Hey Guys,

I've found this forum to be really helpful. Just a few quick questions (stats are below):

1. Is my winrate sufficient enough to be competitive at higher levels (once I have the BR) or should I be nearer to 60% for the $6.25s? I am trying to figure out if I am wasting my time dreaming of higher stakes.

2. I just purchased Moshman's book (heard mixed reviews). After reading that, what should my next steps be? Aside from more volume, should I think about signing up at HUSNG.com if I make enough money from poker to be able to invest it in poker education? Basically, what can I do to become better? Are there enough non-regs on the way up to $115s to be able to go along that path?

Past 90 Days
Games Played: 711
Average Profit: $0.37
Total Profit: $264.05
Average Buy-In: $7.02
ITM%: 55.84%

All
Games Played: 1350
Average Profit: $0.28
Total Profit: $380.10
Average Buy-In: $4.88
ITM%: 56.89%



As you can see, I've gone on some nasty downswings. As a result, I've switched to a 40x Buy-In requirement for the $11.50s (I'm $8 or so away), and a 50x Buy-In requirement for levels higher than $11.50. Does this seem ok?

Appreciate the advice.

best path would be 22s, then 33s, then 55s, finally i think it would be time for 110s;

In terms of development. Ways to get better. Sorry if that wasn't clear. I guess really I'm wondering, how much better do I have to get to be able to make money at $22s, $33s, $55s, $110s, given my stats? Or is such a thing difficult to extrapolate. Thanks again.

put in tons of volume, dont worry too much about session reviews and that **** unless you really had trouble with a specific villain. if you can put in 50+ games a day it'll go a long ways towards popping you up stakes fast.

get ready to play vs me.

Read Jspazz's poohbah post on bankroll managment and use a fraction kelly bankroll management. For example, 50bi is way too conservative.

I wouldn't worry about your winrate being "high enough" in moving up except for plugging into kelly calculation. You are at low stakes: just focus on improving your game and increasing your bankroll. Reevaluate when you've played a few thousand games and have reached somewhere around 20/30/50 buyin level. Don't think about higher buyins than Kelly tells you to think about. Downswings are nasty in heads up--move down in stakes when your downswinging in order to avoid playing worse due to downswing longterm tilt. Consider a Step-down stop loss system--rather than stopping playing after a certain number lost, just move down a stake. Just make sure to move back up soon after. And yes you will have to move up and down and up and down--poker variance is a rollercoaster.

Good luck! Poker is hard.

this, volume is awesome.

I am going to disagree, less volume and more study, especially if you are beginner.

serious post:

i would play 1000 33s, then 500 55s, then 4 110s, then 5000 22s

then i think you are ready

gl

Get into the habit of putting a lot of non emotional time into poker.

Once you're winning at a solid rate, whether it's at the $22s or $50s, then focus a higher and higher % of your time on playing, it shouldn't be hard if you're already putting many hours into playing and studying.

The studying aspect of poker makes a lot more sense for those that are struggling or not where they want to be at the single to double digit buyins. But once you get to a certain level of success, a great deal of your time should be dedicated to just putting in good volume. At that point, you can be a lot more selective with how and where you study and your return for the time you put in to non playing should be higher.

An example would be a triple digit buyin regular that is having a lack of clarity in end game decisions studying Spamzor's end game post or an end game video or two one week, rather than reading 5 random HH reviews or watching 5 random videos.

But until you reach that point, there are a lot of tools around to help you improve while you are putting in games that are worthwhile to utilize.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I'm familiar with Kelly, but my ROI seems really low at the $6.25 level (barely above 5%), and I don't know how much lower (I'm assuming lower) it would be at higher levels. I guess I'm too scared to go out and get a meaningful sample size until I have lots of buy-ins. 1/2 Kelly puts me at about the $11.50s, and I am planning on starting those soon, so I am inadvertently keeping with Kelly.

This of course begs the question, why that order?

Is every post just a joke to you Ryan ?

Thanks Ryan.

LOL

You make better music than posts Joe.

You might also want to throw around the idea of getting a coach. It'll do wonders for your game.

Yea, I was thinking about that too. But I would want to pay for it with poker earnings, so I've got a ways to go.

I don't get it, you have already earned more than 3 buy ins. Why not just start now?

gnihi, i alway picture chi as the strict but loving father kinda guy.
also i want to second all his posts in this thread. once u put a lot of time into poker, u will start spending time lurking in forums anyway, and often i just pick up random ideas or concepts i find very useful. so just play, lurk, and once in a while put in a "serious" theory session, and u will be fine.

seriously, volume

1. Don't be a nit, move up to the 11$. They are really the same, the players are just as bad.

2. Put in a lot more volume, at least 400 a month imo if you're serious about this game.

3. Sign up to HUSNG.COM, they have a cheap package for microstakes players with a ton of content, it seems like you're in the stage where these videos will benefit you greatly.

4. If you haven't read spamz HH reviews, now's the time. They improved my game a ton as i was moving up and i still need to finish them actually.

5. Start posting more in the forum, not just reading, don't be afraid to express your opinion.

6. Keep up the motivation, microstakes are easy to beat, and if you put in enough time you can grind the 30$'s in a month or two.

Good Luck.

+1 to volume

Nothing I have done to my game (watched most videos on HUSNG.com, read all spamz's reviews, thinking through many hands posted on this forum, numerous strategy and mindset articles around 2p2) has improved me more than those 1-2 week stretches when I feel like I still love the game and put in volume. I guess it's being "in the zone" thing.

Also, the difference in playstyle is huge between $6-22 and $55-200 afaik.

Just take each level as u go. Having a 30% ROI doesn't mean u will crush the $100+ hu.
I'm not playing high stakes but as I learned more and more I discovered I got a bigger ROI at the 22 than the 6's.

1) Anything above 55% is good enough to win and move up in reasonable time. Higher stakes games are quite different to $6 games, so no you couldn't beat them with your current skills, but by the time you go through the 20s, 30s, 50s, you will develop the skills necessary to beat them.

No you are not foolish for dreaming of higher stakes - if you are totally commited, put in the hard work (study and volume) and refuse to give up, you will get there.

2) I would def sign up to husng.com, the content is simply great and will do wonders for your game - everything you need to get to the 100s is there.
I would get watching those videos, take notes and get some serious volume in - 700+ games a month.

As for bankroll management, depends on how easy your roll is to replace - I think your 50 BI is quite sensible. If you don't want to move down when you hit a 20+ BI downswing, then 50 is a good idea. The higher up the stakes you progress have a few more BIs behind you- something like 30BI for the $10s, 40 BI for the $20s, 50BI for the $30s and 70BI for the $50s - that's what I do anyway. 70 may seem like a lot for the 50s, but I really really don't want to take a 20BI downer and have to move back down - if you don't mind moving down then just stick with 40-50 BIs.

Once you have above your minimum requirement for your current level you can always take a 5 or 10 BI shot at your next level - e.g. if you have $500, take a 5 BI shot at the 20s for example, moving back down to the 10s if you drop to $400. I actually took a 2 buy-in shot at the 20s at $440 and on I went from there.