August Thread: Goals, Winrates, Updates.

[JDMcNugent7]

July sucked, tiltiest month Ever. I still won a little more than 15k, but it was a very annoying, badly played month.

For August:
Play 40k hands at 5/10 NL
win $32,000 (4ptbb/100)]
Don't Tilt
Don't take any shots at 10/20 NL

[Penguinfan]

Now, your just pissing me off.

[MAYHEM45]

This is my favourite thread from 2p2. Good idea bringing it here.

30k hands of 200 and 400nl
6-8k
ZERO tilt
WIN a donkament

[JDMcNugent7]

mine too, and it will be soo much better here, since it wont get 1000 replies and u can actually find ur posts. and update with how good/bad ur doing.

[Talking Poker]

Is it an "August Goals" thread, I presume?

[JDMcNugent7]

only 3 ppl with goals?
lame
they dont have to be big impressive goals, just anything.

[omahilo]

I will be playing mostly MTTs so I'll make a simple goal...

I want to win a seat to aleast one WCOOP event this month.

[MAYHEM45]

Seriously assholes, lets go.

UPDATE: Day 1 = super gay. Won a donkament (215 W$ wowowow). Lost almost 1k in cash games. Poker sucks.

[Reel Deal]

My goal is simply to be more awesomer.

[Talking Poker]

I'd like to make an August goal too, but being out here in Vegas, I'm going to play live (hard to make a goal for that)... when I get home though, I'd like to hit he $400 NL some more and see if I can crank out maybe 5k or so hands (I doubt I'll play that many) with a decent win rate.

My longer term goal is to start playing more regularly online, start building a decent bankroll and moving up in limits. I want to catch up to JD one of these days, and make enough from cash game that I won't mind dropping some dough for some big buy in live tourneys throughout the year.

[JDMcNugent7]

that'd be pretty sweet to be playing 5/10 and 10/20 NL with u. i think u can catch up. i know ive moved up and made more $ faster than alot of ppl in poker, but if i didnt have such horrible tilt and could refrain from taking shots that are over my head i could be in such a better position right now, u have the discipline i dont and if u just keep putting in the hands i could see u catching up for sure.

[MAYHEM45]

Make that 3 for 3 now. 535 W$ in the bank.

[omahilo]

nice...

you guys going to try to win a seat to a EPT event?

[MAYHEM45]

SO close.

[JDMcNugent7]

i suck updates.
ive been taking shots at 2k NL and tilting! awesome. i should probably stop doin that!

[Talking Poker]

I don't get you. As gifted as you appear to be with poker, what is your problem? You literally make a goal that says, "Don't do something," and then you go out and do it? That boggles my mind.

That would be like if my goal for August was to not jump out of an airplane and then I went and jumped out of an airplane... you know, instead of just not doing that.

[JDMcNugent7]

more like making a goal to not drink alcohol for a month when ur used to drinking it whenever you want and slipping up and drinking it at a few parties without thinking about it.

but, thats not an excuse, i realize i broke promises and thats all there is to it, i need to get better at keeping promises. (in life im V good about this, in poker its a whole different story)

i guess i get confused about which is correct to do. I know i can consistently beat the 1k game, while its not easy, i dont feel too challenged much by it. Look at any top name pro, they almost all played in games too big for their role and often took shots and lost, dropped a level grinded - won, and repeat, till they eventually hit the status they are at today where they could consistently beat the bigger games. I feel like i need to be more challenge, that im missing out on more $ i could be making, and that I can win at the higher stakes games. seriously ive been confused about this lately, someone step in and tell me why my thinking is wrong or what i should be doing different please.

[johnp158]

I honestly think you lack discipline. I'm not saying that I'm the most disciplined or anything, but when I read these posts that go back and forth like this, it seems like there might be a maturity issue. Now, don't get me wrong. You've had the best results out of anybody in the forum, and you seem to have amazing instincts and can absolutely kill cash games. You haven't even started college yet, you have more money than 99.9% of people your age have, and you know that you're good. I know that you've never just put your whole bankroll on the line or anything. But it seems to me that, if you make a set of goals, you should have a well thought-out reason for each goal. There must be a reason you think you shouldn't be playing 10/20 right now. It would probably help if you keep that reason in mind, so that you can resist talking yourself into doing it.

I don't say this in a negative way, but whenever I read you say that you plan on sticking to a certain limit, etc., I always think that it's unlikely you'll stick to it. Again, there haven't ever been disastrous consequences, but you have to be careful.


P.S. I'm only 22 myself and don't mean to sound like I'm lecturing the youngsters or something. Please don't take my comments as condescending.

On a side not, my goals for August should have included "Don't play any poker if you value your bankroll." The $27 Turbos along with a string of bad luck in MTTs and a needed cashout have been brutal.

[sjay2k]

damn i missed this thread until now. i wanted to make 10k for august (this would pay for my 5-week backpacking trip that im going to take to the US at the start of next year)

i made about 3500 in the first few days (5/10 to 15/30 lhe), then didn't play for a few days, then made another 1500ish in the past couple of days (10/20 lhe, $1 blind NL and some $15-50 donkaments). i think i'll continue taking breaks so that i don't go crazy and start tilting.

speaking of tilt, i lost $125 last night in our 10c/20c NL home game playing for about 90 minutes. lol.

[melioris]

I only have a few things to add to what Johnp wrote. And I offer this only as my 2 cents and not to condescend or lecture the youth or anything like that. In fact, John wrote it all so well that his qualifications count for me too.

You need to be exceptionally disciplined about how you manage poker. Right now it isn’t a big deal because you don’t have a lot of responsibility and it is fine with you to fuck around, but poker can be a terribly destructive force and the way to mange that is to stay completely in control of it. That means when you state some goals to yourself (like not giving the 10/20 a crack for a month) then you need to stick to those goals to ensure that you are controlling poker and poker is not controlling you. Because the deal is when you allow yourself to break these promises with yourself (that is all a goal like this is, really) then you allow how you manage your poker playing to become more emotional, and that is how your kick ass poker skills slide into gambling and then you are doomed. Don’t get in the habit of breaking your promises to yourself and then you don’t have to worry. Your other goals (like 4ppBB/100) are not completely in your control and are more traditional goals, but not taking a crack at 10/20 is a poker management issue and there is no room to fuck around with those goals at all. I agree with John that it is probably ok to play at those levels even if it is a little beyond your bankroll, just know why you are doing it when you give it a try. “fuck it, I’m bored” is not good enough when you have promised yourself you won’t try for a month. Furthermore, you are starting college in a few week, which promises to be a mind-blowing time consuming experience, so maybe instead of moving up in levels right now the best thing is to stay at 5/10 NL and if it is getting boring, don't play as much? But really, WTF do I know from down here an order of magnitude or more below your levels?

Your drinking analogy is apt except I think gambling can be more destructive than booze, just because I think it is easier to become addicted to gambling and have that ruin your life than it is to become a full blown alcoholic and have that ruin your life. But this might a debate for another time.

[Boobie Lover]

There is your problem. Stop being so focused on the results and the emotional outlets that accompany this numbers game will not come with it. With this goal, you feel entitled to win that much money. If you don't meet it, you are a failure.

I'm sure that you are very competitive, and being a failure is not something you want to be. This competitve nature is really counterintutive to what makes optimal poker play. Competitveness says winning is everything, optimal poker play says just make the best decisions possible at each given interval. These two obviously counteract with one another on a fairly regular basis when playing.

Stop letting your bravado is getting in the way of making sound decisions, and you will probably very soon be a world class player.

[bdawg31]

I can relate to the competitive thing in a slightly different way. When i got that big WCOOP hit, i tried to move up a bit too high for my skill level. Instead of recognizing that fact, i got so competitive about succeeding that i spent to long until i dropped down to where i should have been. It wasn't a 'money' thing or a 'gambling' thing - it was all about BEATING a certain level.

I don't regret taking a stab at some of the things i tried. I regret letting my competitive nature override rational decision making. It wasnt me thinking "Man, I am just getting unlucky - if i keep going i will win" type of thing. It was me wanting to make myself good enough to beat the higher levels - and i just wasnt ready yet.

[JDMcNugent7]

awesome responses, thanks guys, i agree with all of u in different ways.

I think fungus hit the nail on the head showing that to get to where I am today my BR management wasnt the best. Back then I found out I could actually win more $ faster if i wasnt properly bankrolled for the game and I guess this thought is still in my head. I still actually feel like I'm missing out on $$$ I could be winning by playing 5/10 instead of 10/20.

I also agree with you guys stating if I make a goal I should keep it. The reason I made this goal is cuz overall I'm a loser at 10/20 and I would like to keep my losses to a minimum, until I am totally ready to be playing there rather than just taking shots. I guarentee I won't play another 10/20 hand the rest of this month.

I would say in full confidence that addiction is not what is bringing me back. I often just randomly without thinking about it go days without playing when Im real busy hanging out with friends, and I won't think twice about poker the whole time. Usually it actually turns me off to poker, and makes me realize how pointless it is in the whole scheme of life.

[lightfungus]

You know I ran into someone at Binion's who had just spent the last year of his life playing poker for a living when I was in Vegas. He was a good guy and quite good at poker; he had been busted out of the ME for which he had been backed, and claimed to play poker regularly with a few Miami Heat players in his home town of Miami. But he was talking to a chick and was saying how he had enjoyed playing poker but he just didn't have much to show for it...but I guess that goes for anything in life, and it's all a matter of choice.

[Talking Poker]

See bold above.

If you are a loser at 10/20, why in the world would you think you are missing out on money there by playing a game that you crush instead???