Early Milestone Post.....

BigDragon

Firstly thx for the hugs but this really isn't an ego post. Im sure there are plenty that think it is. This post was coming the point of view that I wanted to post a 1000th post that had some substance.

I had a good and honest think about me and poker. Achievements, likes, dislikes and goals etc. It developed from there. The biggest thing for me was to be honest and in public. Honesty is going to play a bigger part in my game.

Im going to be working on my cash game soon and am going to put some serious effort into it. However, I cant do that with mithout being honest. Poker players, in general, lie through their and mostly to themselves.

I wanted people to think about what poker means to them and what they want from it.

This is not about the the Hectors, Fuzzboxes or RoundTowers. Its about the Iago's, 5Starpool's and BigDragons.

Hijacking welcome, if it opens up discussion.

'A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step but youre fecked if you don't have a map' Old Westmeath proverb nicked from a Chinese fella.

5starpool

ollyk1 wrote:

Unless you are the homeless dude you lives outside the Fitz who seems to be doing alright on the sambos!!

Seems that he isn't homeless at all. Apparantly the story is that he has a house in Donnybrook but just wanders the streets the whole time cause he is a few sandwiches short of a freeroll......

I bet he is richer than you or me.

ollyk1

5starpool wrote:

Seems that he isn't homeless at all. Apparantly the story is that he has a house in Donnybrook but just wanders the streets the whole time cause he is a few sandwiches short of a freeroll......

I bet he is richer than you or me.

Didn't I say he was doing alright!!!

I won't take your bet either Dom because I know how much I'm worth!!

califano

ollyk1 wrote:

Eh did you not read my comments on this in my blog?
.

Believe me im an avid reader. Actually i just checked back and i must confess i dont think i made it through that entry. when i seen '((3/7 * 1170)+ (4/7 * 252) ) *(1-X) + X *0 = 120 Solving for X' my head spun:D

I have no head for numbers. Or reality!

ollyk1

rounders123 wrote:

Believe me im an avid reader. Actually i just checked back and i must confess i dont think i made it through that entry. when i seen '((3/7 * 1170)+ (4/7 * 252) ) *(1-X) + X *0 = 120 Solving for X' my head spun:D

I have no head for numbers. Or reality!

That was the wordy version rounders!! I was going to build a stochastic model and everything and then I realised it was only going to tell me what I already knew LOL!

The poker boom is like any other gold rush in history, the guys selling the shovels are the ones who really get rich!

Hitman Actual

BigDragon wrote:

Its about the Iago's, 5Starpool's and BigDragons.

Ahem, I'm in that group too without a doubt. I've about four years of tourney results, from the Merrion €20 rebuys to the Fitz EOM game. About 250-300 tourneys, I reckon. But I've never done a proper analysis. 5starpool's results has got me wondering if I'm actually winning at all. I assumed I was... :eek:

The Snapper

Culchie wrote:

Ugly as sin, but shure what can ya do.;)

Reason enough to leave the pubbing and clubbing behind.:D

On a serious note though, I honestly find it hard to believe you are not a winning player!

Any chance you'll share some Sverre Sundbo wisdom. Sounds interesting.

Top bloke Dave

RoundTower

For the curious, and for anyone who thinks I must be raking it in, and because I'm feeling honest too:

Inspired by this thread I've just done some analysis of my tourney records from last year.

I played 60 tourneys, almost all in the Fitz, mostly €20 to €100. Total cost €12280 including €748 in rake.

I cashed out €11690 after tips for a net of -€590. Don't know how much I tipped but probably no more than €500.

Looks like I need rakeback.


(This year I'm down I think €1500 from 4 tourneys, but I'm not honest enough to go and check it.)

TrueDub

ollyk1 wrote:

There are a lot of live players who I personally consider are reasonably solid (and definitely are better players than I) that are losing money or barely breaking even over an extended period. I don't feel bad for them becasue I'm losing money too and at least we are enjoying ourselves and in the long run not losing a large amount of cash on a per night basis.

This, along with a lot of other sentences in the same vein on this thread, sums me & my attitude to poker up nicely.

I play for fun. I'd love to be Phil Ivey, playing for millions every day, but it's not going to happen. I have a lot of things going on in my life that take up the time & money I could use to improve my poker. I'm not going to give them up.

I'm very involved in a particular volunteer organisation, which takes a lot of time & effort. I play and organise a lot of cricket around Leinster, which takes a lot of time. I have a good job, which pays me well and in general isn't the worst way to earn a living.

Therefore, poker is a hobby. Like a lot of other hobbies, it costs a few bob to enjoy. So does horse-riding, mountain-climbing and bike-riding, to name 3 other hobbies off the top of my head. In those pastimes you use money to buy equipment, in poker the money is your equipment.

I've made practically no money in the live tournies I've played, but I've had a hell of a good time and met a lot of nice people. I play a lot online, but the amount of money it costs me is relatively low.

So why do I play? It's partly the intellectual challenge, partly the fun and partly the competition. I keep a log of wins & losses, and if I told my mother the figure in red at the end of the log, she'd be unhappy. But she wouldn't bat an eyelid if I said I'd spent the same amount on a computer, or a cricket bat, or on flights to somewhere for a holiday.

If poker's your income, it's a real job, with all the stresses & responsibilities that entails. If, like me, it's your hobby, who cares about a few wins or losses?

Don't get me wrong, if I won the Irish Open, or the Fitz end-of-month, I'd be only delighted with the cash. But I'd be happier with the achievement, and also with people I respect saying "There's Jim, he's a good player".

Hasn't happened yet, but God loves a tryer!

BigDragon

RoundTower wrote:

For the curious, and for anyone who thinks I must be raking it in, and because I'm feeling honest too:.......

Dave

Forgive me, but I was of the understanding that you were killing the online
game 'for your level' and I didnt mean to suggest that you were rolling in $$ just very successful 'at your level'. My point was success related not $$ related.

Apologies.

Dave

BigDragon

The Snapper wrote:

On a serious note though, I honestly find it hard to believe you are not a winning player!

One of the points I was trying to make about poker players. Perception is a killer to your game as you can get caught up in the projection of an image and damage your bankroll. This links in with Olly's point about me moving up a level and taking a beating (in 'bad beat' terms) knowing I can live at that level but my BR cant let me.

The Snapper wrote:

Any chance you'll share some Sverre Sundbo wisdom. Sounds interesting.

It was great. I interviewed him for Antesup.com and the link is on the front page (however is not working at moment....DEV!!!!) When its back up I would urge everyone to listen.

ionapaul

TrueDub wrote:

Don't get me wrong, if I won the Irish Open, or the Fitz end-of-month, I'd be only delighted with the cash. But I'd be happier with the achievement, and also with people I respect saying "There's Jim, he's a good player".

Sorry for going waaaaay off topic, but this part of your post reminds me of one of my favourite The Office quotes:

David Brent wrote:

You grow up, you work half a century, you get a golden handshake, you rest a couple of years and you’re dead. And the only thing that makes that crazy ride worthwhile is ‘Did I enjoy it? What did I learn? What was the point?’ That’s where I come in. You’ve seen how I react to people, make them feel good, make them think that anything’s possible. If I make them laugh along the way, sue me. And I don’t do it so they turn round and go ‘Thank you David for the opportunity, thank you for the wisdom, thank you for the laughs.’ I do it so, one day, someone will go ‘There goes David Brent. I must remember to thank him.

If I ever see the Brentmeister General, I will thank him...from all of us.

The Snapper

Assuming a general trend of marginal profit / loss among posters. I wonder if we have expectations beyond our novice abilities and experience. It is after all, a very complex and multi facetted game.

Yet, we expect to master the fineries of this wonderful game in a short space of time ( two years for me ). Of course some do so very quickly and possibly these are the George Best's of the poker world. Personally, I'm more of a Kevin Keegan and have to work at it to make even small improvements.:( I suspect this to be the case for the vast majority of poker players.

There can't be many hobbies that provide for a small profit / expense as you serve your apprenticeship.:D

ntlbell

The Snapper wrote:

A Personally, I'm more of a Kevin Keegan and have to work at it to make even small improvements.:( I suspect this to be the case for the vast majority of poker players.

There can't be many hobbies that provide for a small profit / expense as you serve your apprenticeship.:D

Kevin Keegan LOL


"I'd love it if i take down this next POT! LOVE IT!"

Brilliant.

patmac

Wow what a thread sounds like a Gambler's anonymous meeting makes ye sound human. Maybe you won't be slapping the newcomers around the back of the head everytime they try and raise a topic that's been done before but they don't know it.
This one time I had AA and this guy called me 2,7os and guess what etc

BigDragon

patmac wrote:

Wow what a thread sounds like a Gambler's anonymous meeting makes ye sound human. Maybe you won't be slapping the newcomers around the back of the head everytime they try and raise a topic that's been done before but they don't know it.
This one time I had AA and this guy called me 2,7os and guess what etc

Touche.

ollyk1

patmac wrote:

Wow what a thread sounds like a Gambler's anonymous meeting makes ye sound human. Maybe you won't be slapping the newcomers around the back of the head everytime they try and raise a topic that's been done before but they don't know it.
This one time I had AA and this guy called me 2,7os and guess what etc

Pat,

This thread is for the benefit of people newish to the game but someone who has gotten over the "Wow bad beats happen" stage. If you'd prefer people who have been playing the game for a while keep their good advice to themselves then you are going the right way about it.

I don't think BigD, roundtower, 5starpool or anyone else contributing to this thread has learned a whole lot from the thread but a lot of people I see playing every night of the week could learn a lot from it. I personally think BigD's comment above is pure gold and worth serious $$$$'s to a guy playing a while on a good run with a wad of poker cash at his disposal. Remember you heard it here first.

Perception is a killer to your game as you can get caught up in the projection of an image and damage your bankroll.

To be honest about the GA comment I think people need to embrace the gamble in the game more, not less, if they want to make money. The great players and the pros embrace the gamble - amateurs shy away and therefore lose. Its like a pensions investor at age 20 investing in cash sure your nominal value may not fall but you are locking yourself in on a real loss.

Have you any constructive comments to make on the topic yourself Pat or do you just want to have a go at people or persons unknown?

brianmc

ollyk1 wrote:

To be honest about the GA comment I think people need to embrace the gamble in the game more not less if they want to make money.

This is where I am at the moment.

My bankroll is down. I haven't lost the shirt off my back or anything but the reason it's down is because I said feck it, and bought into the Fitz €500 a couple of months ago. Similarly for the €270 game last month. Again for a bit of an underfunded swing online. I've spent enough this year to make me think about it - not enough though to actually affect any aspect of my life though. I'd be break even or making a small profit if I had more of that ever scarce resource - discipline.

I'm not going to stop playing poker. I guess that's addiction. Poker though, whether I'm addicted or not, is still fun for me. I don't want to stop playing poker. I know that. There are times though when I know that I am flirting with the gambol monster that has crushed many people in the past.

All I have to do now is realise that all of this is happening and I'm unlikely to stop it. Learn to avoid the gambol monster. Learn some discipline. Improve my game. Enjoy the gamble! Try and keep it profitable.

Disclaimer: The following statement is a "generalisation" - as such it is likely to be wildly inaccurate in many individual cases.

I think most of us on here flirt with the gamble monster from time to time. I doubt there are very many who have never ever played above their limits or bought into a bigger game than normal as a bit of a treat some dreary Saturday.

I think it's worth realising this and learning to appreciate the pleasure of the gamble in it to help improve our respective games.

shaydy

Great Post Dave!
Shay