Playing online for a living week 11

[MaxPower]

David,

I played with you some on Party this weekend and I thought you played very well. Do you find it difficult to switch between playing on Party and Paradise? Each game calls for a different style and I find it difficult to switch gears. Do you think it would be better if you stuck to one site?

[davidross]

I've been wrong before, but for now I'll stand by my statement. But please don't misconstrue what I meant by it, I have no intention of doing this long term. Unfortunately right now I don't have many(any) other options. But my phone will ring one of these days and I will take a job. Poker will become a nice way to supplement my salary.

[davidross]

Hello pal,

I think I mentioned that the games at paradise still seem to be good, but I'm running really bad. I don't think they're as good as they were. I am still seeing some bad play, but not as much as I used to. I'm glad you're running well though. I've had 13 straight winning sessions at Party though. The 3/6 games are UNBELIEVABLY soft. YOu will have to run really bad to lose for any length of time there. I'm hoping playing 3 games might make up for the lower limit. I watched a guy hang in last night. I had AK and another guy had QQ. We went 3 bets pre-flop and again on the flop when an A flopped. He called the turn and river bet too. So did this other player with 44 unimproved. I see them calling 3 cold with K7 then staying to showdown when a 7 flops.

I agree that th etight Paradise games can be beaten, but it forces me to change my game to a large degree. I love these loose games where I can play a lot of hands. It's much more fun for me.

I've left some money in my Paradise account thuogh so I will be back. Cya then.

[davidross]

Thanks Jason,

I enjoy your posts as well and believe me, you will be very successful with your poker. As far as teh vacation is concerned, I'm just hoping to avoid coming home to an empty bank account. I'm not talking about taking any time away form our daily activities, but I would love to play 2-3 hours after everyone is in bed. We spend the day on the beach and I can get a nap each day, and my wife goes to bed way before I do so it's that or watch tv.

[davidross]

Bernie,

I just went back and re-read week 1. I clearly laid out that I thought it was an experiment and I would be going back to work when I could. I set my goal of $1,400 a week that I thought was manageable based on my results in the preceding months, but was clearly naive as I hadn't counted on 2 consecutive weeks where I lost money. I've revised my estimate to 1,000/wk, and until I find out otherwise I''ll stick with that. I'm curious to see how long it would be before another really bad week hits.

As far as my game is concerned, it has improved considerably, as it did last fall when I started playing more frequently. I believe that your game has to be flexible enough to adapt to game conditions, unless you have the luxury of always finding a game that suits your style. My natural game seems to be looser than text books suggest, but when I get into those loose games I think I make a little more than the tight players will too, albeit with a higher variance. But my natural style gets me killed in the tight games because my loose EP limps get raised and heads up and I don't win enough when I hit. I am much better at playing those games now, but I don't enjoy them nearly as much. I'm having a ball inthe 3/6 games at Party, they are perfect for my style.

If I didn't have to worry about feeding my children and putting them through University, I think I could be very happy staying home and doing this. Of course it hasn't been 3 months yet and maybe I'll grow tired of it after a year.. or 3, but it really isn't an option for now. I can probably make 10-15 grand playing part time a year and that will be a nice vacation fund for us. But until that job comes along.....

[rigoletto]

I agree that th etight Paradise games can be beaten, but it forces me to change my game to a large degree. I love these loose games where I can play a lot of hands. It's much more fun for me.

I agree completely. I've said it before when you where qritiqued for playing to loose and I'll say it again (because I think it's important): Playing the game you are comfertable with has positive EV. Even when your style is a little off compared to the texture of the game you're in, I believe the feeling of comfort and knowing what you are doing keeps you more sharp than forcing yourself to play in a style that doesn't suit you - as long as you're are still able to adapt somewhat to differnt textures. This underlines the importance of table selection.

Maybe this is why I like the semitight/tight Paradise 5/10 with it's mix of good and bad players. I love to make plays; isolate the live ones, outplay the good but somewhat predictable ones etc. I guess I should admit that I play as much for the fun of playing as for the money and I would probably make a little more money - and definately cut down on my variance - if I cut back on the fancy plays.

I do have to ask though: why not 5/10 at Party?

[davidross]

I definitely play differently at the 2 sites, but it's not that big an adjustment. At Party I just play the way I love to play. Since I'm playing 3 tables I find it hard to get reads on individual players as quickly, so I'm playing very ABC. Post flop I'm doing very little cahsing unless the odds are there. However you almost always have odds to chase a gutshot on the flop. I'm making my money at Party by Raising pre-flop with big hands, and raising the flop with big draws or Top pair. The pots I win are bigger than average, and I fold on the flop a lot. If I raise with AK and get 4 cold callers and get a flop like 3,5,9, I check/fold. Too many guys playing A9 and K5 to chase.

At paradise(and even in the Party 5/10) I need to play what I call my evolved game. I drop the small pairs and sauited connectors pre-flop unless there are already players in. I need to focus on individuals more because you are heads up a lot more. I fold less post-flop because these guys are much more likely to put on a move.

I do believe it is better for me to stick with one site and right now Party has the better games and that will be it. I will probably still give the 5/10 a try now and then. I can't imagine I'll be able to have many $1,000 days at 3/6, but I won't have any $1,000 losses either. Right now the 3/6 games are extrememly lucrative for me so I'm going to run it until it dries up. In 11 sessions since I started playing 3 3/6 tables I'm up $3,400. And those are 3 or 4 hour sessions. Thats pretty remarkable. I assume I'm running very good there, but it's hard to say. Last night I lost with AA 4 times, and twice lost flush under flush. THose 6 hands cost me over $250, and I still managed a $370 win.

[MaxPower]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
I assume I'm running very good there, but it's hard to say.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't think it is hard to say - you are running good. It looks like you are winning 4 or more big bets per hour at each table. Even with these loose games, I don't think you can maintain that rate.

If you are going to play 3 games, I think Party is better as your decisions will be easier post-flop.

[bernie]

thanks for the reply.

one thing i noticed was the undertones in the posts. the emotional swings. and in this post you stated how you are an easy going guy. but you added the '(was)' after mentioning the emotional swings you encountered.

i think you may be getting the taste of what grinding can do. fortunately you have other things in your life (family and good sex when ya win big [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]) but you can maybe imagine what some players with lesser outside interests may go through.

i read a book about a sniper in vietnam. no, im not a big war buff, i just happen to like reading about the mind of a sniper. (great book btw. great section where he's hunting another sniper. reminded me of HU holdem)

anyways, he mentioned a saying they had for some of the guys who saw lots of combat. the 'thousand yard stare'. when i read that, i immediately thought about the grind of poker and the toll it can take. ive seen many regulars who have that stare in a cardroom.

when i was in deep grind mode, i found i wasnt enjoying the simpler pleasures around me. ive stated in other threads how i won a $1400 drawing and didnt even flinch. someone mentioned how theyd have been ya-hooing and stuff, and that rang a bell in my head. (much more to this story than just cards)

playing cards while missing some of the good stuff in life isnt worth it. it sounds like you have a good balance. keep that balance.

have a great one

b

[TimTimSalabim]

I recently laid down a winning straight, because I was sure I was beaten by a bigger straight, even though it would have cost me only 1BB on the river to win a 13BB pot. I'm still kicking myself over that one, so I know how laying down that set feels. From now on, I always try to stop and consider how big the pot is before making a big laydown on the river. (Maybe that should be rule 4?)

You've been playing on "scared money" and still doing well, and far from it being a grind, you seem to enjoy it a lot. After all, you write about your sessions in detail, even the losing ones. You may have what it takes, and like you say, you don't have much choice now anyway, so go for it. If you decide to continue journaling your adventure on here, I'll be an avid reader. Best of luck.