Sorry to hear about the rough month, hang in there. Read over all those motivational quotes a couple times they are gold.

Also try to think logically about how often you are connecting with flops. We have all had those sessions where we smack every single flop. It can lead to a false sense of entitlement. In reality we are going to miss much more often than we hit and it takes a ton of patience to weather the cold streaks. I'm sure you know all this already, just a reminder. Keep playing well and the results will come!

Your not the only one having a rough July, it will be better in August hopefully for both of us.

Just read from beginning to end. Enjoyed every post. I'd rate it 5star. I like your cash consistency. This is reflected in the graphs you posted having such a steady growth rate. One comment i questioned that you had made was about playing until you hit a 100k tourney score... easy to say but for one tough to achieve and two tough to quit once playing at that level and stopping there. Tourneys are a different beast than cash as you know im sure. Best of luck in August! If you string together a couple of good sessions im sure that 40-50k is possible. GL

@pure_Aggression patience and persevere. storms build character. thanks and gl
@Moaurlawn I hope u finish the month on a gd note, and head into August w some momentum. feel ur pain. #thistooshallpass
@absherrj glad u enjoy the thread. Like u said, tourneys are a different beast, and I def want to spend more time on them next year. GL n life. Sometimes life can be harder than poker. Also, gl n poker. Sometimes poker can be harder than life. Gl n both.

Today: Sometimes it does so much for the psyche just to book a win after days of running bad. That is what I did today. Played 4 hrs, and won $297, and got the hell out of dodge. Hope this jumpstarts into something bigger. Wd like to end the month streaking.

Wow, pretty amazing results so far OP. I always thought live poker was illusion to most regs when it comes to hourly rate and everyone over-estimates their 's.

Would you say you are the best regular and making most of the money by far in the games you play? How much is the rake and tipping etiquette? How many hours have you played so far per week?

Been following ur thread for awhile but never posted before. Good meetin you tonight bro and keep up the grind! Also thanks for the good luck wishes...ended up crushing for +1012 after 6 hr Session!

Thanks @Codecci thanks for the praise. I’ll be glad to answer your questions openly and honestly. First question..I wd say Im in top 5% of overall players, hours logged, and money earned. 2nd question…The rake is 10% up to $5 plus $1 for bad beat jackpot. Tipping etiquette is 3%. I will tip $1 on everything $5-$60, and 3% for pots $60+. 3rd question… I’m averaging 26(ish)hrs/wk . My hourly is back up to $29.04/hr after today’s session. Appreciate the questions, and wish u well.
@smartacus glad that u been following the thread. Always glad to c a “lurker” make a post. Mayb another “lurkers” will follow suit. Secondly, it was great to meet u as well yesterday and play with u some today. Congrats on the nice score yesterday! U r a great player with keen understanding of the game. Today I noticed u being involved in a lot a tough spots, and u played them exceptionally well. Even tho some of those didn’t go ur way, you stilled played them perfectly. I noticed a lot of similarities in our game. I wish u continued success on and off the felt. Glad to c u break the “lurker” seal.

TODAY'S UPDATE: All I can say is Yes! Yes! Yes! 4 digits!! Much needed run gd!! Don’t call it a comeback. Hootie hoo! Hootie hoo! Redbirds, green birds, black birds! Tides r turning! Fought through the storm, and today was a blue sky! 2 great scores in a row! Back on pace!! What?!! With +$1362 the last 2 days, July is turning out to be pretty decent. Hopefully tomo can end the month off right.
Thanks guys for keeping me motivated, and fighting through the struggle this month! During the run bad, I never tilted, and always stayed disciplined, playing each hand the best I can play it. I always kept a level head and maintained mental toughness. IMO 2 great attributes to have in poker. It’s hard to play poker for a living if u ever get too high or too low. Its best to just stay even keel, and play each hand the best u can possible play it. Always making +ev decisions always always always wins in the long run.+ev decisions +ev decisions +ev decisions…That's the mind set all day every day! Today bought $300, added $300, cashed out $1655 = +$1055 on 9.5 hours. Trying to remind myself to practice what I preach, and stay even keel. Tomorrow is another day...
end of month updates coming soon

Do you track your tips?

Gd question, but I don't track my tips. Tipping is part of poker and comes out of my winnings. I hate to even think about it because I know it's a lot. I said earlier that I tip around 3% at HSI, but its capped at $10,and also the 3% is on the winnings. i.e. $500 pot, but $200 is money I put into pot = 3% on $300winnings = $9. Imo I think 2-3% is standard poker tipping. Fwiw - dinners I tip 25% on excellent service, 20% on a gd server, 15-18% on average. Fun fact: Scorty Pippen's nickname is "No Tippin Pippen".

I rly like that post up top about being evenkeeled. Im on my 2nd worst downswing ever and oh wow the thoughts that come up when i am away from the table is so sad...

It IS hard to play poker when the highs are too high and the lows are too low. Keep it real and post as much as possible. I read your thread practically everyday or 2

Am I reading this right, you tip $9 on a $300 net win?

Yes. I wd say $6 to $9 on $300net win.. This is only at HSI, but other places i rarely exceed 2%. I get a lot of perks on comps at HSI (food vouchers, hotel if need it, etc), so I like to give back a little more. Also a lot of the dealers r friends of mine, so I don't mind as much. Their r a few squirrels I will gv just 1-2%. I realize the tips adds up, but not worried bout it. Perhaps my hourly cd be a couple $s higher if i only tipped a dollar on all pots.

Sooo I've read through it all and lurked the past couple months hahaha. I play up at the boat as well, almost exclusively on Saturdays though. Just wanted to say GL and if I ever see you up there I'll say hey. Also wanted to ask you what you thought about TJ? He's super solid IMO and generally the only player at the table I try to avoid. In case you're not familiar, he's an older man who usually dresses very nice, and almost always has a toothpick in his mouth.

Well played yesterday sir. I was rooting for the straight flush to hold as high hand but such is poker I guess. Awesome run yesterday though. Btw, if you happen to score a couple seats to the main and looking to sell one let me know, I would be interested in buying one more than likely. GL.

@tswpoker1 thanks for the well wishes. Not sure if I know TJ. Ill have to b on the lookout for the toothpick man. It looks like u play a lot on Saturday. I usually take Saturday off, but say what's up if u ever c me around. I hope u run gd! thanks
@smartacus thanks. and ill let u know

Today: -$256 on 6.2hrs.
Interesting hand...
ME: $400 Lb. 55
N: $400 OTb, solid A reg, tag player, my gd friend. $15pf from this player means gd holdings.
D: $500 A retired school teacher, plays 3times a wk, doesn't get too out of line. Plays gd. Will call $15pf pretty wide, but usually connected or suited. no gappers.
J: $300 LAG, losing player, might hv a poker problem, likes the action, gd for a few rebuys, will call $15pf w just about anything including gappers.

The 4 players involved in this hand, range from gd to poor. all involved r regulars, and each know the other's style pretty well. It's limped to my gd friend "N" on the button who makes it $15 preflop. I call in Lb, "D" calls in mp, "J" calls in Cutoff. The flop comes 2310. Everyone checks flop. The turn is a 6. Im first to act and I lead out $30 and all 4 players call. Pot is now $165. The river is a 10. I check, school teach "D" checks, maniac "J" checks, solid reg "N" looks down, takes a short pause then picks up a black one and tosses it into the middle. I'm next to act and I look at my 55 in the hole, and ...???
Any ideas my action, and what "N" has here? ... Whats ur play???

End of month updates coming tomorrow.

TJ plays a lot like Norm and Skip, but probably even more straightforward. He might grind out a small profit against the Saturday night crowd, but he is too exploitable by thinking players.

If he stacks you in a big pot you have probably won the bad beat jackpot.

I think he could have AK or similar, I am guessing you raised to like 250?

Going out on a limb and say you called, other 2 players fold, and villain has quad 10s

Me thinks your tipping is way above standard and effecting your hourly and hence your challenge....maybe read the tipping containment thread save yourself some manies.

I'm guessing he is tipping around 8-10 an hour on average.

If its the guy I'm thinking of (and u know his style of play better than me since I have not played there much) I think you can fold pretty comfortably here. I'm not sure he is bluffing 4 ways especially if any other Vs are stationy at all. My thoughts are a 99 or 88 value bet. It's a really weird line either way for this guy based off my limited number of hands with him.

I think u and @funibed r getting me to reconsider my tipping. In short, what does tipping containment thread suggest? U think 2%? 1%? or just $1 regardless the size of pot?

@parellflex u r on it! Villain has AK, and I fold like a little girl. I was leaning towards calling the whole time, and folded for some reason. My thoughts were that "N" (villain) was losing a little bit in the game, and usually tightens up after being down early. So even tho I was pretty sure "N" was bluffing, I just cdnt get myself to push the chips in the middle. I SUCK!! I am so WEAK!! Also, it didn't help that I too was stuck a little in the game, and didn't want to be stuck more. I been beating myself up for not calling that bet for 3 days now!!

Today: It was a total grind from the jump. Pots were small, and players were nitty. $140 up was the most ahead I ever was, and $105 down was the worse. Managed to squeeze out a $71 profit on 5hrs 22mins. On the way home I did something really embarrassing (where's the paper bag- ). I stop at the nearest gas station to fill up the car, and I try to pay the cashier with poker chips. WHat?! lol At least the people in line got a laugh. I don't know what I was thinking, but when I open my wallet I had chips and just put them on the cashier's table for some reason.

update later tonight after big brother 15.

CURRENT UP TO DATE RESULTS THRU 8/1/13 of $40K CHALLENGE



Cash Session Data


Cash session Graph


Tourney Data


Overview of Cash and Tourney Combined

Updates Thru 8/1/13
Averaging 26hrs/wk. Still trying to log more hours. I just have trouble playing more than 6 hrs a day. Some days I can log long sessions, but those r few and far between. Im going to challenge myself to play longer, and hopefully bring up my average hrs/wk.
Cash has been going pretty good all year. I will hit the occasional slumps here and there, but haven’t had any long droughts which is great. Its been pretty consistent as the graph will show. My biggest cash session this year has been $1,055 (just a few days ago) and a $1,043 (2/7/13). I have had 16 winning sessions of $700+, and on the flip- I have had 3 losing sessions of $700 or more. 137 total sessions altogether. Average winning session +$349, and average losing sesh -$282.
My hourly is starting to come down the past month. I fig I cdnt run in the $30s/hr all year. It always did seem a little higher than then norm, and I knew I was running a little more pure than usual. My stats now r just about what I expect from myself. If I can maintain these numbers the last 5 months, i shd b real close on $40k. W a nice $1k score a few days ago and a gd week to end July, I am now only a couple hundo off the pace to hit $40k n cash. But if I hit $40k in cash, and still I lose $5k in tournaments = that’s only$35k on the year = challenge not met! Honestly, it’s going to be tough unless I can bring my hrs/wk average up. If I can start logging closer to 30hrs a week, I might have a shot. Otherwise, I’m going to need a decent tourney score to achieve my $40k goal.
Tournaments- I love them and hate them at the same time. I really feel I have played gd in all of them, but have had some horrible luck. Im hoping tides will turn as the some big WSOP events r coming soon. I just don’t know how I’m going to keep my tourney buyns below the $5k per challenge requirement. Their r so many tournaments this fall I want to play! Right now my total cost on Tournaments is $3,075, and my profit is a BIG NEGATIVE -$2,375.
Goal for Aug: Win $3650 in cash. And log an average of 30/hrs a week. Stay active, exercise, and have a gd balance of poker and life. Also, try to clear my head of poker when Im relaxing at home.
Sidenote: Poker has been consuming me a lot lately, and its really tough to turn it off. I just want to b really good at my profession, but I have to realize sanity is way more important than wracking my brain w numbers, %, hand histories, and even this forum. Im glad Im doing this $40k Challenge, but it can be really stressful too. Because of this challenge, sometimes I feel prisoner to the 1/2 game. I wd love to switch it up to PLO, high limit holdem, and 2/5nlhe, 5/10nlhe; but I will not do that. U guys can count on me sticking solely to this challenge and the requirements. I will not budge from that at all. For those just now following the thread the $40K Challenge, the parameters consist of only playing 1/2nlhe and 1/3nlhe all year, and buying in for $300-$800 per session (not to exceed $800 in 1 day), play $5k worth of tournaments, and try to average 30hrs/wk playing. That’s it. Now just 5 more months to go, and its over.
Thanks again for everyone following my journey, and all the awesome feedback, and helpful advice. I hope everyone can find motivation through this thread to achieve their own personal goals. Someone once told me, “if u have never failed, then ur not trying hard enough to succeed.”
God Bless Rayz

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