I've been giving this some thought for a while and among many reasons for starting this thread & blog, one that I hope will actually exist within this project is inspiration, encouragement & a positive example for any other players who have also been, or still are in the a position like the one I've been in.

Cut a long story short - suffering.... Poker, if approached and treated without some crucial habits, traits, specific dicipline & attitudes can easily become an incredibly negative part of your life. Descending into nothing more than an addiction. A compulsive behaviour, interwoven with self-destructive tendancies, financial suicide, a mental health beating & a hobby that brings stress, pain & despair.

But it doesn't need to be like that...not at all.

In 2015 I connected with my soon to backer/coach & his horse who split the backing for me. Let's call them T & M to remain somewhat anonymous. They approached me through Pocket 5s and I played on the euros but not Pokerstars - around $20 abi, $10 rebuys,$22 freeze outs with occasional $55 shots with one being my life time best score when I got 2nd place in the $55 Monsoon on 888 for around $3.1k.

2015 was my peak year... Roughly 3600 mtts for a total profit of $25k approx. 50/50 profit split. After just over a year doing this it may have been the case that I wasn't improving fast enough...Or that I was repeating mistakes. I think the truth was that I didn't have the emotional make up and other factors outside technical ability & strategical knowledge were complex issues that were holding me back....

That $25k result could have (I won't say SHOULD) been $50k easily but there were up to a dozen specific runs were I impulsively acted, did something rash, busted out & IMMEDIATELY thought, sometimes verbally asking, "why the F*%K did I just do that!!?"

How many of you reading this now have thought that before after calling stupidly light when villain will never be bluffing? Have run a triple barrell bluff with 0 equity vs a fish who loves to call when a little bit of the reason was to feel like we outplayed villain? Or just acted quickly without much thought to very quickly realize it was an awful play that doesn't make any sense?

So after a year and quite a few of these, my backers were frustrated & stopped responding to my questions & hands I was posting... They ended up selling my make up to Pocarr who took me on for a short while. Unfortunately, that didn't go well... I missed some expensive pre booked specialist coaching sessions, lacked results & ended up deeper in make up & realising that factors outside of poker were in need of drastic change before I'd be anywhere remotely close to being capable of playing my best poker...

So I quite poker.... I was always going to come back and play again but there were things I needed to do first. They were, in no specific order -

1) Create a comfortable financial life with savings, zero debt, a consistent, reliable income outside of poker & no pressure on income.

2) A living environment I was happy with. At that point I was living with my parents which I didn't enjoy & I desperately wanted to move out... Playing poker was not the way to achieve it. I concluded that once I had my own flat, or was renting a room away from my parents, I'd be more relaxed & play better.

3) Spent dedicated time & effort on studying & increasing my theoretical knowledge as well as clean up & eradicate some of my biggest leaks... That would entail a lot, including doing 5 - 10 private one to one coaching sessions.

These were the main 3 I can remember. Unfortunately, they never happened. That was 2015... As far as I'm aware, that was the first year that solvers were seriously hitting the market and becoming a thing.

Around the start of the first lockdown, I ended up playing the BIG FISH mtt on 888... a $16.50 freeze out I believe.... It was a $12k gtd I think. I was sat next to my GF, eating a take away, one eye on a film... I was getting deeper and deeper, winning flip after flip, drawing my gal's attention as the excitement grew & feeling like a poker genius again!!! I got 4th for $1300 odd... That was a Saturday night.

I played on Sunday too... Satilited into a $109 Sunday challenge & lost TT vs A5o, Btn vs BB (I raise called TT on the button and got Barry Greestein in my face) for the chip lead on the FT bubble.... 1st place was $6k. It was still an OK score & the weekend's total winnings exceeded $2000!!!

I WAS BACK!!! On the way to the shop all I could think about and talk about with my wifey, was how all I now needed to do, was play poker every weekend and in a few months time I'd have enough to fund a round the world trip for us both where I'd play more poker and end up coming back after 6 months with more money than we'd left with.... It was gonna be ****ing awsome!!!

Two years later & that $1300 odd score has been my biggest score by nearly 3 fold... Misery.

How? How is it possible to run so bad!?

That expression - "No matter how bad you've ever run before, there will always be a time when you run worse." Or words to that effect. Well... The last two years, at points has felt like that run.... I cannot remember ever experiencing so many bad beats so often...

On reflection it's just not that simple... And I'm aware that there is a bias in our thinking & memory... And also that undoubtedly, I'm not even aware how bad I'm playing in other spots, or just EV that I'm missing through lacking theory understanding etc. etc...

Right.... So. Let's get to the point.


My plan from here -

I want to share my journey to some extent & hope it serves an altruistic duty & sets an example for others to follow to not only, best case scenario improve all of our games but also create a healthier relationship with the game & reduce suffering.

So - ... Firstly, quickly - IF YOU HAVE MADE IT HERE!!! If you have read & still reading, well, sorry I've waffled & ranted. I'm grateful & hope that as this thread & blog develop it provides some enjoyment for you.

I made a list of things I've been doing that 100% are -EV... So the most BASIC changes are -

1) Play less tables - I'm going to be strict with a limit of 6 tables at once max. Even 4/5.... At least, for the first 3-6 months because I want to use my playing sessions to improve as much as possible... And in order to keep improving, AND to keep plugging leaks, I need to be able to focus on those specific spots & hone in on exactly the concepts I'm trying to work on.... Not possilbe with 10 tables etc...

2) Schedule to have a MAXIMUM of 5% satillites. Also, NO TURBOS... Schedule will be only regular and slow structure games.

2). a - Also, I'm going to be quite selective with the games to be lower variance, so I'll be including $5 freeze outs that have a garantee of $500 more than I will a $50k garantee etc... Smaller fields for more regular but smaller scores... Shots & huge prize pools will have their time...

3) I WILL NOT PLAY if I'm tired, intoxicated or in a bad mood. Over the last two years there have been more sessions than I'd like to admit, played when I've not slept at all the previous night & also when I'm intoxicated to some degree. Moving forward that's a NO NO... I will be well rested, on a great nights sleep, sobre as a judge & emotionally sound, calm & happy.

4) My new poker playing schedule starts ONLY when I've settled into my upcoming new living arrangement. In the next month or so I'll be moving to what should be a spacious studio flat, North of London in an area called Luton... There is a Grosvenor's casino there will a nice MTT live schedule

5) BANKROLL MANAGEMENT!!! BRM!!! I must come clean - In nearly 20 years playing online I have NEVER actually managed a bankroll in any capacity... Laughable right? Or is it? How many others are the same? How many other people have been playing for a long time but always take money out after a score & spend it???

So moving forward, I'm aiming to fund my sessions as I go, around $250 for a Sunday buy in total & $150-$200 for a midweek session... We'll have to see how finances are closer the time. The main idea is that money goes in to fund the buy ins but NO MONEY COMES OUT!!! After 12 months I'll assess and see how I'm doing...

6) This one might seem ridiculous but I've been doing it - When I start playing a session, I take my hourly breaks but I remain at my station & finish out the games I'm in, at my PC, with HUD running, and I stay focused & play my best............................I will not be switching to my smartphone when I'm down to the last three tables, playing on the move as I cycle to the shop for beer & sweets or other ****......... That would be crazy to do......... You might end up missing hands like Aces or other big premiums.... and it would really suck if you were short stacked and then saw two others go all in before you, and the board run out AAxxx, so you would have tripled up and be 2nd in chips with 18 to go.... That would be ****.

7) After every play session, WITHOUT FAIL, there will be a review session done. I'll review marked hands using HRC, Flopzilla, equilab & other software to analyze & study spots that came up during the previous session. From these study sessions I will draw out key focus areas that will be highlighted and maintained at the forefront of my mind during the next playing session....

So this should be a great way to work on leaks in a practical sense......... I'm going to have a rough idea of what I need to work on anyway, but the review sessions will make clear exactly what concepts I'm focusing on in the next play session.

8) Pre session prepartion routine... I've not had one at all. I used to..... I'm going to make sure that it is included with the same priority as playing itself.... Gym, a jog, breathing exercises, mindfulness audio etc etc.... Just, something to prepare my mind & body to play. Absolutely no play that follow falling out of bed into the chair and late regging etc...

9) I will only play games that are in my pre selected schedule & no more.... So I'll have a list of specific games to play & that also means that when I'm nearing the end of my session I will not be impulse regging extra games to fill up extra screen space...........When I've got two games left, I've got two left or one.............. If I've got one game left I will fill up the screen space with RFI charts or facing an open charts etc!!! Study while I play to some extent... errmm... Is that considered RTA and if so should I not!? Thoughts?

10 - I think this is "LASTLY" ======= I'm taking about 6 weeks off playing starting immediately!!!

Currently I'm a mess... and I'm sorting my life out in loads of ways.... I've actually been at rock bottom, with mental health, with lifestyle, mindset, substance use, general life application, relationships, income.... The whole caboodle!!! I've gone through the worst patch of my life by miles and I've had enough............ I love poker but it's currently just part of a very unhealthy lifestyle and that needs to change.... So everything is changing together......... I've got support from various different places, I have incredibly supportive family..... I have friends who... errmm... I think I do, well I used to anyway... I'm sure there still out there somewhere....

Point is, this is secretly part of an overall process where I'm drawing a line and turning my life around from the darkest place I've ever been & a destination that led to an early grave & a leagacy of shame.... So if you have read this, and will follow me on this journey then I'm nothing but grateful. I'm excited to treat this like a diary and look back in 12 months time feeling proud that I did what I had to, and hopefully inspired others to make the changes they also needed to make.



During my time off playing I'm studying with https://www.mttpokerschool.com/ - I was part of the school for 6 months but didn't make the most of it. I'm working through the video library of GTO super study going over all manner of spots at all stack sizes... If you're interested in GTO then here is your place to learn.

I'm exhausted after writing this thread. I'll post an update or two before returning to play again.

Peace

t.l.d.r

more than reasonable... Imagine you did immediately became bizzarrely emotionally invested to only find that OP never once posted an update or provided further information or context just to add depth....

You might struggle to move on & IMHO settling a on a first impression of Texas Pete as a rude person wouldn't be a far cry from the truth...

Hi TexasPete,

It's clear that you've put a lot of thought and effort into your plan to turn your poker journey around and create a more positive relationship with the game.
Your candidness about your past experiences and the challenges you've faced is commendable, and it's a testament to your commitment to improvement.

It's evident that you're determined to make positive changes in your poker life and, by extension, in your overall well-being.
Remember that progress may not always be linear, and there will be challenges along the way.
However, with the right mindset and dedication, you can work toward your goals and enjoy a healthier relationship with the game.

Best of luck with your journey, and I hope to hear more about your progress and insights in the future.

Latest update -

I have yet to exert the self discipline to actually stop playing BUT...I did manage to get two $1k score back to back turning a net loss over 3000 odd games into a slight overall profit.

Quite the relief... A memory jogger on how to actually win a tournament and some reassurance that putting time in to studying away from playing does have very obvious and positive impact on my game!!!

Hey TexasPete,

it was a nice introduction that i have read and can absolutely subscribe to many things you have mentioned. It seems we have a lot in common. Was also at my personal rock bottom and now taking the baby-steps to get out of all that garbage so i will be a very interested follower on your journey.

Thanks DrJuanGonzalez!!

It makes all the difference you know... just a short, seemingly insignificant message, confirming your interest and subscription, and that small token creates & cements the drive & commitment, if there was any lacking, needed to make this a long term definite!

Thank you also to Slyless for your message.

I've got an idea that I want to share and hopefully get some feedback on, both positive & critical. The latter is arguably more important as it helps to make adjustments & improvements.

The best thing I can post about is that I've FFFINNNALLY, after... LITERALLY years of play & around 5000 tournaments played without any significant score or even simply turning a profit from overall play which was seriously bothering me because I'd always taken a certain pride & joy in regarding myself as a winning, profitable player...

Yeah my stats were looking sad for real... Not the worst you'd ever see, but losing. I'd been making runs, lot's of deep runs but always came up short, often bubbling the FT & the absolute best results I was making were 4th & 5th places.

So I decided to get serious about poker again & knew that I had to start studying again & reviewing my own play. I eventually got a renewed license for Poker Tracker 4 & FlopZilla. The latter I still haven't gotten around to using it to study in the way that I'm aware it can be used... I'm not exactly sure what I'm waiting for but I know that having some study pals will make a big difference & that touches on what I want to share.

A short while later and I also bought an updated 1 month license for Holdem Resources Calculator which was very high up the priority list.

I believe that the time spent using those study tools & also working through the video library of GTO analysis & strategy solutions using one of the solvers, well that time made a vital difference and allowed me to make the adjustments I needed to...

I ended up winning a $8k gtd ($3.30 bi) Bounty builder on stars. I did it!!! ' relief' doesn't come to close to describing how I felt after so long playing and losing... All the stress & self doubt... Had the game changed so much that I was actually just a losing player now? Is online poker even beatable any more and worth playing? There were lot's of questions & I was starting to wonder if I had what it takes anymore and maybe I should just quit playing altogether... But this 1st place finish, from a field of 3067 entries & a total winnings purse of around $950 from a $3.30 buy in was a very much needed present to answer some of those questions and keep me hungry & motivated to play & improve...

"But it's only a micro stakes tournament with a field full of total fish!!! You most likely were just running way over EV & luckboxed your way to a win vs sub standard opposition..."

There might be elements of truth to that statement, especially the part about me luckboxing my way to victory... What happened the next day around 3pm was, in a way, a reply to the previous statement & accusation....

I managed to be restrained enough with the money I'd won & paid off some debts, then I splashed out on some luxuries that need not be discussed & with the little I had left I put $$$'s back in to poker tournaments hoping to get another score...and score I did...

I think it was almost down to the last few dollars... The games I'd been playing weren't going great and I was getting a bit frustrated...which is definately a mental game leak that I need to assess and work on. And with just about my last few dozen $s I played a satellite to the daytime $162 bounty builder on stars. It was an $11 rebuy paying about 3 seats. I put $22 in and very fortunately ran well & it was my time!! Qualified and had about 20 minutes to calm down and get a few refreshments...

I've not played many games at that level stake but the one's I have played have left a lasting impression. The game is totally different at those higher buy ins... Almost every hand is 3bet pre flop & 4bet jams come in pretty consistently too... It's very fun if you like the freedom of an aggressive game..

Long story short.... I ran ok, picked up KK like 4 times in 30-40 hands... One hand with them I had to make a disciplined fold vs two streets of aggression and am still wondering if I got outplayed, however, considering I ended up in 2nd place I don't fee like it was too damaging.

I got to the final table from a starting field of about 55 but I was in 9th place out of 9 with only around 12 big blinds... The general them was that the other players were going crazy and risking their whole stack to try and win bounties and busting in the process... I played tight, didn't get involved much, got lucky when I did go all in winning my flips or holding with the best of it and before long, I was heads up and guaranteed $1000 roughly with bounties on top. I think I only won 1 bounty for $58 but I wasn't complaining given the final result and my small investment to get there.

OK so feeling good and back to winning ways... Confidence is reinstated that I do have the skills, knowledge & practical application to take down tournaments both at micro stakes & as high as $162.... But still....all the other things are missing... The discipline. The bankroll management. The strict tournament schedule. The mental game preperation. The correct pre session preparation and conditioning i.e. sleeping well, eating well, maintaining a tidy computer environment, specific study areas & focusing on those concepts during sessions, consistent hand history review..etc, etc....etc... So that's what is needed next. Those installed well & taking a step back from playing poker to develop & create a passive income or multiple streams from outside of poker sources...of which I have multiple planned... It's just doing the work now.


So here is what I wanted to share and ask for some feedback on.

I'm thinking about setting up a paid for community supporting my poker play... Hmmm... Tricky to find the best way to describe. OK... So I'm thinking about having a Patreon profile for my poker. So, punters sign up as Patron's meaning they pledge a monthly donation. Now I thought recently that how about if that monthly Patreon donation was actually put towards my bankroll & buy ins??? And just to be clear, there will be a return for the Patron's from profits when big scores come in.

So what will donating Patron's get in return for their monthly contribution??? Quite a lot actually.

Firstly, the playing sessions will be streamed live, so i guess on Twitch, but the platform doesn't matter so much. Averaging 3 playing sessions per week. Now, each playing session will have a relating study session the next day. This will be private, members only deal. So any hands/spots that draw particular attention or curiousity from the playing sessions will be marked & then analysed during the study sessions... There will be a very dynamic & attentive chat feature during the study sessions & possibly even so much as a live zoom/teams type set up. Will have to see what's possible and faesible.

The study sessions will use an array of tools to go into detail on the hands that are looked into... PT4 replayer, Equilab for range analysis. Flopzilla looking at board textures & ranges clashing over the different boards encountered in game, and then expanding to other flops and board textures too. Of course, Holdem resources calculator will be used to study push fold spots in detaill not just pulling up the GTO solutions, but editing the ranges going both to the widest assumed villain ranges and hypothetical tight ranges too so we are developing a grasp of the whole spectrum and how that affects our strategy...

Those are the current tools and software I'm using, so those will be used on a live stream that is accessible for members to sit in, ask questions, discuss and collaborate in one large group & potentially go into smaller study groups within the community to then come back together and share ideas.

I'm obviously a student of the game & in reality not an accomplished expert by any means, so I'll be taking the position of facilitating and guiding the study to best of my ability. Then, I'll be getting 1-1 coaching and also will be part of study groups and training programs outside the Patreon group so I'll be bringing knowledge gained from there back to my subscribers...

OK that's quite a gist.

The final important aspect is that if monthly donations are going towards my buy ins in some way, whether putting up a portion like 50% of my total buy ins, or the entire roll, there will be a return when I'm in profit, similarly to a normal backing/staking set up. I've still got to give this thought and work out exactly how it would work but basically I would likely keep a record of all the money that went into funding my buy ins, then when I eventually went into profit, that staking money was returned in some way... perhaps just back into the bankroll, so that I keep playing, and keep building a roll with long term goals in mind.

The long term goal might be that I end up with a bankroll big enough to go play in the WSOP 2024 and the people who've been donating and engaging with the Patreon community will be the recipiant's of a profit share...


Those are the basic ideas, with some level of detail...

What are your thoughts??

Over and out for now and I look forward to this growing hopefully and getting my s**t together as laid out in the plan.

Peace

A lot can change in a small amount of time it would seem...

You could say I've had an epiphany of sorts...

Basically I've have quite a drastic change in what my goals are and I'm glad... I think I've realised some important truths that will improve my life overall and the enjoyment I get from poker... Hopefully the amount of money I make too...

I started to become curious, maybe even sceptical and confused regarding how much the average, successful, online poker player will averagely make in profit per year... I've been using sharkscope to pull up other players stats... Initially to gauge what my opponents are like so I could make the best adjustments to different player types...

Through the process of viewing dozens and dozens of players stats I started noticing that even the best players I would come across at ABI's ranging $10-$50, barely any of them were turning a decent profit. It has become glaringly obvious to me that in order to make decent money from online poker, you're going to need to be playing extremely high ABI's, like $250-$500 range...

I don't know what other people consider to be a worthwhile way to invest your time playing, but personally, let's say that I was playing full time, so 40-50 hours per week, which I can say from experience is actually difficult & quite draining... Well, I'd want to be making AT LEAST $75K+ per year.... And actually, if that was all that you were making as an average... After 5 years would you feel like you accomplished much??? Don't all poker players get into this because we dream of winning...millions??? Not 10's of thousands of dollars.

I've been coming accross a lot of players who have clocked up 20k+ games BUT....have only a total profit of $50k-$75k.... That is a lot of time sat playing online poker and is that really much to show for it?

So....

F*%k dat!!!

Live tournament circuit like the GUKPT where a main event first place prize pays up to, and often exceeding £100k!!! WSOP tournaments where you can bag $250k for a 1st place score.... Now that's more the money I'm after.

So... The goal is no longer beating online poker at $50 abi over 10k games and I would seriously advise anyone who is aiming for that to deeply consider that goal and assess what that really means... At the end of the day... It's still gonna be 8 players, sat around a table, throwing chips around & sharing 1 deck of cards to play the same game with the same rules... So why not try to play for the most money possilbe... The thought of sitting around, for hours, days...playing...ahem...MICROS!!!! WHAT THE F....!!?? No no no no no....

No more micros. No more low stakes... I'm leaving those games behind and I feel slightly depressed thinking about how much time I've already spent playing those stakes but we must look forward and focus on what's ahead.

I'm taking a step back & going to focus on creating an income, and a passive income that will grow as time goes by.... So that eventually I am able to play a tournament schedule online where the buy ins total $700-$1000 over 10-15 tournaments.... And that I'm only doing that to build up a bankroll & access large live tournaments like GUKPT main event, grand final for example with a buy in of £2000!!!

Speaking of which.... That exact event is taking place in London, at the Victoria casino on Edgeware road on Thursday the 30th of November.... That's in 15 days. There are also a midi version & mini version with buys of £1100+£150 & £250 respectively... There are satellites for the midi & main events later today & this Sunday 19th of November... I'm going to do my best to get the cash together & take a pop seeing if I can qualify for a seat in one of these tournaments where there are tens of thousands of pounds up for grabs!!!

From now on if I'm playing online I'm going to put down about $75-$100 in Satellite buy ins only trying to play some of the high stakes tournaments where over the long term, your hour average will be reasonable...

I look froward to coming back to post again when I've got a seat in the GUKPT in the coming weeks...

Peace

Enough Waffle...

My next playing session will be the first of my new poker comittments...

Key concepts... I will no longer withdraw funds...AT ALL!!! I'm going to set up an e-wallet where poker funds will be held if not just sat in the client...

I will choose a tame schedule with medium - low variance, low table count & low starting buy ins until I bink something...

So here is my schedule that I will be starting with:

Ipoker = €10 fists of fury, €10 bounty, €5 fists of fury, €5 rebuy... Then two satties - €5 to €50 daily & a €10 to €100.

888 = $22 pko rumble (weekdays it's a $6k gtd), $11 voyage/bigshot. Sats = $1 sub sat to $16.50 to $109 pko & $5 to $55 rumble.

Stars = $11 bounty builder (weekdays I think this is a $35k gtd), the $4 or $5 bounty builder starting around 1600-1800 UK time. Then each session I'll throw in the $530 bounty builder sub sat for $5...


This schedule contains only 8 MTTs & 5 Satellites... The total cost is €45 ($49), $55.50 & roughly $25 depending on stars bounty builder rebuys. Total = $129.50...

I will start committing to play that once a week... Obviously my initial session requires the full amount from my pocket... After that, I'll hopefully have most of or all of the funds needed already in the accounts...

I want to bankroll manage more strictly than I ever have before... I may deposit again if I want to top up my bankroll to play higher... But let's hope that I quite quickly score somewhere around the $1k mark, then take some shots & hit a lifetime biggest score for $3k-$7k!!!

At that point I will withdraw a starting bankroll to start playing live cash...

OK I'm going to leave it there for now... My plan is to start getting into the personal routines, habits, life changes & study commitments as I go along... I am visualizing posting in this thread in the first 3-4 months of 2025... I'm visualizing that my post is stating that I have spun up my bankroll since today & now have enough to fly out to Vegas and play a schedule of tournaments in the WSOP 2025!!!

Before then I'm going to include some live credit sats on Ipoker that will take me to a weekly £130 buy in with first place prize of £3k-£3.5k week in week out & also monthly, regular £250 buy ins with multiple days of play & a £50k guarantee which is smashed every time!!!

The purpose of this thread is not to just simply keep a diary of my play...but to intensely focus on all the changes to my lifestyle, diet, mindset, study routine, health & fitness, game selection & everything & anything I can do & change that will bring better results... I think I have always suffered with stressful & emotionally difficult issues related to poker that are very common & I hope that by tackling those issues head on & reporting the processes that others will benefit from my experiences.

I'll give a quick update before my next session!!! Here's to WSOP 2025 & winning a £50k live mtt 6 times before then!!!

I may have cheated a little bit and played 5 or 6 games this evening...

TBH - That is a great thing to have happened...in that it shows I have poor self discipline... I was aware of this fact, and now I'm sharing it with you... So what's the take away!?? I must... WE ALL (you know who you are) must increase our self discipline!!

Dr. Trisha Cardener said that SD is like a muscle...and also that we have a gas tank for it... So if we don't strengthen our SD then it get's weaker... Then on top of that, if we are going through a very tough situation, & we are being forced to use the SD that we do have, we only have so much of it...and once that gas tank empties...we aint gonna be able to SD ourselves for much longer or very well..

What do we do about this!? How to make our self discipline stronger & longer lasting!? Trish said that it can be down to the simple things... like, if we have a thought, about something we should be doing...but then we ignore the obvious correct decision and don't do that thing... for example...we planned to go to the gym, but now its raining... and I didn't sleep well... So I state out loud to myself, "I can't be arsed" & we skip the gym! This is how to weaken our SD...

So... What I'm going to do... over the next few days, and then instill as a matter of habit... Is...start doing things that we aern't over the moon about having to do... or just that we have planned to!!

For me... I have constantly said for weeks, months...that I'm going to jog... nothing major... just a 1km - 2km jog around my block... And when I get back... maybe some stretching & yoga sorta thing.. like a short & light exercise routine to start the day!!

OK! So... In order to improve my self discipline... I'm going to jog & do some light strength & conditioning first thing tomorrow morning!! & I will do it every day from now on!! It's killing two birds with one stone!! I'll benefit from the exercise & then my SD should improve too...

AND THE MAIN POINT!!!!?? ---->>>> MY POKER GAME IS GOING TO IMPROVE!! If I am self disciplined to exercise every morning as a way to start my day...well, my game is bound to get better aint it!!

OK That's the takeaway for today!! And also... I will not play again until Sunday let's say.... **** it.. Already my mind is going "but what if... isn't there a game!?" etc... sneaky trying to get out of a hard and fast rule!!

BUT NO!!! I must remain disciplined! I need to do other things over the next 5-6 days!!! Loads... Sorting my life out, making those calls, getting my money straight... Helping my parents with ****... WORKING ON MY MUSIC WHICH I NEED TO RELEASE LOADS OF!!! AAAAANNNNDDD.... Reviewing my recent play!!

When I get paid on Thursday... I'm reloading my HRC membership & getting back to studying!

OK bless up guys! hope you work on you SELF DISCIPLINE TOO!!! Your future self will thank you, I reckon!!


====================

Lastly - what we doing here!??

Approaching final 100 players in a $22 FO $10k gtd... 72 make the money... Not much info on players but overall, no maniacs, ppl p.aying fairly snug!? Spoiler alert, I busted this hand... and I think maybe I should have done something different to what I did!!

What do you do?!?!?

SB flats CO open, we overcall the BB!!!

Having trouble uploading the image of the spot -

so hope this works!!

https://gyazo.com/944de1987ae68513256d4ef231c07de0

HAve a butchers!!

X/c flop or rep a 9, x/r & GII if we need to!??

Hello to the most likely nobody who is following but I believe that will be a story to tell so I continue...

Blessings to all... The update =

Well... I'm still lacking characteristics and behaviors that are crucial to poker success. I've been playing games I was planning specifically not to. I am still, yet to build the routine & behaviors that I deemed absolutely vital to create the correct lifestyle & environment to support my poker... But, I haven't given up.

There is one major change which is extremely positive!!! I have found a business that I'm starting... It's based in ebay...sort of.. Essentially I'm buying and selling collectables... Currently it's a very popular market with 1000's, maybe tens of 1000's of sales every day...

The margin for profit are HUUGGEE literally!! For example - The average price of a large collection of these valuable, say around 100... might be £500 - £700... It's then possible to break down the 100 into individual sales. Before the resell, it's necessary to get the items appraised and certificated as genuine and also the quality scored out of 10 say... Items from that same hundred that receive good scores can go on to resell for £100's, sometimes THOUSANDS for just that one item, therefore returning your initial investment 4 times over at least with the rest just being pure profit!!

OK. lot's of info there.. Gist = I'm going to focus on this business for 6 weeks at a time. Graft and grind and save up thousands of $'s... Then I plan to find a nice rental property on the coast or another chill location! Set up for 7-14 days with an average session bankroll of £350... Play medium to high stakes games with a proper bankroll behind me and also money to pay for 1-`1 coaching sessions following play days!!

The fields are going to be much smaller! The individual scores are going to be juicier!! And above all - I'm going to have money coming in from a legitimate self employed business outside of poker!!! Poker is going to truly become a game I play for fun, where money can be won...and when it is won, it's a bonus...not lifechanging...no desperation!!!

So... I'll be fairly silent in this thread... Please, please... to all the hundreds of people that I undoubtedly know will be heartbroken by this news, I'm sorry.... Hold on, and very soon.. I'll be back... playing high stakes a few times a week... Streaming the sessions... Working towards a live bankroll for the WSOP 2025!! And also, content studying my sessions being uploaded regularly for people to hopefully improve with me!

Take care and good luck at the tables!!

Bless