I still find it hard to believe...

[adamstewart]

It's funny you wrote this post. I've been thinking about writing the exaxt same thing over the last few days. I was finding hard to figure out where all the money comes from ...

I too owe Ed (and 2+2'ers) several beers [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] I recently purchased PokerTracker and finished reading SSH. In the two weeks since, I've been crushing $1/$2 and have since moved up to $2/$4, which I'm crushing even more! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] (Yes, I'm on kind of a rush and loving it ... 6661 hands at 4.51 BB/100) [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

Thanks for the recent advice to move up to $2/$4 you guys! It's my new favourite fishing hole.

Later,
Adam

[Sundevils21]

[ QUOTE ]
95% of poker players are long term losers.


[/ QUOTE ]

is that true? I'm definatly a long term winner at the level I've been playing, but I don't know if I would consider myself in the top 5% of all poker players.

[BarronVangorToth]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
95% of poker players are long term losers.


[/ QUOTE ]

is that true? I'm definatly a long term winner at the level I've been playing, but I don't know if I would consider myself in the top 5% of all poker players.

[/ QUOTE ]


You hear all sorts of stats, but generally they come in around only 5-10% of players being long term winners.

Amazingly enough, those 5-10% of players STILL have a lot of bad players.

But the "average" player is a losing player, it's just the nature of the beast.

(Also, to the original poster who talked about all of the people on 2+2 being winners at poker -- I highly doubt it. While I will say that the advice generated in the 2+2 series of books is top-notch, I do not believe that all of the people that come here are winning poker players. Even some that claim to be invariably are not.)

Barron Vangor Toth
www.BarronVangorToth.com

[sfer]

Believe it BBS, you actually play pretty good.

[Nottom]

Vegas wasn't built on winners.

Most people just like to gamboool! and poker makes the money last longer than BlackJack or the slots.

[SuitedSixes]

[ QUOTE ]
Vegas wasn't built on winners.

Most people just like to gamboool! and poker makes the money last longer than BlackJack or the slots.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think that's the big difference. In general, 2+2ers are concerned with making money and +EV decisions. Many other gamblers just like to play for fun and maybe profit. There are those that like to take 72o and try to win with it. There are also those that double down on 12. Everybody's playing the same game, just not for the same reasons.

[davidross]

I drive my daughter to work on Saturday and SUnday mornings, and we pass a local race track that offers 24 hour slot machines. Every weekend at 7:00 AM there is a line of cars going to the track to play slots. I pass the local casino and the lot is crowded on weekday mornings.

THere is a never ending supply of people who want to gamble with their money, and they don't seem to care that they will lose it all in the end. SOme of these people play poker.

[Drscheist]

I can identify with your sentiments. Sweet winning streaks which come as a result of solid play > giddiness, disbelief, confidence, swagger. "Just applied some concepts I learned in a book I paid twenty bucks for and...800 bucks later...wheee!" What's missing is the inevitable, "F---! Can this game even be beat?!" > disappointment, dejection, frustration, insecurity. "Wish I'd cashed out yesterday..." Money's out there for sure, but it's maybe a more modest sum than some of our winning sessions lead us to believe.
That always gets me--getting back to the game after an extended winning streak with all the confidence in the world--'ts when I'm most susceptible to tilt, that's for sure. Not meant as a buzzkill or cynical post, just that there are so many days that we do lots of things right and bad things just keep happening.
What I find hardest to believe are the amount of people who play full-time; who deal with the swings with equanimity; who are able to prioritize process and sound play over short-term results; and who are unperturbed by the maddening and the wildly improbable.

[Michael Davis]

Yes, it is a larger ocean, but the games are WAY easier live. Online may become an incredibly difficult shark tank because of the rapid pace and multitabling, but B&M games will always be juicy.

-Michael

[lacky]

Here's another way to think about it. My father and I play golf about 10 times a year. We enjoy it but I SUCK! I can't believe we play something that expensive that we are so bad at. No, the $500 or so that it costs a year doesn't break me (I make it back in poker from the golfers [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img] )but it's fon so we do it. A casual poker player is much the same.

Steve