January 08 Week 1 Report

After 4 nights of tournament play and a few more hours on the cash table, January has started well.

Suprisingly I have made a great start to the year on the cash tables and just a respectable start to my tournament game. I know one night in particular I was playing tournaments and I was not in the right frame of mind, a sure fire way not to win.

My target for each month is £3k and one week into January, I am just short of £1k in profit, so that appears to be nicely on schedule.

My approximate hourly earnings ratio is £38.29 at the moment.

From a MTT point of view, I have a 32% cash rate at present (i.e finishing in the money 1 of every 3 tournaments) which I think is respectable, but I do believe I can push this higher.

My target was 52 final tables for the year, I managed 2 in week 1. A good effort.
Once again it the $4.5k that is my top tournament.

To date
Played 4
Cashed 3 (3 in succession)
Final Tables 2 (4th and 6th)
Avg Finishing Position 16th
Outlay £110
Returns £444.
Profit £334
ROI 303%
% cash 75%
% Final Table 50%

As yet I do not think I am playing at my best, I have made a number of mistakes. On the final table last night where I finished 6th. I had JJ in the Big Blind, on a King high flop, I knew I was beat, I told myself I was going to fold and yet I still pressed call! I lost to KJ and became short stacked and went out, when I really should have finished in the top 3.

I have a couple of posts one on bankroll on one a general piece of advice, so as promised anything I can do to help I will.

CCC wrote 'Enjoyed your blog. I just wanted some advice on playing the game and maximising any profit I may make. How often do you play? Just MTT's? Do you stick to the same tournies each week? I fin my main problem is doing well in the MTT's but then blowing it all on cash.

Well firstly I think you know your own issue, if your doing well in MTTs and losing in cash, then stick to MTT's it will be more profitable for you in the long run.

The reason I play a little more cash is to try and improve my game, it will not be as profitable for me over an extended period as MTTs are where my main skills are.

The difficulty is with MTT's is that you can go a long period without winning and therefore it can be a drain on your resources.

As to frequency, I played 4 nights out of 7 in the first week, that is probably about average, MTT's mainly. I dabble with cash and STT's but my record is not as good, particularly STT's which need some work.

As to the tournaments, in depends on what I am doing, usually I can't sit down to play before 8 and therefore the tournaments I play are dictated by that.

My good friend Joe asks
All good stuff mate...I was wondering if you could discuss bankroll management at some point...for instance..How much money did you start playing with?..How did you choose what games to play in?....How much were you prepared to lose?..How long before you won?..When you win, how much do you withdrawl?..

Some great questions Joe, will try to answer them all.

How much money did I start with?

When I started I did not know what I was doing let alone bankroll management. I played a couple of games and took out money when I won and put some more in when I needed to. Now I have a seperate bank account for Poker. I keep around 2-3 nights play in my poker account and about £2k in the bank which I break into should I need to.

How did I choose what to play in?

I had no clue to start with, I played in a few 10 seater STTs and found I was doing ok in them, not so good these days though! I started playing a couple of cheap MTTs, before winning a STT to qualify for the WSOP tournament. I was actually playing in a freeroll at the same time I won my WSOP seat in 2005, which was the same one you won yours in.

I learnt a lot from the guys at Littlewoods and what events they had. I would play in the £10k and £15k when I got back, although they were a lot cheaper then at £11 and £33 respectively, but even then I would qualify for them.

How much was I prepared to lose?

Fortunately I have never got myself into position of losing regularly. I had learnt a lot from the stock exchange and how you should never chase losses. I know its hard but when things are not going well and you are losing and you are not at your optimum, you have to stop. There is always another day and another game of poker.

How long before I won?

After my Vegas trip, I kept detailed records of my play from August 05.

In the 15k I had at least once nice result a month.
Sep - 4th £1125
Oct - 3rd £1500
Nov - 3rd £1500
Dec - 1st £4200

I was very fortunate that I was able to learn the game quite quickly, win some good money and most importantly continue to improve.

When I do win, I tend to take out most of the money, I allow a little more in my poker account (4-5 days cover) and then put some in the bank and also make sure I spend some of it, that way it feels more real.

Of late I have a started putting a percentage of wins into a Vegas fund, so that when I get to Vegas everything will already be paid for.

I hope that some of this is interesting, please feel free to drop me a line about any aspect of the game that I may be able to help with.

Take Care
ClintonO