that's gaining experience playing in bigger games with top players, which was super awesome just to have a seat at the table with them. I flopped middle set once on J45 in big o with a flush draw I did not have and just A3 for low . . . seemed marginal facing a psb from the pfr (ultra nitty), so I just folded . . . stuck to the plan of not getting involved in marginal spots.

Dck sucking came up as a topic of conversation which was very awkward, as did white privilege. Thankfully mental illness did not, otherwise I think I would have had to rage quit.

Plo5 was break-even after a bad runout with three pair and a bdnfd/gutshot, the front-door straight draw got there otr and facing a donk I let it go even though it was a tough decision with the front-door flush draw missing. I just don't think enough players are capable of bluffing here.

Played mixed games, the vibe was night and day compared to the plo5 game (which came off as quite "bitter," to quote a mixed games reg). Really enjoyable time, and a great place to learn the game. Did not lose much, made two preflop mistakes, confusing the games and costing me a couple hundo, but I'll keep getting better at that as time goes on. (I 3! 23569 in 2-7 versus btn open and sb call out of the bb and broke the 9...probably should have patted?).

In triple draw? Breaking a rough 9 multiway is probably the play. Single draw or HU probably pat is better.

Thanks! Any thoughts on preflop?

3b is good. Hand plays better HU so we want to try and force out a player if we can.

Thanks!

Last session was long and tough. Started well at big o, continue to get the hang of it and learn when I want to go with my hand. At 5/5 plo5, ran well, was fun because some hold 'em players joined for a change including a couple 5/T+ reg, and the vibe in the poker room was really energized on a Friday night. Got called to main game which was lame, so dipped my toes in the big mixed game again for a bit only to lose one hand of 2-7 triple draw (called with a good single-draw hand and whiffed). Bled down at 5/T a little (few playable hands, the usual), then got into the smaller 5c game where I ran pretty poorly with my sets and to cap it off lost a big one in a l/rr pot, flopping the nut flush and getting called for a 1/2 psb against a much worse flush and 2p and losing to a rivered boat.

I've been here before (stuck and downswinging) and it sucks, but it should turn around as it has in the past. Unfortunately, my sleep schedule is out of whack now too and I woke up earlier than I intended so I'm not even well rested...!

In interesting personal news, I was chatting with my friend and she mentioned one of her old friends' psychiatric disability/mental illness was triggered by a bad drug (LSD) trip, as is the case with any people with a genetic or other predisposition for mental health issues. I swear one night after a meeting I got coffee at a diner with someone I didn't know too well and when I came back from the bathroom and drank a sip of water my brain chemistry seemed to instantly change and I felt very groggy. Incidentally, this is around the time my symptoms became much worse. I never saw this person again and I always thought he put something in my drink. So funny my friend would tell me this story because it triggered this memory and may have helped me piece together the puzzle of my life a little better.

Won $7k in the 5/5...finally unstuck and actually UP this month! OMG! I played high-energy pumping James Bond theme songs in the car all the way there and back home. Kicked some muthafkn a$$! KKQQ9ds held on QJ3r versus two straight draws for the big one. Came in, did the job, and left like Mr. Bond.

[Uploading Image...]

Bond themes featuring some of the best vocalists (Crow, Cornell, Garbage, Turner, Eilish, Smith, Adele, Madonna, etc.): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-ID...1nPDQeHIHCfAYC (The best songs IMO start with Goldeneye by Tina Turner and include that song, the world is not enough, tomorrow never dies, casino royale/you know my name, and skyfall. Haven't listened to the older ones as much. The production value of the later songs, however, is phenomenal.)

I feel so blessed right now. And proud of myself for powering through the latest downswing.

No Time to Die (Eilish): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BboMpayJomw.

Photo didn't upload:

James Bond, Spectre theme remix (Sam Smith, Writing's on the Wall): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i32K6uDS_iU. No Time to Die remix: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITNulJGn1O8.

I have to be honest, I was becoming quite demoralized these past few sessions. Started feeling like a descent into The Abyss. But I had hope from my experience that things tend to turn around over time. I also kept in mind that over half my losses this month were due to shot-taking the bigger mixed game, not due to my regular games.

I was only going to win a just over 1/2 the time against two Vs, a little more or less depending on backdoor flush draws. Boy am I glad I did:

ProPokerTools 5-Card Omaha Hi Simulation

600,000 trials (Randomized)

board: QJ2

Hand	Pot equity	Wins	Ties
KKQQ9	56.68%	338,416	5,001
ATKQ3	20.74%	68,739	113,121
KT9	22.58%	79,724	113,121

I feel really confident in my game, mental and technical. I have been integrating everything I have learned over the years - deep breathing, mental/physical routine, BR management, pushing small edges, (obviously) poker knowledge. I really wanna become a great player! I have dramatically improved at everything - table presence, image, tilt control, fearlessness, handling losing well. (Thanks to increasing the meds - haha...!) A couple people recently have said I look like a completely different person. One acquaintance from free bar poker said he was proud of me after hearing the games I played. "Look at you, wearing nice clothes...," he said. Haha! I get recognition from my peers too. It's very validating that my work has paid off.

But I wonder how I can keep getting better now? I suppose I can brush up on my hold 'em game and continue mixed games practice. But what else? I never want to stop improving, otherwise I'm falling behind. I really think if I want to push myself I have to play in the bigger games in Florida, but that would upset my routine, which is holding me back from committing....

Another great bassy beat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W9P_qUnMaFg.

Probably a night off for dinner with the ex and a movie, pasta and sausage Sunday! I hope everyone is well. Blessings.

Do what makes you happy.