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  #1  
Old 03-30-2005, 08:23 PM
th3 mol3 th3 mol3 is offline
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Default Advice for a (fairly) new player

Hi everyone, I'm a 19 year old university student from England and I started playing poker about 7 months ago. I began with just $20 on Total Poker (not a very well known or popular site, but I started playing there because a friend told me the players were particularly loose) and I've managed to turn that into several thousand. I started with the micro limit tables and have worked my way up to $3/$6. I then began playing on Pacific Poker, where I've done pretty much the same thing and made a healthy amount so far.

OK, now I've got my life story out of the way, time for some questions.

I recently started playing cash games after reading up on no-limit and pot-limit, and although I've had some success I find the swings too much to deal with. The reason why I started playing cash games is because I found the players on the limit tables too loose, and it became difficult to make a reliable profit. Should I try limit on another site instead of Total Poker? Pacific Poker doesn't seem as bad.

Another thing that I need advice on is winning over my parents. They want me to do well at university, but I'm not really enjoying my course and poker has begun to take over my life. My dad is being very closed-minded about it and I don't think he realises the skill involved, or the fact that there are people out there playing poker for a living and making large amounts of money. Where do I go from here? I don't want to upset my parents by failing/dropping out of university, but I don't want to quit poker either because I find it so enjoyable and I feel I've got a knack for it now that would be a shame to waste. I mean, I haven't lost a single penny so I can't be that bad... can I?

Any help will be much appreciated [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
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  #2  
Old 03-31-2005, 05:15 AM
Chaos81 Chaos81 is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

I know I'll come across as an ass but....

[ QUOTE ]
I find the swings too much to deal with.


[/ QUOTE ]
Get used to them. If you can't, don't even bother to play.

[ QUOTE ]

Where do I go from here? I don't want to upset my parents by failing/dropping out of university,


[/ QUOTE ]
Keep going to school. What happens if you decide to drop out, or just fail, your parents decide not to help you anymore, and then you lose everything at poker? Wouldn't leave you in such a good position would it?

[ QUOTE ]

I mean, I haven't lost a single penny so I can't be that bad... can I?

[/ QUOTE ]
As much as you don't want to hear this, yes, yes you can.

I'm not trying to discourage you from doing something you want to do, but don't drop out of school, don't slack on your school work. Play on the side while going to school. Then if something happens and you decide poker isn't for you, you at least have some schooling.

I would just hate to see a post from you in a six months saying how you dropped out of school, your parents more or less disowned you, and now you are flat broke.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do. [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]
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  #3  
Old 03-31-2005, 12:23 PM
Guthrie Guthrie is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

Stay in school. Use poker as a very lucrative part-time job until you graduate. Then decide. Poker is a game of incomplete information. So is life. The more information you have, the better your odds. Having a university degree definitely gives you more information with which to make your life choices.
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  #4  
Old 03-31-2005, 12:51 PM
Pov Pov is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

Notice how even the superstar players come out with things like books and endorsement deals? Doyle was the champion of the world when he wrote Super System. Why did he do it? Because even the great ones have a tough time making a solid living on a game as erratic as poker and he wanted the steady income! Now I'm not saying Doyle doesn't do damn well for himself without book sales, but I am saying that you're probably not Doyle.

When you play poker as a hobby (like I do) then it's really easy to think wow I could make so much playing full time except a) think how much taxes would chew up (you probably aren't paying them now but you will have to if you play full time); b) think how much insurance and other benefits you won't have will chew up; c) think how much you'll have to save off the top of your winnings because you have no retirement plan; d) think about really playing poker 40-80 hours per week not because you want to but because the rent is due and you have a car insurance payment coming up in two months. Not a very glamorous life unless you're one of the very few who achieve true success and stardom.

All that said, maybe you are one of those people and if you think you are then by all means pursue it. But don't burn your bridge with your parents and don't not go to school. It's much harder to go back than it is to just finish it now. College doesn't take up that much of your time. You should be able to play a LOT of poker without hurting your grades too badly. Try that for a couple of years and see where it gets you. When you're young the toughest thing in life is patience.
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  #5  
Old 03-31-2005, 01:02 PM
iMcompliKted iMcompliKted is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

Any professional poker player would likely be successful at any number of things and usually make more money and have less financial risk pursing another career. Apply the same things that made you succeed in poker to your school work: discipline, good decision making and perseverance. Winning a few hundred is not a good reason to give up on school and go pro. Nobody makes a good living playing low limits. If you do play professionally you'll have to consider that you'll have to make money all the time just to stay even and pay for expenses, you won't have health insurance, you'll be surrounded day after day by people who are trying to take your money and you'll have to play poker many hours almost every day, sometimes maybe when you are sick and haven't been able to win for several weeks. I'd say keep it a fun and profitable hobby and stick with what has been working for you.
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  #6  
Old 04-01-2005, 11:49 AM
th3 mol3 th3 mol3 is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

Thanks for the truely sound advice guys, you've made me wake up a bit... I'm definetly going to carry on with university.

I wasn't intending on playing poker full time, I would rather have a stable job with poker on the side, as you suggested. It's just hard to cut down my poker hours at the moment because I'm doing quite well, and I'm not used to having this amount of money. Any suggestions as to how I could try and get over my addiction? I've got loads of work to do over the next few weeks, and it's not getting done because it's so inviting to play a 'few' hands of poker [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]
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  #7  
Old 04-01-2005, 12:21 PM
RacersEdge RacersEdge is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

[ QUOTE ]
Any suggestions as to how I could try and get over my addiction? I've got loads of work to do over the next few weeks, and it's not getting done because it's so inviting to play a 'few' hands of poker


[/ QUOTE ]

Withdraw all your money and buy yourself something with part of the profits. Any empty account will make it hard for you to jump on the computer and start playing.
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  #8  
Old 04-01-2005, 12:53 PM
th3 mol3 th3 mol3 is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

That's a good idea... I doubt no poker for a few weeks will have me crawling up the walls, and I've been thinking about buying this lovely bass guitar:



And with an instrument as beautiful as that in my possession, at least poker won't be the first thing on my mind [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
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  #9  
Old 04-01-2005, 05:36 PM
bholdr bholdr is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

One poster said to withdraw all your money... DON'T! you'll just end up redepositing someday... and there is nothing wrong with playing poker...


try treating it like a job. i set time aside and play, a time to start and a time to stop then- and i never just hop onto a poker table while i'm working or surfing the web (unless the table's extra-fishy!).

If i were you, knowing what i know after having played seriously for a year, i would seek to limit my variance (swings) and learn how to make a consistant profit. this means no playing 3/6 until you're bankroll is at least 2k (i prefer much more), for starters, 1/2 is probably a good choice, esp if you multitable (i make much more playing 4 tables of 1/2 than i do playing 1 or 2 3/6 games). also, bonus whoring is a great way to increse profits and pad losses- if you really enjoy poker (there is a difference between enjoyment and addiction) you should learn how to maximize your profit and then treat it as a part time job- it's a great way to earn mad money for a student ($$$ to take your GF out, buy beer, have fun), as long as you don't need to depend on it to pay your tuition or anything...

It's also important to study yer ass off when attempting to go this route: read TOP, HEPFAP, SSHE, SS, etc...

I wish that online poker was this big when i went to school. instead, i dug ditches and painted houses.

remember:
study the books;
part time job;
bonus whoring;
mad money not bill money;
poker is fun,
and hopefully profitable.

GL to you.
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  #10  
Old 04-01-2005, 06:24 PM
th3 mol3 th3 mol3 is offline
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Default Re: Advice for a (fairly) new player

This sounds like a better idea actually. At the moment I play whenever I feel like, and it's starting to get out of control. I tend to lose focus after playing for a few hours as well, so it's probably for the best.

Bankroll isn't really an issue at the moment, it's currently at just under $5000 (I've cashed some out over time) and I usually play two tables of $3/$6. The swings I referred to were from playing no limit cash games, with limit I think I've got them under control. I'm planning to do some bonus whoring when I finish this academic year, so I'll have some cash for the summer.

I've been reading SSHE and Championship NL & PL HE by T.J. Cloutier (I like to play the occasional tournament), as well as browsing these forums, so I'm pretty well educated thx to you guys [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] God knows how many hours of poker I’ve watched on TV over the past year as well, lol [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img]
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