Operation: Learning to Think - Eliminate The TAG-FISH in Me

Introduction to Phase II:
-Phase I of my Operation has been complete.
-Here is a link to my first thread, which covers my climb from $2nl to $25nl: http://www.flopturnriver.com/phpBB2/forum/operation-2nl-to-200nl-t81951.html For those of you who have doubts about turning $50 into a couple thousand, please read. I admit I've struggled at times, but in the end I learned enough to get by. It can be done, just work really hard.
-This thread will be focused on my experineces through $50nl and $100nl specifically, though I will be playing at $25nl depending on a number of factors during this time as well.
-The focus of this thread may shift who knows...I have no idea where I'll end up, but I think I have what it takes to get through and move up some more.

***RULES REGARDING Bankroll Management AND STAKE CHECKLIST***
1. $2NL........................ $ 50 ----------------- 25 BI's ..........COMPLETE
2. $5NL........................ $ 150 --------------- 30 BI's ..........COMPLETE
3. $10NL...................... $ 300 --------------- 30 BI's...........COMPLETE
4. $25NL...................... $ 875 --------------- 35 BI's...........COMPLETE
5. $50NL...................... $ 1,750 ------------- 35 BI's
6. $100NL.................... $ 4,000 ------------- 40 BI's
7. $200NL.................... $ 10,000 ----------- 50 BI's

I thought I'd repost this here for a couple reasons. For one, I think anyone who's relatively new to poker reading this Operation will benefit from seeing this chart. I have followed it religiously, and I want to set an example that proper Bankroll Management isn't that hard, but should be taken seriously. If you struggle with it, you need to re-assess your goals and ask yourself what you want out of this game. These are minimum guidelines for me. I 'took shots' a couple times and then decided against it, waiting till I had at least the minimum amount for each stake before trying. If you struggle with discipline (I know I do at times) setting up a chart like this to follow will really help keep you in line. Feel free to copy it for your own.

Summer Season Goals (July/August):
[ ]40k+ hands of cash per month
[ ]Attain Platinum Star
[ ]Study TOP/TAP thoroughly
[ ]Read HOH V2: Endgame to sharpen up MTT play
[ ]Fill my personal quota for playing DON SNG's (lol)
[ ]Play where you feel comfortable: Just because I can play $50nl doesn't mean I have to every day.
[ ]Have fun

Special thanks to Spenda, Stax, Spoonitnow. Spenda's video's on Grinderschool really helped me see things in action and get me going when I was playing the lowest microstakes. Spoon has really helped me develop my hand reading skills and sharpen up my method of reviewing HH's - I appreciate the coaching services you provided. Staxs' posts in the forums/discussions in IRC etc have helped in alot of ways too. If it weren't for you 3 I'd either be a 2+2er or be stuck at 5nl.

Alright that's it for now, stick around for exciting updates and whatnot Rolling Eyes

GL with part 2 and congrats on phase 1!!

Someone following proper Bankroll Management and moving up? Get right out of town! Wink

Best of luck with your next phase.

congratulations and a pedantic quibble .......how does following the chart religously match up with taking shots?

GL my friend. Everyone knows you'll do well! I have the utmost faith in your work ethic and game skillz so pwn those noobs!

Well this thread needs some 'excitement' for readers so I'll post my cash game graph which includes all microstakes games and a little bit of 50nl. This graph includes flips/drunken 2nl donking/FTR games/random LHE hands/shortstacking...flame as you will. I took the image about a week ago but forget about putting it up in my blog.

haha yeah I think we can settle on a BBV list for it:

Brag: sexy graph
Beat: only microstakes
Variance: drunk 2nl sessions of madness/flips with fat/donating in FTR reg games/playing LHE

Pretty much the worst couple days poker wise in awhile. I don't understand why I play so bad.

Yeah, time to do something actually productive and take our games to the next level, imo.

you know whats productive? the ftr werewolf game!

Played some MTT's today. Cashed in about 1 for 6 or something, FT'd a $4.40 180 for 5th place.

God these tournaments are like crack, I always swear to focus on cash then just end up crawling back to the MTT scene :/

Just a silly thing, but in your first sentence which has a link to your old thread, take the . out from after the html, it doesnt work Razz

Anyway, good luck and I'm gonna start an operation thread because you've made me! I need to suck less and win more.

oh thanks for pointing that out man, link fixed.

I reallly need to get my priorities straight.

I've spent the last 2 days grinding turbo SNG's and not making any money whatsoever.

I need to find a way to get motivated to play cash again..

We all have stretches where the grind becomes tiring. I'm with you...I understand that playing some MTT's and SNG's break up the monotony. I also feel you on wanting to be a complete player. But remember, cash games will always be there and will be the bread and butter. Additionally, cash games will give you more experience than MTT's or SNG's will. Whenever you're ready, take it slow with the cash games at first. I find it a struggle to jump right in with 6+ tables. But after my first half-hour with four tables going, adding a fifth, sixth, and seventh table is a no-brainer. Good luck bro and keep grind on the mind!

I think I figured out a solution to help me out a bit.

Withdraw $1,000 when BR=$5,000.
*Further withdrawals pending*

I gotta pay myself eventually. I think $5,000 is a good mark to do it. I really want a TV for my room. I'm gonna get a 37 inch Samsung and mount it on my wall, along with a PS3.

I know alot of people talk about never cashing out until a really high number, but I don't think the difference between a $5,000 bankroll and a $4,000 bankroll is all that significant, and I'll get more experience before moving up to $1/$2, which imo is a better idea, because it seems like that is the level where s--- starts getting serious.

So now I have something to look forward to, and also something to motivate me to get the cash games flowin'!

WTF I constantly get set mined in 3bet pots

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.25 BB (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

UTG+1 ($14.75)
MP1 ($28.45)
MP2 ($5)
MP3 ($26.60)
CO ($25)
Hero (Button) ($26.05)
SB ($15.65)
BB ($5)
UTG ($24.75)

Preflop: Hero is Button with A

, A

1 fold, UTG+1 calls $0.25, MP1 bets $1, 2 folds, CO calls $1, Hero raises to $4.75, 3 folds, MP1 calls $3.75, CO calls $3.75

Flop: ($14.85) 2

, 7

, 3

(3 players)
MP1 checks, CO checks, Hero bets $8, MP1 calls $8, CO raises to $20.25 (All-In), Hero raises to $21.30 (All-In), MP1 calls $13.30

Turn: ($77.70) 2

(3 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($77.70) 8

(3 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $77.70 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had A

, A

(two pair, Aces and twos).
MP1 had 10

, 10

(two pair, tens and twos).
CO had 3

, 3

(full house, threes over twos).
Outcome: Hero won $2.10, CO won $72.60

There's no way he has implied odds here to set mine me right...like come on, even if I only had KK+ he wouldn't since I'm not stacking off 100 procent on Ax flops.

Good luck etc.

I thought you were grinding DONs though? Or was that Phase I?

I grind cash/MTT's/SNG's/DON's.

Worst game is probably SNG's, lol.

My operation revolves around cash though, the rest I just play on the side. So for Phase 2 I play 50nl-100nl, though right now I'm only playing 50nl and I usually start off the day with 25nl, at least until I get into gear at 50nl. I don't update much on my SNG status however I might start posting a bit on them so I can get better.

I generally play the other formats of games at a lower level, so even though I'm rolled for 50nl I'm playing $5-$10 MTT's/SNG's etc.

BTW what is a reasonable ROI in DON's? Like 10%?

Cool, to obtain a good ROI though you have to be good too, though running well helps Very Happy

. In terms of 'difficulty' how do the $10's fare compared to the $5's?

Wow sick, just had the biggest heater session ever for DON sng's lol.

Results of the set: I cashed in 9/10..so that makes up for getting stacked so much in cash Very Happy

yeah seems like the $20's would be about the point where they start attracting more regs.

DON SNG UPDATE CUZ IM KOOL

So I completed my set of 150 $5.20 Turbo Double or Nothing SNG's. I ran great for a total profit of ~ $145 which is about 18% ROI I think?

Ok brag done. I have a set of 300 $10.40's to complete before I can hit the $20 level (probably going to have to do some study or w/e if I want to make it actually).

Now let's hope the $10.40's go well because I don't plan on moving back down to the $5.20's given the size of my bankroll, then after that run good in $20's and make the monies!

M2M stopped by for the first time in a long time. I really wanted to say thanks for helping me out the other day. Game has turned around 180 degrees since then. Lets do it again soon if we could. I'd like to sweat you as well.
Fuck I noticed when I looked at your graph we've played almost the same amount of hands. Only difference is Oh about $1200 is missing from my graph.
Keep it up my friend!

No problem Harley. Sometime when I catch you in the IRC we should set up another session, glad it worked out well for you.

Good stuff M2M, just got done reading Phase II.

I think that 18% could be obtainable at the $5 level, while maybe something more like 12.5%-15% would be obtainable at $10.

I went on a heater right before I started my operation too, winning 9/10. But ever since the start of my OP, I've been struggling to break even.

Good luck with everything man. You're a winning player...remember that.

Thanks CBAT.

I'll try and remember that winning player thing, since I played 20 turbo SNG's (regular payout not DONs) yesterday and lost 17/20 Shocked

Probably the sickest swing I've ever had in them. I didn't once have a hand where I was a 70%+ favourite hold up when I was all in lol, but it's all good. I checked some of my games through SNG WHIZ and noticed that I made a few bad pushes and missed what should have been a call, so even though I was raped by variance I could have done better. I must have majorly screwed up 3-4 of those games so I gotta work on that.

Cash grind tomorrow, hopefully I'll get in some good volume.

I have new love for cash games. Figuring out ways to exploit regulars is so exciting for some reason, that I have suddenly found paying attention to things others do is really interesting. The deeper stacks of cash game play make this observation more interesting then deciding whether to push fold in a SNG, imo.

Emotional control is so important. It will be the biggest factor in determing our fate as poker players. Live well.

Bleh, I never seem to post hands very often, so I'll just post this little charm vs some spazzy drooler:

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.25 BB (9 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP3 ($35.75)
CO ($41.65)
Button ($28.35)
SB ($25.55)
Hero (BB) ($25)
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($25)
MP1 ($30.45)
MP2 ($28.95)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 9

, 7

3 folds, MP2 calls $0.25, 4 folds, Hero checks

Flop: ($0.60) 5

, 7

, 6

(2 players)
Hero bets $0.50, MP2 calls $0.50

Turn: ($1.60) Q

(2 players)
Hero bets $1.50, MP2 calls $1.50

River: ($4.60) 8

(2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 bets $19.75, Hero raises to $22.75 (All-In), MP2 calls $3

Total pot: $50.10 | Rake: $2.45

Results:
Hero had 9

, 7

(straight, nine high).
MP2 mucked 2

, 4

(straight, eight high).
Outcome: Hero won $47.65

In hindsight I think checking the river may be kinda bad...I think the turn bet is fine, though somewhat thin, but he'll call down any pair+draw - and he's got them all in his range so I felt it was an easy value bet. The Q didn't really change much, although he could have Qx in his range, I'd probably hear about him making 2 pair on the turn and if he had me outkicked or caught just a Q I still haz a couple outs.

I felt going for a river c/r would have been the most profitable..I figured he'd just fire with most of his range since he'll peel so light on earlier streets.

Why I am such a station when I move up I do not know...

I guess I tend to freeze up sometimes and make too many curiosity calls.

I'll get with the program eventually...just need to grind it off.

Don't feel bad, I'm a station all the time, not just when I move up. The opposite is worse, when I go to play live at a casino and I try to double and triple barrel college kids who think they're Phil Ivey.

I'm a station too. I always say the whole "Would he really have taken that line with [insert hand that beats me here]?"

It's strange because at 25nl I've been playing really solid (for the most part).

I'm sure it's just a mental barrier of moving up and stuff and I just need to get used to the slightly increased aggression of the next level. There seems to be a higher percentage of regulars - some thinking/some just really spazzy - so I'll eventually get comfortable once I'm used to the differences.

Thanks for the support guys.

Update:

Bankroll broke $3000 for the first time today.

I've played ~ 15k hands of cash this month so I am behind pace for getting in 40k, however my volume has been weighted mostly over the past few days, and I expect to get the next 25k in without worry.

I'll be playing more 50nl over the next couple weeks, will update thoughts/progress/possibly some HH's as I go on.

I'm about 32% complete in regards to acheiving Platinum Star. I feel I shouldn't have too much trouble making it according to my plan.

All that and I still have time to study. That's all for now,

-m2m

go m2m clap clap

it wont take long at all to reach plat star now that you are grinding at 50nl, especially with any decent hand volume. I might be joining you at some 50nl FR tables here very, very soon. we need to get some sweats in so I can figure some things out.

Your roll is high enough to think about playing $100NL, yet I get the feeling you haven't been playing that much $50NL. Or am I confused? Smile

Well, as long as you have a good bankroll and are having fun playing poker, that's the main thing. Cool

Well I haven't played much $50nl (only 4k hands). About $1000 of my earnings is from MTT's/SNG's/FTR stuff, so if you look at only my cash game profit it basically follows my Bankroll Management rules ignoring any profit from other sources.

That and I love playing with a deep roll since it just gives that extra cushion to not worry about losing a few stacks. Makes it easier to just keep playing instead of worrying whether or not I will have to move down etc.

Update:

Just finished 2nd in a $4.40 180 for ~ $144.

Kinda pissed I didn't take it down as my opponent was incredibly soft but oh well, I am quite lucky to have gotten that far and I played well throughout, plus I learned a few things while talking with Illfavor on IRC about some hands so that's definately a huge plus.

No more donkaments for the rest of the week (aside from the GoldStar+ 100k gaur') on Saturday I believe...

Cash grind will continue.

FML wtf am I on seriously. This is just fucking retarded and there isn't an excuse for it.

I am posting this hand so that I can be flamed, and hopefully this will motivate me to end this retarded spewy shit and learn how to not be such a fucking fuck up.

I'll be at 25nl until further notice.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $0.50 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP2 ($25.90)
CO ($79.70)
Hero (Button) ($50.75)
SB ($85.95)
BB ($61)
UTG ($25)
UTG+1 ($96.40)
MP1 ($54.45)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Q

, 10

1 fold, UTG+1 bets $2, 3 folds, Hero calls $2, 2 folds

Flop: ($4.75) 7

, 9

, 7

(2 players)
UTG+1 bets $2, Hero calls $2

Turn: ($8.75) 2

(2 players)
UTG+1 checks, Hero checks

River: ($8.75) 4

(2 players)
UTG+1 checks, Hero bets $5.50, UTG+1 raises to $20, Hero raises to $46.75 (All-In), UTG+1 calls $26.75

Total pot: $102.25 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had Q

, 10

(one pair, sevens).
UTG+1 had 7

, 6

(three of a kind, sevens).
Outcome: UTG+1 won $99.25

I don't even know what brought this on..it just happened.

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