As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I would rather not say at the moment. Ask me again in a month and I'll probably spill it =P

Played almost awesome today, there were a couple hands where I really was scared of variance and didn't want to get drawn out on instead of going for max EV which I immediately regretted afterwards (e.g., shoving for PSB instead of inducing on K338 turn with KQ even though the ace is the only card in the deck I'm afraid of), but other than that I felt I was on top of my game the whole time: 11 hours! +$572. Of course, I probably ran above EV too Interestingly enough, my all-in EV has been HORRIBLE but I can't complain. Obviously I've been on the right side of enough coolers, etc. to make up for that.

There was one guy today that I had no ****ing clue what he was doing, he flatted my raises OOP with ATC nearly 100% of the time, and would lead every flop for like 1/4 pot (into ~20BB pot or whatever), I would raise to slightly over pot, and he would fold. This happened like 6 times in 3 orbits before I left the table to get dinner. It was quite hilarious to me, and also healthy for my chip stack.

Today I shared a tidbit of strategy for the first time ever at the tables for a nice reg in a fairly interesting hand. Reg limps UTG and re-raises my AKhh, I call and there was 1 unknown caller in the big blind. 3-handed to the flop with $100 in it, As2s3d. Checks around. My check behind here is a bit questionable but I think it is correct, as any non-Ace hand will probably fold if I bet in position here and there aren't too many draws I'm worried about in this 3-bet pot. Turn is 4s, big blind checks, UTG bets $30, I raise to to $100, big blind tank-folds, UTG calls. River blank, board reads As2s3d4s7d, I bet $100 into $300 (he has $300 total behind) and get called by the exact hand I expected, KsKx. The big blind folded pocket 5's because he thought bet+raise meant one of us had a flush!! Because I like this reg guy, I explained how we don't really have flushes in our range unless we're 3 betting/calling with KQs or QJs (very unlikely in my cardroom, 3 bets are so rare this would be suicide- I actually thought maybe AKs was a fold in this hand given a tight limp/re-raise range? Not sure, but we were deep, I had position, and the 3 bet wasn't that big). Anyway, strat at the tables will probably not happen again for a long time. A few of the guys are catching on that I'm winning ALOT though, haha.

Running total: +$1886, 46 hours.

One other interesting hand I'm going to write down for later review before I forget:

I raise in the BB with AK, one villain limp/calls from LP and it's HU to the flop, 578r. Villain thinks I'm uber-bluff-happy which is not true at all, but she is the same villain who snapped me off in an $800 pot with AA in my 3-25-2012 update. Therefore I check, she bets near pot. She's pretty aggressive too so I'm almost certain I'm ahead, but I fold because playing Ace high OOP for 3 streets against a pretty good (not great, but EASILY one of the best in the cardroom), tricky player just did not seem appealing to me. WTF should I be doing here?!?!!? SO CONFUSED.

+$811, 7 hours. Not too satisfied with my play in a few spots, raised a river bet with trips top kicker and called a re-raise (obvious boat). Still missing a good amount of spots where I'm like "damn this would be a great squeeze bluff spot" but I chicken out and then the guys show down like T8s and **** like that. Obviously results today are fantastic.

Weird hand: I check-raise bluffed (very sizeable amount too!) a T23r board with A5s backdoor flush draw against another 400BB deepstack, he ****ing calls with QJo and wins, wtf. I think this warrants a:

[ ] poker is dead

Most of my profit today was from really straightforward hands where people were shoving into me when I had basically the nuts.

Running total: +$2697, 53 hours.

Oh ya one other funny thing, I raise on the button with A9s, folds around to CO who limped, he folds AKo faceup, says playing a drawing hand heads-up is no good.

Lots of views but not that many responses. Any suggestions to make this more interesting? Blog is mainly for myself but I like to entertain readers :P

more threadsavers. On a serious note, the conversation/study ITT is too deep for most people here to feel confident discussing.

Hmm, yea it's pretty strat-focused, maybe I will write more about my life later. For now, time to go play another session. Here are some non-strat related funny stories from the tables recently:

-One guy bets $20, other guy tries to raise to $30, can't figure out why it's not working, then just shakes his head and folds instead.

-I asked a guy who's been there every time I have if they have special comps for regulars, he replied "well, everyone else is rewarded with my money".

-Another guy was complaining about how the lighting in this cardroom was horrible and asked if someone else could read the cards out to him... he was wearing sunglasses.

threadsaver:

+$175 in 4 hours. I run real goot. Interesting thing that happened today, as I mentioned earlier I show my hands a decent amount (although I've been doing it less), my entire table started doing it every single hand for a couple hours. People were SHOCKED that I 3 bet JJ... lol. I don't 3bet light that often because people never fold, but I can probably cbet insanely profitably here. I just always chicken out...

In other news, next week is my very last week at my government job. Friday 6th my last day! Motivation for doing actual work: -100000000000000.

Running total: +$2872, 57 hours.

hi

Great first post. Welcome to the internet.

GL OP. Subscribed.

Sir your first line where you say you quit because it was super boring was a huge cliff/mistake !

Do you have any idea how many hours must be put it to match your 6 figure salary? Do you understand that you can be card dead for hours and want to lose your mind? Boring sir equals live cash grinding 199% lol!

this is all being said to which I don't even know crap about your skill level lol.. With level poker being played at mid and higher stakes now a days and you just jumping into this makes me think your drawing dead here bro! Go get your job back! Poker is passion of mine as well and really don't like raining on your parade bro but good god man!

As with every one I Wish you best of luck! Don't forget about tourneys either!

6 figures I would keep the job and enjoy poker/poker reading on the side. I would play like that until I hit a huge retirement score (so in essence work a full hardy life).

@Acesflow11

Repeating some stuff I've already said, but:
-I have already quit, my last day is this Friday April 6th.

-I have really low living expenses, really, really really don't care for all that money. As long as I can live comfortably, I'm more than happy to drive a Civic the rest of my live.

-You say poker is your passion... then you say it's boring. Make up your mind I have been doing "double time" these past couple weeks working for the FDA *and* played 57 hours of poker since I started this blog *and* done lots of poker studying, but I don't consider any of the poker part to be work, I would do that on my recreational time. I realize I may not feel this way in a year but I think there is a decent chance that I will!

Also thanks to everyone for the comments. I don't really have a specific response for a lot of them but I read (ldo) and really appreciate all of them.

name of girl in threadsaver plz?

thx, and rock on dude.

GL OP. I share your passion for poker I could play all day and be happy. Go get em!

Jo Sang Hwi. Funnily enough, the Google image search actually turns up almost all twoplustwo results (for me anyway).

16 hours left in my job!! My motivation is soooooooo low to keep doing this that I'm actually going to try to convince my boss to let me shave off the last day. Gotta go for that thin value.

I'm in the mood to break a bit of my anonymity. I currently play in Oaklawn, Hot Springs, and plan on playing this Fri/Sat/Sun/Mon (unless I get really tired, since I did do 40 hours of what most people like to call "real work" this week).

Additionally, I'll be in St. Louis in a week- half to visit friends, and half to take advantage of the softer games during the WSOP circuit event. Will probably play 2/5 over 1/2 when possible, might even take a shot at 5/10 if I'm feeling like I'm playing my A game.

Wouldn't mind hanging out with some 2+2'ers if any readers want =)

ok name a place and i'll be waiting

DONE WORKING FOR THE FDA!

Today was interesting. Played two hands in a row against a solid reg, first hand I raised preflop and had KJ on 22J, bet flop, check/called river. He had limped with KK. Next hand, I raise QQ, he 3 bets me IP, I flat. low cards on board, check/check flop, I bet turn, ace on the river, check/check. He has KK AGAIN. I think I played these hands correctly- definitely think I lost the minimum given the villain's capability of bluffing, but I will need to review.

I met another poker pro at my table! One thing I noticed is he stole unwanted pots a lot more- I need to get better at recognizing these spots. He folded an Ace (only showed one) to a single turn bet from me on AhKh3hJc board in a HU 3 bet pot after flop was checked through, I had air (87s or something). I didn't really understand this fold, but I guess not many other players at my cardroom are bluffing here and I'm an unknown. Dan, if you're reading, send me a PM!

Most interesting hand of the day:

several limpers, I raise from LP with 55. I usually overlimp here, but I've been taking a lot of pots down preflop recently. 1 caller from EP, old guy who sat down not long ago but seems nitty.

Flop Q34. He checks, I cbet $25 into $35, he calls.

Turn 5, giving me a set and completing a diamond flush draw. He checks, I bet $60, he calls.

River T. Pot is ~$200, he has $170 behind. I bet $100, he shoves for $70 more, I sigh-call. He shows KT. I was kicking myself for not checking behind here, but I'll need to review this hand later.

Just a few hands later, I get this one against him:

I raise JJ 5x from EP, a bunch of callers including same villain on the button.

Flop is KT5, pot is $50. Checks to him, he bets $25. I call, which was basically lighting money on fire in retrospect, this old nit is never bluffing. But at the time I thought it was a weak steal after a bunch of people checked.

Turn is some blank I forget, I check, he bets $25 again into $100. I feel like this is a weak king or something, so I try to get him out with a checkraise to $125. He calls, pretty sure he has 2pair or better here.

But the river is a glorious J, giving me a set. Pot is $350 now, he has $340 behind and I have him covered. I bet $200, he says "you got me if you got AQ" and snaps, then mucks probably KT or K5 I'm guessing. Maybe TT or 55 even! Not sure if I should have gone for a shove on the river, don't know if he calls there. PROBABLY yes. Will review this later.

Anyway yea that river. Damn. That was a nice bailout. I felt like I played slightly subpar overall but still ended up +$564 in 6 hours. One example of how I win so much: I bet Ax on an AQJQA board 3-handed on the river, both villains called and mucked. Like, wat, seriously.

Running total: +$3436, 63 hours.

quit job for poker at 1/4th the salary is this a good idea in 2012?

Smart people will always manage. Life is short, why shouldn't you go for your dreams now? If it doesn't work out or gets boring I'm sure OP will find something interesting to do.

Gl man, thread seems interesting.

I regret mentioning that in the title. This is going to be the last time I answer non-poker money-related questions:

I do not need much money.

Mainly, I never want to have kids or even be married, therefore I don't really need to save copious amounts of cash (I was investing like 50% of my salary anyway...). I don't care much for luxury goods, I am happy driving a Honda Civic for the rest of my life. Well, the Civic equivalent, in 20 years maybe this will be a low-class flying car.

Additionally, most of my hobbies are essentially free: sports, video/board games, poker, guitar, piano, etc. In fact, I'm thinking about all the non-clothes/food/gas/etc. expenses I've had in the past couple years, I can think of: Soul Calibur V, Starcraft II, maybe $100 in admission fees to various places (e.g., minigolf, laser tag, waterpark, museum), then maybe like $300 total in buying stuff for girls, and then maybe like $200 total in alcohol. That's pretty much it. I would estimate less than $1000 total in the past 2 years for non-life-essential expenses.*

*I do realize I have been capable of, and have been, spending more on the essentials, e.g., nice clothes/food; I definitely don't want to live in poverty. I very much enjoy being able to go to whatever restaurant I feel like and not have to think about gas costs to drive around the country, but $15/hr is enough for my desires there Also VERY IMPORTANT, note this is a starting goal, I study poker often so I obviously hope my winrate will constantly improve.

@NeverStopTrying (and everyone else!): Thanks for the encouragement

And after that, I feel I need another threadsaver:

+$341 in 3 hours, last day at Oaklawn for me, then it's St. Louis next week.

Running total: +$3777, 66 hours.

HI GUYS ITS MY BIRTHDAY!

OK last update was rushed because I was at a friend's place. Anyway, I wanted to summarize my experiences at Oaklawn:

-Goldmine of a cardroom? On average, I would say out of the 9 other players, there were 3 tourist fish, 5 reg fish, and 1 decent reg.

-Electronic tables were NICE for my winrate. I kind of hate not having chips and cards to fiddle with, but these deal an average of maybe 50 hands per hour. I've seen up to 80 hands per hour on a 7-handed table full of regfish. Rake was capped at $5 + $1 for BBJ, people complain like crazy but considering you don't tip this is actually decently cheap. Although, I did spend about $5 for WATER on average every time I go because I always tip the waitress and they only have these tiny ass styrofoam cups... once I asked for water in a glass like they pour beer in and the waitress said that was not allowed. WTF.

-3 bets from non-me players were AA or KK more than 50% of the time. This is absolutely absurd as I have done something like 3 bet ATs (merged rather than polarized since I almost always get called), cbet PSB on a low card board, and some guy folds QQ face up thinking I have KK or AA. lol. Last time I got 3 bet, I was about to snapfold but it was a near min-3bet so I called with AQs which was basically lighting money on fire (vs 150BB deep opponent). I check folded a low flop and he obviously shows AA.

-Biggest mistake that prevents otherwise somewhat-decent players from not being winners is not getting value out of their hands. By far. Either by not raising pre, or only betting 1 street with TPGK on a harmless board, or only betting like 1/4 pot with their made hands (I still don't know how to deal with these tiny bets very well).

-I ****ing hate shortstackers. I ****ing hate shortstackers. DIAF.

-Charity cases. I heard many stories of, but never had the luck to encounter some guy who was just blatantly giving away money (one was in the cardroom during my dinner break once!). Tons of bad players, but no one who was calling any raise and stacking off with any pair type guys like I read about here on 2+2.

-Floor. Huge shoutouts that they will probably never see. FREAKING AMAZING staff in every way.

-I discovered a method of playing for free (!!). When you first sit down, you don't have to post a blind like most cardrooms. However, you are allowed just get up and seat change any time there's an open seat at you table. To do this, you have to sign out, then sign back in on the other seat. Which yea... doesn't make you post a blind. I didn't choose to abuse this but if you dodged the blinds like 4 times per hour that would be a huge boost to your winrate, heh. You can easily use an excuse like "my previous seat was cold I got 72o like 4 times in a row"

-Aquarium dimensions. Since I've been finishing up my 9-5 job, I've only been on weekends mainly. Tables vary from 1 to 4, but never less than 1. I've asked the staff and they said they always have at least 1 at all times throughout the week, which is enough I guess. Only game really ever run is $1/2 Hold'Em.

-Overall, Oaklawn is an A+ cardroom to play in. I do like the city, and I have family + friends here so this would be a legit place to live- however I highly expect to find a better option somewhere else.

-I am clearly god's gift to poker. I played 10 sessions, averaging 6.6 hours per session (the drive was 1 hour each way for me). My hourly rate was $57.23, which roughly translates to 57bb/100. 9 sessions were winning and only 1 was losing. Anyway, it's hard for me to estimate my true winrate, but I'm not going to worry about it too much- I plan on just playing a lot in the future and I'll find out empirically Here's to hoping the rungood follows me to St. Louis!