It's hard to point to exactly what I'm doing wrong or if this is just a case of variance (just got out of a 125 game downswing) but I could use help to fix my ROI (or lack therof). I'm blessed to be able to say that I have spun a $100 deposit last summer into around $7,100 in winnings. But I'm barely profiting with only +$355 in returns.

Tournaments: 436
Cost: $6,774
ABI: $15.54
Prizes: $7,096
Profit: $355
ROI: 5.25%
Current Bankroll: $1,250 (profit + crypto gains on winnings)


It's a very small sample as this is just an after work hobby. I've tried increasing the volume but I can't give it my best playing more than 2 tables. Also, it's dangerous to keep firing bullets with my ABI. Which leads to maybe my biggest leak IMO.. my BRM is trash and I think I'm playing too high of a buyin. I've gotten better at reducing the stakes to $6.60s or $11s but I think the sweet spot is $16.50s for me. The wins at these stakes, when I do cash, feel the most worth it to me. But I basically never fire anything higher than $16.50 (only 18 of my 436 games were higher). Other bankroll killing leaks I think I have:

1.) buying in towards the end of registration with only 15-25ish BBs
2.) playing in high variance, 500+ field tournaments
3.) playing/busting satellites for MTTs at stakes I'd never buy in without a ticket


But besides all of those, I think my play is decent. I use a HUD and because of that, I'm conscious of my stats too which I don't think are terrible. Overall, my VPIP is 22.4, PFR is 15.7, 3B is 8.64. Flop Cbet is high, around 78%, and I'm trying to reduce that a bit. I've also purchased the Run it Once 'From the Ground Up' MTT course, I've only gotten 1/3rd the way thru it and it's alot but I've retained a few things from it and I think it'll help tighten up some loose ends. But back to the stats, I'm open to hearing anything you can perceive about my play from them



So to wrap this up, I've got $1,250 worth of bankroll and a dream. I eventually want to get to a point where I can keep profiting more, lose less and make a decent side hustle out of playing online (a consistent $250/mo would be fine by me). I'm open to any and all feedback and I'm eager to get better. Thanks

I think you're doing fine to be beating this ABI - like you say its pretty small sample so a lot of variance - particularly in big field tournaments where a lot of prize money is concentrated into top few prizes.
I always think BB/100 winrate is as important as ROI - if that is positive at different stack sizes then you would win more by playing smaller field sizes - and there are definitely softer sites away from Stars
As to how to get better -that's kind of a big question....

What about playing $16 on weekends when the field is softer, and lower stakes on week days ?

The only potential issue I see is your EP play. 3-betting 7% in EP seems really high, and your flop CB looks really high there too.

I'm kind of in the same boat. Its just a fun thing for me, and my bankroll is even smaller than yours. I never "got" tournament play, and I'm burned out on cash games after 8 tabling them for 30 hours a week back in the day.

What stakes did you start at? Is it possible something like $5s or $10s might be softer and have a better ROI? I mean, obviously you want it to be worth your time, but if your ROI is only 5.whatever, it might be better.

Regarding buying in late to tournaments-I've been doing it, and I like it. No, you don't have much play at 10-20 BB, but as was pointed out to me, it is somewhat appealing from an ICM perspective, as you have instantly "survived" the tournament for an hour and half or two hours.