Getting back into the game.

Hey guys,

I'm sure a lot of you don't know/remember me, and a lot of the people I remember from this place probably left, but I've decided to pick up poker again. I've been away from the game for about a year now... Before I left, poker was my life. I started studying more and taking school seriously, and started playing World of Warcraft a little bit, as a sort of new hobby... But I could never really shake the "itch." Seems like everywhere I went for about 3 months after quitting, I thought about poker and what I could do to get myself bankrolled to start playing low stakes again.

I was a break-even player for a long time, and then turned sorta "semi-pro" for a few months, playing poker and winning a little extra income, maybe 100 bucks a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. I played mostly MTT's and SnG's, and donated in LHE cash games (mostly Party 5/10 6-max) from time to time.

When I left, It wasn't because I was broke. I cashed out about $2k to Neteller to help pay my rent and bills and at the time, it was a sensible move... It meant that I didn't have to get a job for a couple months! :P I felt free from a lot of stress, but at the same time, I felt empty... I loved playing poker that much.

I have a few questions to those of you who are still around, or those of you who came on the scene after I left... Answer them as well as you can.

1. I recently found a bunch of my old poker literature, both volumes of HoH, Kill Phil, Hold 'Em Poker for Advanced Players (Sklansky), That crappy LHE book by the immortal Lee Jones, and my fave, Theory of Poker. I'm going to read most of what I can, but is there anything else relevant that I should be looking for? Any new books or good sticky's, or maybe posts floating around on these boards that could help me out? I've already been brushing up on the beginner sticky's and a few other things (like bankroll management, etc)... Those are a given.

2. My biggest leak is a lack of discipline. I know this and it's sort of a flaw in my personality that I don't readily admit sometimes, whether it's at the table or elsewhere. Is there anyone else that has a problem with keeping disciplined, whether it's bankroll management or playing "over your head," or leaving when you're tilting? Also, what can I do to make sure this leak doesn't make me hemmorhage money like it used to? (might sound pretty basic, but I have enough trouble with this that it needs to be addressed before I start playing seriously again.)

3. Is PokerTracker still relevant? I still have a registered copy on my hard drive. Any other software or spreadsheets I should know about?

4. I heard online games got a lot tighter in the last 6 months or so after Congress passed that bill, what's your guys' personal opinion on this subject? What sites are still good?

5. Is there still a way to build up a bankroll from scratch with rakeback deals and free comps on certain sites? I really don't want to have to dump a lot of cash just to swing low-stakes entry-level games and get started again.

6. Does anyone still use irc or vent, or some other form of chat?

Thanks for any response you can give me...

Oh yeah, and one more thing, I'll introduce myself. My name's Andy, I live in Michigan, going into my 5th year of college this fall, I live about 5 minutes away from a casino. I'm 21 years old.

And since you got this far in my really long post, here's a lolcat picture:

1. Sklansky´s NLHE theory & practice is worth reading

2. same here. i´ll post some links later

3. yes, it is

5. rakeback/bonus deals are still aviable and profitable.

And vent is still running

Hello again. Poker is the same, only a bit tougher. Whatever level you were beating last time, try the level below and see how it goes.

#2. Lack of discipline is my biggest problem too. I'm my own worst enemy. I started keeping track of amounts won or lost per session and a general idea of why I was winning or losing. Every now and then, I go back and review my notebook to see what I've been doing right and try to avoid the same stupid mistakes.

#4. If you're looking for loose $10 No-limit tables, play Bodog. I don't think that the games there are any harder than they were six months ago. The biggest draw back is that you can only multitable three tables at a time.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by Andy Holt

And since you got this far in my really long post, here's a lolcat picture

I don't remember you but I like you already!

Weclome back

hey glad you're back, I have a lot of respect for you. Good luck and post lots of hands. You gonna play cash or tourneys?

Originally Posted by swiggidy

FTW!!!

Originally Posted by courtiebee

You gonna play cash or tourneys?

MTT's.

Originally Posted by Andy Holt

MTT's.

MTTs haven't really gotten tighter (at least not the ones I play...YMMV) they've just gotten a helluva lot more aggressive. People love to make resteals, esp if they think you are stealing from the button. This makes having value while raising in position a very good thing.

Welcome back Andy, I do remember you. I can't really add all that much to what the others have already said, but GL. Re 4, the games have supposedly gotten tougher but I still come across plenty of idiots in the $27 and $60 turbos that I play.