Hi all,

Let me start by sharing two thoughts that have been spinning in my head for quite a while now:

The clock is ticking..
How the F*ck did I end up here?

Background
The first thought is referring to the title.
What I mean by the clock is ticking, is that it feels like I should have found, or be close to finding some form of determination by now. In other words working towards something I love.

The second thought refers to my current situation.
I’ll keep it short, and won’t bother you with a long story about how unfair life is since I know the majority of people are in a worse situation when looking at life standards such as financial stability, health and free will.

I am a 30 year old male, working as a manager in a hospital at a nursing department. My background is in physiotherapy. Working as a physiotherapist was never a dream job, and neither is my current management role.
It feels as a feather in the wind, where without too much conscious control I just "randomly" ended up here as a manager in a hospital. Although it pays a decent salary, it is not what I want.

Poker
So knowing that I want to get out of my current situation I need a plan B, and you guess it, that plan is poker.
I've been playing for a few years recreational, breaking even in micro cash-game and slightly losing in MTT's.

I Barly did any studying. Although I did well in college, I've always been a lazy mofo when there was no urgent reason to study like exams in collage.
I've been doing 5-10 hours weekly studying the last few weeks and it feels like my game is evolving fast. Understanding fundamental mechanics & concepts, and implementing these into the game has something satisfying.
My pitfall is my laziness in studying, which counts for most players I guess. It's easy to grind for 5 hours, but so much harder to study the same amount of time. That's why I gave myself the 2:1 rule, 2 hours of study translates to 1 hour grinding. The ratio will change along the way but it's a good start I think.


Poker/Life goals
I think it's good to have a vision, and it is months, more likely years away, but it feels good to say/type it out loud: I want to become a professional poker player.
I'm currently working 32 hours a week, aiming for 25 hours a week dedicating to poker (including weekends obv.)


- Be active on 2+2
- Track and develop my mental game
- Strict BR management, and share everything with you guys
- Don't play impulsive, only scheduled sessions
- Exercise 4 times a week
- Tracking mental health, and productivity
- If this poker thing works out, look for opportunities to work less in the hospital, towards to point where I can quit
- Travel more

Not a goal, but if I made the BR, and play 200nlz at the end of 2024 I would be really F*cking proud of myself.

I will be starting with a $200 bankroll, playing 6max Zoom/Rush games on GGpoker. Starting at 2NL for like 10-25k hands to warm-up.

What I will share:
- The Study-grind: What I'm working on, how motivated I am, and what progress I made
- Results & bankroll report
- Lifestyle situation, without boring you guys
- Work situation, same as above, without boring you guys

Why:
- To challenge myself
- To motivated others
- To make (poker) friends
- To become more disciplined
- To do somthing I love

Lastly I want to share what made me write this topic.
Few weeks ago I found KidCudi147's blog "MY LAST SHOT AT POKER". The story is amazing, from a $20br to beating >200NL in fast pace.
The threat is motivation fuel, and I want to do the same, and maybe even faster .

Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I'll keep you guys posted!

Thank you for sharing your journey and goals with such clarity and determination.
It's inspiring to see you setting ambitious targets for yourself and taking proactive steps toward a path that aligns more with your passions and desires.

I appreciate your openness about your journey, your motivations, and your goals.
Sharing this information not only holds you accountable but can also serve as inspiration and motivation for others.

I wish you the best on your poker and life journey.
Keep us posted on your experiences, challenges, and victories along the way.
If there's anything specific you'd like to discuss or share, feel free to reach out.

Good luck, and enjoy the process!

Hi Slyless,

Thanks a lot for taking the time to read my first post, and commenting on it. Your words mean a lot to me, and honestly motivated me at times when tired this week. Especially the part of "enjoy the process" hit me when I didn't feel like studying.

And studying I did. In total 20-25 hours. Was nervous to play my first hands, because I knew it could be the start of millions of hands and a potential career path start, so I delayed my first session till a few hours ago and instead kept studying. Main focus was on crafting and trying to understand preflop ranges for SRP and 3b pots. Think I have a solid fundament of ranges that’s currently working for me.

Also started to have a first look on how these preflop ranges interact with different flop textures, used like 25 subset flops to get a general Idea on interaction and corresponding c-bet sizes in SRP IP vs BB call. To not get overwhelmed I will not add any study subject for the upcoming week, in which I’m planning to study for around 20 hours again. Only thing I'm adding is reading the mental game of poker 1 & 2, and slowly starting to create a "tilt profile".
Another goal is to be way more active on 2+2, although I don't feel like I'm in the position to learn anyone somthing yet, I do like the thought of having conversations about poker here, and meeting new people.

I'm not sure yet on what frequency I will update this blog, but it will be at least once a week.


As agreed with myself I'm literally starting at the bottom of 2NL, which is just a wild jungle tbh lol. Anyways had a nice first session, where I meanly focused on remembering my preflop ranges.




Keep y'all posted :-) Thanks for reading and special thanks to Slyless again

Hey! awesome thread and GL on your journey! I'm somewhat in the same boat so it will be nice to follow your progress. I also started my blog almost one year ago after reading KidCudi147's blog haha. If you want to join my study group Pm me

Thanks for the kind words man! Just send you a PM Looking forward to reading your blog tomorrow, just saved it to bookmarks

Two weeks into the blog, happy with the progress.
Put in more volume on 2NL, where I reached my first goal of 10k hands.
Obvious the pool is full of whales and people love to gamble, but it's a great training ground.
It's cool to implement new strategies I studied in different spots, and seeing them pay off more value than I would have generated before.

Putting in volume is not an issue at all, I can grind hours a day without any mental resistance / willpower issue, but as honestly said in the first post, it's the required studying that is tougher for me. I am pushing myself to go to the library though, and sit there for 5-8 hours. The total sum of study hours this week was 22 hours, which I'm kinda proud of.
Watched a very cool video on study sufficiency in poker, where they explained the most important spots, in terms of impact they have. They used 3 components: Frequency, starting potsize and EV. The outcome was a "practice priority score".
I focused mostly on the first 3 spots this week: SRP sb vs bb and btn vs bb, and lastly 3bet pots sb vs bb.

Again going to try to push upcoming week for another 20-25 hours of studying. Continuing looking at the spots named above, but also doing more work on the mental game, and being more active on here. Besides poker going to aim at 4-5 days of exercising, where on Wednesday I have a long run of 25 KM planned (I love running, working towards my 2nd marathon).
And of course the fun part, grinding :-), gonna make a start at 5NL on GG poker. Big benefit is they have leaderboards, so it's really easy to mark all the "regs" who put it in the most volume from the start.

Here are the results of this week, winning around 10,5 bb/100 after EV adjusted, really happy with the results


Thanks for reading!

Nice thread man and cool to read that I somehow motivated you to take this seriously! Think high study ratio will make you improve/move up rapidly, but also important to give yourself time to implement the new learned stuff ingame (maybe current study/play ratio allows it idk). Goodluck with everything, looking forward to updates!

Thanks for the kind words! Hope you’re doing well, and that you have nice holiday plans ahead of you back home like you wrote about in your last update.

The studying is going well, but you’re right that with this much new information it can be overwhelming. Thinking from opening ranges (which are almost trained to the level of unconscious competent, awesome concept in the mental game of poker book), to flop/turn sizes is sometimes too much. It’s all new to me, and the temptation of starting a new subject without a solid understanding of the previous one is a pitfall. At the other hand I shouldn’t stick too long and too deep at a spot like cbet size btn vs bb.

Anyway been enjoying 5NL, hoping to complete 10k hands this week, update on Sunday :-).

Thanks again for the motivation and the kind words!

Good luck on your journey! It is definitely doable to move up quickly especially if you aren't withdrawing money from your poker bankroll. I would be careful with adding too many tables though, it is very easy to start autopiloting and you just can't think very deeply about the hands if you are playing a lot of tables. This will be different for everyone, but I find that when I play more than 4 tables I start to fatigue a lot quicker.

Preflop ranges are probably your biggest edge against the field. If you have a good preflop game and continuation bet a lot, you're going to be making a lot of money,

How many buyins do you use as a requirement to play at a specific stake?

Thanks for the advise, you’re 100% right about the autopilot pitfall. I’ve fell into that already a few times, especially losing focus quick on the more new elements I’m learning.

I try to build up towards 4 tables of zoom/rush, the microstakes on GG have a delay / lag though, you can see it back on the hands/hour shown in the lobby.

When a bit tilted/tiered I have to lower volume though, good advise!


It is definitely a privilege at this point to not worry about withdrawing money, at the other hand my job cost me previous study/play time , as we say in the Netherlands every advantage has its disadvantage.

I’m moving up between 25-30 buy-ins, although I’m thinking if making some more volume on 5/10nl, around 50k hands each is the plan for now

3 weeks into the blog, tiered after today, 5 hours study 5 hours grinding, a bit too much for a semi-hangover Sunday.
For now only a compact summary for this week, will update more specific later this week :-), now kinda only feel like relaxing with a good movie and going to bed early.

- 22 hours of studying this week (aimed for 20-25 so happy with keeping my word to myself)
- First 10k hands on 5NL, winning 5bb/100 hands EV adjusted, happy with the result
- There is some very decent giveaways/bonusses on GG this month, which gave a nice extra bankroll boost of $40,21 (rake-back is pathatic so happy with these extra's)
- Still want to be more active here, started with some posts this week, will be more the upcoming week
- Tilted very bad twice, cost me 3-4 buy-ins, feels bad but recognizing the pattern feels like a right step in the right direction


Results so far:


Bankroll
Start: $200
3 weeks in: $304,68
After EV adjusted: $294,83

Update on some hands that I really like how played, but also that made me tilt bad in a few days :-)

Hi guys,

Little update here after yesterday including 2 hands.
Feeling good with the process made after 3 weeks. The studying is going more natural and causes less resistance.
As all poker players I'm struggling at times with the mental state on a bad run. I set a rule for myself that when the tilt reached a certain level, which becomes presentable when making basic mistakes like not sticking to the RFI range, I stop the session early, and spend the rest of the planned time studying.

It's a very though rule, because the playing part is so so much more fun than the studying, but it pushes me to stay mentally balanced, also when running bad.
Staying on 5NL for I think 50k hands, although the bankroll is already build up for a shot at 10NL (much more early than planned, but that's also due the giveaways/bonusses on GG this month), I feel like it's good to not move up to quick.

Concentrating this week on finding a system for marking players & making more notes.
GGpoker works with daily leaderboards, so it's easy to pick out the regs who put it a lot of volume, think it's a nice way to start off with this goal.

Besides poker work is going well, still have a lot of holidays so going to use those days to put in extra studytime / playtime upcoming 2 weeks.
And of course enjoy the holidays with friends and family, taking 4 days completely off poker.

Completed the 25KM run last week, felt ok, although the next day it felt like I couldn't walk lol, but F it, def. worth it.
Update coming on sunday/monday for the results of playing, for now 3 hands I'd like to share

1st hand:
It is these spots that cause me to tilt, and I keep making this mistake so should really fix this.
Basically it is spots where I bet/raise river for value, with the idea to fold to a (re)raise. But somehow I still talk myself into a call. Something with wanting to see I was right, which is totally irrational I know, but didn't figure out how to fix this mental leak yet. The slightly bigger stacksizes made it so juicy to shove river for me, if we started 100bb deep I don't think I would've made the move. Obv tried to rep AA-KK-TT, or QQ against AJ

GGPoker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.02/$0.05 - 6 players
Replay this hand on Upswing Poker

UTG: $10.34 (207 bb)
MP: $10.55 (211 bb)
CO: $9.72 (194 bb)
BU: $5.00 (100 bb)
SB: $6.68 (134 bb)
BB (Hero): $5.00 (100 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.07) Hero is BB with K♦ 6♦
1 fold, MP raises to $0.11, 1 fold, BTN calls $0.11, 1 fold, Hero calls $0.06

Flop: ($0.35) Q♦ A♦ 3♦ (3 players)
Hero checks, MP checks, BTN bets $0.12, Hero calls $0.12, MP folds

Turn: ($0.59) A♣ (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $0.20, Hero calls $0.20

River: ($0.99) 7♣ (2 players)
Hero checks, BTN bets $0.50, Hero raises to $1.25, BTN raises to $4.57 (all-in), Hero calls $3.32 (all-in)

Total pot: $10.13 (Rake: $0.22)

Showdown:
BU shows A♠ 7♠ (a full house, Aces full of Sevens)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 62%, Flop: 3%, Turn: 23%, River: 100%)

BB (Hero) shows K♦ 6♦ (a flush, Ace high)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 38%, Flop: 97%, Turn: 77%, River: 0%)

BU wins $9.91

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2nd hand:
Not sure about this one lol, could be a really big punt, but I like to get a bit creative sometimes.
The idea was mainly to make villain fold AJ, and maybe QQ but at the micro's I don't think I could get away with it.
Not 3-betting KQo pure pre, but only folding to more tight players. Villain was a reg btw.

GGPoker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.02/$0.05 - 6 players
Replay this hand on Upswing Poker

UTG: $5.00 (100 bb)
MP: $5.93 (119 bb)
CO (Hero): $7.48 (150 bb)
BU: $13.77 (275 bb)
SB: $8.97 (179 bb)
BB: $3.15 (63 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.07) Hero is CO with Q♥ K♠
1 fold, MP raises to $0.12, Hero 3-bets to $0.40, 3 players fold, MP calls $0.28

Flop: ($0.87) T♠ A♣ K♥ (2 players)
MP checks, Hero bets $0.29, MP calls $0.29

Turn: ($1.45) Q♣ (2 players)
MP checks, Hero checks

River: ($1.45) T♣ (2 players)
MP bets $0.48, Hero raises to $6.79 (all-in), MP calls $4.76 (all-in)

Total pot: $11.93 (Rake: $0.22)

Showdown:
CO (Hero) shows Q♥ K♠ (two pair, Kings and Queens)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 31%, Flop: 88%, Turn: 9%, River: 0%)

MP shows Q♦ Q♠ (a full house, Queens full of Tens)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 69%, Flop: 12%, Turn: 91%, River: 100%)

MP wins $11.71

Curious what you guys think of this play

Thanks for reading!

2nd hand looks fine, one of your best bluffs and vs certain villains (depending how they construct and protect their sizing scheme) you make them auto-fold range. Sort of wp by villain to actually protect the smaller sizing here.

Hand 1, I also struggle to be disciplined in those spots. What helps is just always create a habit of taking time on the river (I'm very inconsistent with this). Try to think of the standard factors, like villaintype? do you beat value? Does he haves bluffs and what kind of? How is your hand doing in terms of removal effect? any other nuances/details in the hand? You can even count combos. What helps for me is talk my thought process out loud, might be ridiculous but if it helps it helps

The feeling of "wanting to be proven right" I can relate to. I have it now way less (unless I'm on tilt) and part of what helped me was just experience. I don't have other advice than to rationalize. Part of it is respecting variance and putting faith in your strategy. You will be bluffed off a better hand sometimes, that's the game. And you will make mistakes, part of coping with that is just to try and learn from them and accept them. If you want to call purely to see what he (or pool) in this spot has you can even rationalise with knowing you will see infinite showdowns anyway which will help you you give you an idea what people are doing and can boost your confidence when having a 0ev call decision.

Hand #1

Keeping a notebook and recording both poor calls and successful folds is an excellent idea.
Documenting the cost of suboptimal decisions can be a tangible reminder of their impact.
Over time, this process can train your brain to make more disciplined folds, not only due to the financial implications but also because recording each instance can be a deterrent in itself.

Additionally, noting successful folds and the money saved reinforces the positive impact of making correct decisions, motivating to continue honing this skill.
It's a practical approach to both learning from mistakes and celebrating good decision-making.

Hand #2

Not a bad idea in theory, but poorly implemented in practice on nl5.
Indeed, players here cannot fold strong hands (see hand #1).

Where is hand number 3?

Very good advise! Both points. I've set myself rational/mental rules for while playing, which I read before every session. The talking out loud part felt awkward at first got to admit hehe, but F it, it helps!

Also the wake-up call that this major mental leak of proving right takes experience. And that there's always a next showdown, & being rational is a big part of this growth process gave me a boost to not slap myself in the face (not really but you know what I mean). So a big thanks buddy, it means a lot to me.

Actually went to the store to buy a notebook for this! it feels way better to write it down physically than typing. It takes some time to getting used to it, but I will definitely work on finding a routine in this, thanks a lot! Taking notes on these type of hands (not technical but mental notes) is something I have to work on, and I'm working on a method that's works for me while playing and how to review them afterwards :-). Big thanks as well!

The 3rd hand I didn't wanna post because I didn't want to look like I'm whining about running bad, but actually there is technical some doubts so here is it anyways .
The whole hand is a big question mark for me, maybe not preflop although I'm not sure about the size, choose a bigger size cus we were deeper than 100bb.

The flop check feels like a big punt looking back, but during the hand at that moment I wanted villain (LAG reg) to put in some bluffs and put me on AK, or let him barrel of AQ, with the small SPR I figured I could get the money in on later streets.

Also wondering if turn with the deeper sizes is ever a fold, anyways here it is:

GGPoker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.02/$0.05 - 6 players
Replay this hand on Upswing Poker

UTG (Hero): $8.55 (171 bb)
MP: $5.19 (104 bb)
CO: $9.48 (190 bb)
BU: $25.14 (503 bb)
SB: $5.44 (109 bb)
BB: $8.82 (176 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.07) Hero is UTG with K♣ K♠
Hero raises to $0.13, 1 fold, CO 3-bets to $0.40, 3 players fold, Hero 4-bets to $1.40, CO calls $1

Flop: ($2.87) Q♠ 8♠ T♦ (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets $0.95, Hero calls $0.95

Turn: ($4.77) 3♥ (2 players)
Hero checks, CO bets $2.39, Hero raises to $6.20 (all-in), CO calls $3.81

River: ($17.17) 9♣ (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $17.17 (Rake: $1.16)

Showdown:
UTG (Hero) shows K♣ K♠ (a pair of Kings)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 82%, Flop: 15%, Turn: 5%, River: 0%)

CO shows Q♥ Q♣ (three of a kind, Queens)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 18%, Flop: 85%, Turn: 95%, River: 100%)

CO wins $16.01

Update on this week:

Some unexpected extra stuff at work which cost a lot of time, so didn't put the volume in that I was hoping for.
Ran like 3 buy-ins under EV, which caused tilt where I made rookie mistakes like not sticking to preflop ranges and forcing too many bluffs to compensate.
Noticed the tilt and quit to sessions earlier than planned.

Study went well, 20 hours this week. Mostly on math concepts, found a really good video yesterday that explains basic math mechanics, I would like to share it with you:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9g95...nnel=GTOWizard

Graph so far:


Bankroll
Start: $200
3 weeks in: $305,38
After EV adjusted: $312,61

Def have to work on my redline, I know it's standard at micro's but there is a lot to gain.

Upcoming week busy with holidays and stuff so won't be able to focus on poker too much. Main goal is to set clear goals for 2024.
Thanks for reading

Yes, you can 4bet more in deep stacks like 30-35bb.
The flop check is not a punt, because this flop fits the CO range well. Overall you played this hand okay.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!