1 year as an underage player

[ggbman]

I save most of my money, as i am hoping to help pay for my college education and buy an apartment right out of college, but i have some fun toys too. Notable purchases include my new laptop (3ghz, 100gig hdd, dvd burner etc...) a 19 sony LCD monitor with a build in HDTV, a lot of watches, a stupid amount of eating out, and getting a stretch limo for my prom date and myself.

[Biggenx]

thank god, if you had said 'i did it all with my natural ability' i might have quit poker right there.

[ggbman]

[ QUOTE ]
Congrats on your success!

However, one caveat of wisdom from someone 14 years your senior:

Enjoy college for all its worth. Don't spend an inordinate amount of time in front of a screen. It really will be the most fun you have in your life. Poker can, and will wait. Savor every moment of your undergraduate experience...

Again, kudos for your success!

[/ QUOTE ]

Thank you very much for this advice, i know it to be true, and poker will ALWAYS take a back seat to having a good time with friends, just as it has for the year i have been playing.

[ggbman]

I think most poker players will tell you that the sucess comes from a combination of studying the game from a statistical perspective as well as getting as much experience as possible to play your best best game at all times and making good reads.

[The_Missile]

What books did you read?

[ClaytonN]

[ QUOTE ]
You should move up at your own pace just like you're doing clayton. I have been fortunate to have some hot runs at good times which have helped me with my sucess, but you keep doin what you're doing and it will come. Remember that while moving up is good as long as you can beat the games, as a young adult the emotional factor is key, and there have been many days when i lose a few thousand dollars and have to go study for a test or whatever, and it's not easy. You sound like you're doing great, the only difference between you and me is probably that i have gotten hot runs at conveienant times. Next year my priority will be making new friends and partying, but since i'll be spending so much less time in class, i'm confident that i'll still have more then enough time for poker. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
I also gotta be sure to keep a 3.3 GPA to keep my partial scholarship, which is a whore because both Bryant and Northeastern offered me similar amounts while only having to maintain a 2.5 and 3.0 GPA respectivly.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah it's cool you've picked the right spots to run hot. I'll be in honors program at UGA though, and I honestly wonder if I'll have any time for poker at all. Hence, the summer.

If you haven't read Gigabet's post that I posted on this forum around 12 hours ago, I highly recommend it. It puts things in perspective when it comes to winning, losing, playing well vs. playing bad, an running good vs. running bad.

[ggbman]

I basically went to borders and read every book i could, i read some several times. I read both stratgey and non-strategy related books. They key is to absord what you can from each book and apply it to your game. Some good reads are Small Stakes Holdem by Miller, Big Game by Anthony Holden, Super System by Brunson, and Positivley 5th street by James McManus. Let me say that i probably learned more from the non-strategy books just because it helps me to understand that other players have the same struggles as i do. Other people could probably reccomend better stratgey books, but definitly check out small stakes hold em.

[ggbman]

Oh i've read it liek 70 times, he's amazing. Good luck in the honors program btw.

[josh1122]

Our situations are very alike. I began playing last summer when I was 17 with a $50 deposit on Party. After over a year of .50/1, 1/2, 2/4, and 3/6, I now find myself playing 5/10 6max. My total winnings including bonuses and rakeback are just shy of 30k. I moved up slowly and comfortably, with a huge padded bankroll ready for the next limit and never really taking any big shots at higher limits. I really enjoy doing this for my primary source of income, and I enjoy very much as well. I have been able to buy so many sweet things I never would have been able to afford working a normal high schooler's job. I think I have done well to keep my social life in balance with playing, and hope to continue to do so next year at the University of Illinois. I graduated 1 in my high school class, and have kept the same girlfriend (who totally supports me) over more than a year. My life has totally changed because of this game, yet I have still been able to experience the typical high schooler's life.

I guess I'm just trying to say that your experiences mimic mine and I wish you luck in your future endeavors, as they will likely be similar to mine.

[nervous]

I'm trying to be like you, lol. I'm not quite as far as you, though. I'm spending my poker time right now grinding out 2/4 and 3/6 and trying to rebuild my bankroll a little to take another attempt at the 5/10 6max game. I gave it a $1,500 attempt before but was running really bad at the time and lost that in about 2k hands. I have only made around 6-7k from poker so far and have cashed a lot out, but watch out for me in that 5/10 game.

I hope I can make a post like yours soon. Good times and well done, man.