Party Poker stories/ My April Challenge

[FletchJr.]

HI guys,

I"m interested in hearing how far some of you players have come on party poker.
Maybe some players started with 300 dollars playing 1/2 and built up a bankroll of over 5K and now play 15/30 regularly. I don't know, but i sure would like to hear.
I'll be trying to climb up the limits this month. It will be a personal challenge. I hope to climb to at least 3/6.
10/20 would be great and of course 15/30 would be amazing.

Here is my system, I'll call it: "FletchJR.'s amazing poker bankroll building system to success"./images/graemlins/cool.gif
I'm going to be using this system to climb up the limits.
My bankroll starts at 200 and limits will of course have to start at .5/1.
I'll jump up limits when i have at least 225bb's in the next limit. ex. $450 for 1/2
I will decrease limits if my bankroll drops down to 150bb's.
ex. $300 playing 1/2 drop down to .5/1 untill i reach $450 again.
Suggestions on improving my system are welcome. /images/graemlins/confused.gif

Hopefully Your success stories will give me drive and ambition when I can't make it past a certain limit. /images/graemlins/mad.gif

[The WET BEAVER]

You should beat a certain level for 100 hours before moving up to the next level, so you can be sure you are ready. You should also have at least 250BBs for each level. It takes experience to be a great player, and you could get clocked if you move up too fast.

If you look closely at your formula, you only have 75 BBs for $1/2, because you will drop back down if your BR falls to 150 BBs. If you win and build up a sizable backroll, you might want to skip 3/6 and go directly to 5/10, because 3/6 and 10/20 are the toughest levels on Party.

[Joe826]

I'm working toward something similar, currently doing pretty well at 2/4. Does anyone else agree that 3/6 is really tough? I've watched it quite a bit and even played a few hands and it seems just as soft if not more soft then 2/4 at times.

[The WET BEAVER]

I played alot on 3/6. It's tough because the blind structure causes tighter games, and it's the level where alot of multi-table grinder pros play.

[Styles]

That doesn't sound like very much fun to me. I think you need to cash out some so you can enjoy yourself.

It's like mutual funds: some are growth, some are income, some are growth+income. I started out with growth, then doing the growth+income deal, and it's alot more fun.

Starting out I just did growth. I earned $3600 at $1/$2. Of that $3600, I cashed out $1200 and spent it and I kept $2400 as a bankroll for $2/$4 (600BigBets for $2/$4).

Then I put this system in place. Play all month and at the end of the month cashout and spend 50% of everything above 600 BigBets. This allows my bankroll to grow and provides a pretty decent chunk of walking around change for buying toys. When the bankroll reaches 600BigBets for the next level, move up and keep going.

600BigBets is alot but it's not that much if you are bonus-whoring and keeping money moving around alot and don't want to be waiting for cashouts from one site before cashing into another site. I usually have 200BigBets in 2 sites and 200BigBets on standby in Neteller. I might even start keeping a little more than 600BigBets. It's really not alot. At 200 or 300 I'd be stressed.

[Mike Haven]

You might be interested in these "official" rules for the Open Internet Challenge of a few months ago at TheGamingClub:

"As was mentioned before this is a self-paced, honor bound,
educational endeavor. To make sure that everyone is on the same page there are a few rules that everyone is expected to follow:

The game is Limit Hold'em, but it is the player's decision to choose between full-ring, shorthanded, or heads-up tables. No tournaments.

You will begin with a $50 bankroll that you will keep separate from your regular bankroll for purposes of the OIC. You do not literally have to clear your account of everything save $50, but you must keep accurate records of the $50 bankroll you have set aside for the Challenge.

You will progress in limits according to the following structure:
-----> Start at .50/1 with $50 and play until you have $100.
-----> Move up to 1/2 and play until you have $200.
-----> Move up to 2/4 and play until you have $300.
-----> Move up to 3/6 and play until you have $500.
-----> Move up to 5/10 and play until you have $1000.
-----> Move up to 10/20 and play until you have $1500.
-----> Move up to 15/30 and play until you have $2000.

IMPORTANT If at any point your bankroll drops below 25 BB's for the current level you are playing, you MUST drop down to the previous level and work your way back up. This is designed to prevent anyone tilting away a large pile of money. If you find yourself in this situation take a break, examine your play, and then drop down and work your way back up...remember you are honor bound to follow this rule.

Any bonus money received beyond the original "sponsorship" $50 should be NOT be included in your OIC bankroll.

Multi-table play is allowed, but not encouraged (the whole point is to gain solid experience). If you choose to multi-table you may only have money equal to your OIC bankroll in play at any given time. (i.e. if you had $120 in your BR you could buy into 3 tables for $40 each)

Anyone who participates may choose to quit the challenge at any point. The purpose of the challenge is to gain experience with limited risk; however, it is utterly foolish to get yourself into a situation where you are uncomfortable or don't have the best of it. Don't be stupid, there is no shame in quitting early.

The above statement is not an excuse for bonus abuse. Those who take the free $50, but then quit because 1/2 is "too hard" are idiots and will be dealt with accordingly. If you take the free money you are expected to give it a fair and honest effort.

The OIC was originally created by Mike Haven and is not affiliated with 2+2."

Good luck with your personal Challenge - keep us posted as to how you're getting on. Thanks.

[sfer]

3/6 is tougher than 2/4 but I wouldn't characterize it as tough. 2/4 is miraculously soft on a regular basis.

[sfer]

Do you have PokerTracker or some similar program? Don't base your limit moves on your bankroll. You'll run the risk of running good, moving up, being unprepared, and having to lick your wounds with a much smaller roll, all while wondering if you're a winning player after all.

Make sure you have a solid bankroll and monitor your win-rate closely. Also, I would err on the conservative side and drop down in limits if your bankroll falls below 200 BBs---much easier to lose 1 BB at a bigger game than win 2 BBs at a smaller game.

Read SS and Micro, post hands, think, read and post some more.

EDIT: Most importantly, have fun. Good luck.

[nykenny]

online, single account, multi-tabling

500 -> 18000 in 3 months
2/4 -> 15/30

Kenny

[FletchJr.]

beautiful results kenny.
Mike, thanks for your challenge guidlines. im going to scrap my plan and go with yours. lol
I want to actually fly up the limits. right now i got 200 in my account. so I got 4 chances at this "challenge" hehe hopefully I'll be able to make it up to 5/10 at least once.

[symphonic]

Am I the only one who thinks going from .5/1 to 3/6 in a month will be rather unachievable unless you plan on playing about 40-50 hours a week with no downward variance?

[lostinthought]

for what it's worth, I have been playing for more than year part time, and I recently cashed out all my leftover winnings, except for $150.

My goal is to build up my bankroll (up to $10000 to play middle limits) , using 300 BB's as a guideline, but I am also playing SNG's and trying to learn stud and omaha better as well..

whoever is interested can check out my blog -

www.livejournal/users/510offsuit

constructive criticism greatly appeciated..

cheers