Sunday Sunday Sunday

Well, I had a good Christmas and for the most part I am happy about being back home. It is kind of funny being back @ home because now my parents can tell me what to do and I have to do it. I miss my freedom so much. It was also tilting me because I was trying to 12 table on my sisters mac laptop and my mom kept trying to be a facebook stalker and have me look at everyones photos ugh. Oh well it is what it is but now back to Sunday.

I woke up and felt good and watched the 2nd half of the Manchester United game. Ship it they win 3-1 so I was like alright I am going to have a good day. Wrong wrong wrong. I proceeded to bleed away money. Not really but I did lose a little over $300. It's just so frustrating. I mean I knew I was on a heater and ran way above expectation for like the first 500 games of the month and that a downswing would happen but not like this. I am on like a 2k downswing but really can't complain because I am up close to 4k on the month. But when talking to some people they say that it is completely standard. I believe it too because I look at other grinders graphs and that happens too. I just have to grind out of it.

Also, the Broncos and the Nuggets lost. It was a terrible day for Denver sports and now the Broncos need some luck to get in the playoffs. Well first off they have to beat KC, not a given because we are playing so bad lately, and then the tie breaker scenarios kick in. TBH I don't know all of the scenarios but it is sad. This is just like last year where we were close to the playoffs before an epic collapse. Oh well it is what it is at this point.

This morning I woke up at 5 am and really wasn't tired so I proceeded to read this good thread on 2p2. Boywonder, who is a 6 max cash game player, had a well and he talked about some of the things that make him successful. His posts were very inspirational and thoughtful but I am sure to take the advice. It seems like a lot of people have the same beliefs about being focused, thinking clearly, etc when playing it's just about executing. Here is the link http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/54/poker-beats-brags-variance/destroyed-3-6-time-move-up-graph-286574/. Even though it's a long thread, it is a really good read.

Today I will be going up to the mountains to go play some live poker. I probably will be playing $1/2 and move up to $3/5 if I run good. That's all I got planned for today. This week I plan on grinding more so I can get out of my downswing but other than that keeping it low key.

wbmustang

Post #100

Well I am happy that I have actually committed to something and stayed on track for the most part with my blog. I didn't notice that it was Post 100 until I was about to add this song that I was feeling with T.I. Well here it is.

Discipline Lapses AKA Tilt

The heater has come back to earth but I really can't complain because now my ROI is at like 70%. I have been playing regularly but it seems like every once in a while I get stubborn and have lapses in my discipline. These lapses in discipline usually comes from not wanting to fold hands. Sometimes I feel like Daniel Negreanu, no I am not comparing my stellar play to him, but sometimes I know what my opponent has and I still feel the need to call a bet on the river. It's something that I usually am good about but on Sunday I was really bad about. I can't complain about Sunday especially with the way I played. I was down like -$162 but trust it could of been much worse. I got to a couple of final tables at the end of my sessions and ended up minimizing my loses.

The thing about discipline lapses and being a calling station can all be quantified as tilt. Most people think that tilt is when you go nuts just playing any hand, coming up with retarded lines and raising where you know it won't work, or just being maniacal. After listening to various podcasts, like Deuces Plays with Bart Hanson which is the nuts, tilt is defined as anything that is not your A game. Well when I am being a calling station and not folding when I should this clearly goes into this category. I need to really start doing the breathing exercises during my sessions like Tommy Angelo reccomends so I will be concentrating more on what is going on.

Either way I really can't complain at all. I am very happy with where my game is going and playing very well, when I am not being a calling station. I will be leaving to go to Denver on 12/25, yes on Christmas day flights are cheaper and I waited to the last minute, so I will be trying to get my volume in so I can relax at home. Maybe I can just look at some deuces cracked videos or something with my time off.

My ultimate goal is to finish up the month > 5k and I think it is obtainable just gotta concentrate and put in GOOD volume. I remember my post not too long ago that not all volume is good volume. Well that's all for now till next time.

wbmustang

He's On Fire

Well I am in a catch 22. I started this blog so that I could document the ups and downs associated with poker. Last month, I was focusing on the psychological affects of being on swings and losing. This month however, I am on a ridiculous heater so far. The reason I say it is a catch 22 is because I really don't like bragging or borderline jinxing myself :-p. I mean sure I got swagger and I can be cocky at times but for the most part I am a humble guy. I don't like to flaunt my success in people's faces all like that because I think it is unnecessary. I feel like I am playing very good poker at the moment. Although I may be making small mistakes I try to catch, I think for the most part I am playing my best game right now. It is showing in the results below because obviously I am crushing. I try to keep a level head with it and keep hungry, keep studying, and not being complacent. The problem with a lot of poker players is that they get good results and get complacent thus prohibiting their progress in the game. Well, I am trying really hard not to do this. PortlyPig and I have something setup where we review one HH of each other a week so that's just a little trick that helps.

Congratulations to vers! He ended up finishing 5th for €22,000. This is a great score but he went out in the cruelest of ways by losing AA to QT. To make things worse, it was to a drunk spewtard at the table. I was paying attention to the web updates and it seemed like the guy that sucked out on vers was a huge fish. Oh well that's the nature of the best. Skill can take you only so far but even a monkey can win in a MTT. I look forward to seeing more live scores from this guy he is a good player and it is long overdue.

In terms of me, I got about a week left before I go home form Christmas. I am trying to grind enough so I won't have to worry about playing at home because of the pressure I get. However, I might have to bend my rule when I go back especially if I am in close enough range for top 200 on the TLB. I am hovering around 186 and although it is a longshot, it would be nice to finish top 200 to compete for the PokerStars Passport promotion.

Also, I am proud of my fellow poker players doing their parts to make a difference in the world. Msusyr24 ran a very good Toys for Tots promotion. He raised over $1k and did a good job of promoting his events. Although I didn't play in a tournament, I donated a little money towards his cause. Reasons14 is also doing a good job with trying to get the GrindForAmy thing up and running. I keep joking and telling him I am gonna stop donating unless Amy gets some photos with some black kids :-). In 2010 I have to think about what I can do to benefit the community. Maybe some community service or something but I am sure I will figure it out. That's all I got for now tell next time!

wbmustang

Not Much Volume and GOOOOOOOOO Vers!

Well, due to the fact that I had a final and had to do some studying my volume definitely decreased. I also had to work on Saturday for a little bit so the time I spend playing on Saturday was pretty much cut. I can't complain though, I have worked here for two years and this was the first Saturday that I worked. I am getting pretty pumped up too because the 787 is "supposed" to be flying on Tuesday.

Other than that everything is pretty good. I need to start buying some Christmas presents pretty soon. This is always the time of the year when your bank account gets pwned trying to make everyone happy. I don't even know what I am going to get my parents or my sister so it looks like I got some work cut out for me.

I plan on putting in some good volume this week. Since I am done with school for the year, and know I won't be playing when I get home I gotta get it in when I can. Hopefully I can keep running hot for the rest of the month :-)!

Vers is currently at the final table at the UKIPT. It's good to see him finally get some results live and is way overdue imo. Plus, it gives me motivation that I can someday get there. I will embed his video at the bottom of the page. It's funny because he mentions everyone's screen name except his own lol. GL and TID FFS!


Watch UKIPT GALWAY: Michael McFadgen on PokerStars.tv

C'Mon Son

Ed Lover is still killing the game lol @ him saying Baby is trying to look like a Heineken bottle.

Running Goot

Well enough about bitching about running bad I can talk about running good. This month so far I running above expectation. Hopefully I can still ride this heater for the rest of the month. I mean that boy wbmustang got Christmas presents to pay for. Sometimes I hate talking about being on a heater for the following reasons: A I am a little bit superstitious and B I hate bragging. I like to think about myself as a pretty humble guy with a little cocky swagger. Oh well it beats bitching talking about how bad you are running.

This week I plan on playing everyday this week until Friday. Friday and Saturday I will have things to do with class so I won't be able to play. On Sunday, I probably will grind after the Broncos play the Colts. It sucks I can't put in the volume I want on the weekend but oh well at least I am getting a masters.

Speaking of the Broncos, they had a very good game against KC and are 8-5. Very happy because we had a mini meltdown in the month of November. Manchester United is looking like they are coming into form but they have a major injury crisis. They only have one person on their back line of defense who is a regular and everyone else is pretty much hurt. Johnny Evans and John O'shea are out until January which makes things a little worse. Oh well hopefully they can pull it together and not drop points because Chelsea is out there ballin even though they lost to Man City :-). The Denver Nuggets are pwning right now too and Carmelo Anthony is out there trying to win the MVP this year. Lastly, congratulations to Mullen High School in Denver, CO for winning the state football title. That means they won back to back and are going to try to win a three peat next year. I was hella nervous listening to the game on the radio which is sad but hey I still have my school pride and always want them to do good. Well that's all for now till next time.

Also, I appreciate all the support I get about writing my blog. It makes my day when someone says they enjoy reading my blog. It also makes me know that I am not writing this blog for no reason. I know the punctuation and grammar is probably terrible but hey I am an engineer I do numbers.

wbmustang

wbmustang

C'Mon Son

This man Ed Lover is foolish his c'mon son stuff is too funny.

November Results

My name is wbmustang and I am a loser this month. Did I also mention I am addicted to poker? J/k but, it's ridiculous how I can pretty much loose every key flip or coolered late game in 180's. Nothing is more soul crushing than getting big stacks and busting at the final two tables for a min cash it's a joke. Sometimes I think I rather not even cash than to min cash but obv I will eat my words. But sometimes I think I must be addicted to bring myself back to this punishment after 8 hrs of work. But hey that's the 180's. I guess part of playing them is dealing with the variance and playing your best for as long as possible. I guess the good news is that the month is over and now I can start as a clean slate. The bad news is that December is here which means I have to grind just to buy Christmas presents etc.

Anyways update on the prop bet I am losing by like at least 2k or something like that. It's kind of sad but if I run hot this month hopefully I will be easy with vertek by the end of the month. At the bottom of the page I will post my feeble results. Hooray just noticed by looking at the graph I am on a 2k downswing :-)! The following month will be cut short because I will be going home for Christmas on 12/23 around that time and won't be playing while @ home. So I have to figure out how to get a gold star in 23 days of grinding.

Goals:
-DO NOT PLAY ANY 45's
-4-5k Month That would be nice so imma aim high like Air Force
-@ least 1.1k games played
-20-25% ROI

These goals seem close to what I have tried every single month this year and have gotten clowned. I feel like my game is good to go so bring on December. I feel a cold coming on so hopefully I can be a soldier and fight through it. Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and good luck on the tables.

wbmustang

Haiku

Instead writing about how I get screwed every way possible because it is boring I wrote a haiku instead.

Dub B is all in

Donk makes call and is crushed

Donk sucks out gg

Hope everyone had a great sunday

wbmustang

Realizations / Reality Check

Often times there are points in your life you realize things and recently I have been thinking alot. I know I have posted before about how my results have been so much worse than last year. Some of that is attributed to the games getting toughter but I need to dig deeper than that. I don't know what is going on with me but this year has been a big test for me. My ROI has drastically decreased and I am trying to pin it on something. I know it can be easy to say it is variance but it's too easy to blame it on that. I am kind of writing this post out to call myself out. I know I am very hard on myself but it is for a good reason. I know I am capable of a lot more than what I am currently doing.

This year I have been with SNGMentors. It is an excellent program and I can't tell you how much I have learned. I feel so much better as a player but the results have not followed. I kind of feel like not only have I let the mentors down but myself as well. I am such a freaking competitive person it's ridiculous. I read other peoples blogs and they are winning and when I don't win its a punch to my gut. I am not a hater, I am happy when other people do well, but hell I feel like I should be getting the results. I read a lot of blogs about putting in hard work and more volume. Maybe I am not putting in enough work to be a great winning player. I was talking with reasons today a little bit about my frustrations. I appreciate him for listening to me whine but more than anything help give me guidance. I pulled up my graphs in the 180's. Even though I have a 2k sample I am clearly not doing something right. The varaince has been ridiculous and I am slight loser, if you wanna call being down -$386 either slight or just a loser ;-). I know I could revert to playing the 45's and increasing my stakes but for some reason I want to crush the 180's. I refuse to feel like I can' t beat these games when I KNOW I can. I think I will try something different this month. I am not gonna play another 45 man for the rest of the year. I will be only focusing on 180's so I will be playing the $2's and the $12's. I know I may want to slit my rest if I run booty in the $2's but this is the only way I see myself getting better. I will have to study hard this month and see where it leads. After the month of December I will be able to shape my upcoming poker plans for the next year.

I am leaving Denver in a couple of hours so I will be grinding tomorrow. I must say I enjoyed being home with my family, even though I caught grief for playing one day, and seeing some of my old friends. It's always good to come back and see the people you grow up with. Bottom line is that I am very hungry and I will make things change around instead of just hoping and praying for positive variance. Below I am going to post my graphs for 2008 and 2009 as well as post my 180's graph. Here is to finishing the year off strong cuz vertek just aint gonna get a free $500.

2008

2009

180's

Home Is Where the Heart Is!

Well, I am back in Denver right now. It's really funny to look back last year and see what I was talking about during the month of my blog. First of all, it was funny to see how low volume I used to have. I used to run like 500-600 games for like a 25% ROI what a sick life. I think the games were probably a little bit softer last year as well but funny to see how far I have gone. Also it was also funny to see I wrote the same thing about the Broncos. Way to go fellas you have actually collapsed twice in two years who would of thunk it.

As far as poker is concerned I didn't feel like playing that much on Tuesday. I decided to do a little bit of studying instead. I def saw some spots here and there where I missed some shoves but for the most part everything is meh. I guess I am trying to focus on finding out my weaknesses even though I should be winning. I don't know how much I am going to play over Thanksgiving break because I dont' know how much I will get sweated. If I do though, I will wake up really early and then just grind for like 4 hrs. Like a 6-10 shift. I know I sound like a degen but hell a brotha is actually trying to make money this month. BTW I would like give Assassinato a shout out for that email he sent me. It really put things in perspective and got me back on my jo.

When I am at home I really don't have too much planned. Probably will see a couple of friends and just chill out with the family. I haven't been back home since Christmas so this was a long time coming. I need to do a better job of coming back home because the flights are super cheap. Other than that everything is gravy and the family is doing good. Probably will update on Sunday after I grind. But till then Happy Thanksgiving. Oh yeah and congratulations to reasons for that nice little MTT score.

wbmustang

Irritated

I was going to post this earlier but I had to cool out for a little bit. Today sucked like 10000000000%. First it was poker. I feel like I always put myself in good situations in these 180's to actually win. However when you lose hands like KK vs. A3 vs. 88 for massive chips it doesn't work out like that. All in all I think I played well but the results didn't follow. If I did suck out my opponent would just resuck out on me on the river. It was just absolutely irritating. The end of the month is coming so we will see what happens.

Another thing that was annoying to watch is the collapse of the Denver Broncos. Hey lets win 5 in a row get Wil all excited and then loose 4 straight. It's absolutely ridiculous and Chris Simms is the worst backup qb ever. They should cut him after that terrible showing. Either way this month has sucked for me with poker and sports just hoping to run good in something.

Always Play Your A Game

I am fairly proud of myself for what I did during the past weekend. I finally got my Windows 7 installed in 64 bit mode. I had to buy a new 500 gb hard drive so I could backup all the information I needed. It helped a lot because I had to pretty much format my old 1TB drive so I wouldn't have any settings etc which are a headache to setup sometimes. After I did that I installed a lot of my poker related programs and did the whole licensing thing. Licenses are such a headache when you have to reformat or upgrade your computer.

I played this weekend too but wasn't too thrilled about my results. I thought I played a lot better on Saturday then I did on Sunday even though I made a little money on Sunday. The reason I was so disappointed with how I played on Sunday because I wasn't playing my A game. It's so much easier to lie to someone else but you can't lie to yourself. After the session, I was like I played alright but deep down I knew I played terrible. I had far too many misclicks and did dumb stuff and I don't know wtf was going on. I am doing a better job of staying focused but it was just terrible how bad I played on Sunday. Oh well I managed to actually win a $12/180 the fact remains that I played bad. SNG's are funny because the more consistent you play obv the better results you have. It's tough because you are human and might have off days but if you are professional and do your job then your bad days will be limited.

Today I plan on playing for 5-6 hrs. I am really working on playing more 180's and less 45's but it sucks when you have to load a lot fewer tables. The $7.70's load times are absolutely garbage and I never really could get that many going. Mostly it was $12 180's mixed in with like 4-5 45's at the most. I want to keep it like this because I like playing 180's and I like playing 45's too. But I dunno we will see what happens. I also need to find time to do some studying for grad school sigh. Lastly I need to buy a chair and move my computer to the office area. This way I won't be able to turn on the tv and will be 100% free of distractions.

wbmustang

Making Progress

Well, I actually got two things accomplished with my life yesterday. First of all I went to the dentist. I thought the visit was going to be pretty bad but it was alright. I found out that I need to brush and floss better, well that wasn't a shocker, and I have to go back for a deep clean. The only bad thing is that I have one small cavity but I kinda knew that was there from when eating candy I could feel it.

I also finally upgraded my computer to Windows 7 and I am pretty happy. It was so aggravating having HEM and Table Ninja really slow down my computer. It even is more aggravating when you know it's because your OS can't recognize all of your RAM. XP had a limit on how much it recognized and that problem is solved. I was going to upgrade to Vista but just waited until Windows 7 came out. I probably will just play the same amount of tables at first to see if it runs better.

I also received a little bit of coaching from Jbrown yesterday and feel like I learned a lot. It's always good to have coaching sessions because you see the spots where you are missing. Anyways I was missing some spots and being nitty in others. I would expand more but I don't know who is reading this blog. Either way I know what I am doing wrong and going to try to correct my problems. Also I won't be playing any 45's for at least a week. Jbrown and I talked about this and he said that it would be good so that I can get my 180 man game down. I feel so confident in my 45 man game that think I will be alright. Another thing that he said that really struck home is don't be one of those guys that worry about how you run. I do have a tendency to do this but hey I can't control it. The only thing I can control is if I am playing my A game and not missing spots and the results will come. Hopefully these changes will help and I look forward to pwning soon.

Keep Pluggin

Often times when I start off the month off I get kind of lazy and be like well oh I won some money I can chill. I am trying to work on making myself keep plugging volume. Now that I feel so good about how I am playing I need to put in as much volume as possible. I didn't play any last nigh because I wanted to chill and ended up just staying home playing some Fifa and studying. Hey at least I did something poker related.

Yesterday I also watched the Phil Ivey special on E:60 and it was pretty cool. I mean I think they could of made it better but Phil was as open on that as he has been in any type of interview. It was pretty sick to see the life he lived and how high he gambled. When he signs a check for $1 million to play some craps I just laughed and thought. I was like dang I don't think I have enough courage to put that amount of 0's on a check. I know he worked pretty hard to get where he is at and seeing stuff like that motivates. I probably will never get to the point where I play craps for that much money though lol.

I probably am going to keep plugging volume this weekend too seeing that I don't have class this weekend. I still have to do stuff like upgrading my computer, sigh yes again I said it, and figure out how to get some studying in for actual class. I really need to start getting on that class stuff like ASAP before it starts to snowball out of control. I think I probably need to find a way to look at stuff at least an hour a day.

Anyways I am pretty tired so I am going to bed early. Something that has been pissing me off lately is that fact that I am so sleepy all the time. I don't know wtf is going on but during the day I am so tired. I have gone the route of starting to drink energy drinks and stuff and that is all bad I think. Whenever I take an energy drink for some reason I feel like I am taking years off my life and I hate it. Maybe it has to do with my nutrition which sucks. I really need to evaluate how I treat my body because I do it so bad. Lol I feel so dumb sometimes but I will get it together soon.

wbmustang

Motivation.... and 13th In the Nightly $70k

T.I - Motivation
You can look me in my eyes, see I'm ready for whatever
Anythang don't kill me, make me better
I ain't dead nigga, you can take the fame and the chedda
And the game, and the deal, I'm still a go-getter
Take my freedom for the moment but it ain't fo-ever
I got the spirit of a god, heart of a dope dealer
I'm a king, seen hangin' with some cold killas
I ain't never back down or ran from no nigga
I ain't sat down yet, pimp, standin' gorilla
Even if I'ma all alone or standin' with four niggaz
Tell'em jump, pimpin' it don't get no realer
5'9" with the soul of a 6'4" nigga
I separated the fakes, paralized from the waist down
From the real stand up guys of the A-Town
Can't even look me in my eyes, put yo face down
I'm outta jail nigga, whachu gotta say now?

Motivation
Niggaz fakin' only gonna inspire (Motivation)
All yo hatin' is fuel to my fire (It's motivation)
Niggaz plottin' on the crown soft droppin' (It's motivation)
Hey but I ain't slowin' down and I ain't stoppin' (Motivation)
Now nigga don't stop my show (Motivation)
You ain't know I don't stop, I go (It's motivation)
Sucka niggaz can't make me suffer
Just make me stronger and make me tougher (It's motivation)

I was trying to post this song but I can't find one to post due to copyright reasons. I guess TI needs all the money he can get while locked up and doesn't need music pirates killing his bankroll. This has to be one of the most inspiring songs for me for some reason. When I started playing my session yesterday I played this song and was really vibing to it. Little did I know that this song will be my anthem because of what happened yesterday.

When I started my session, I set up my regular stuff to register for in Table Ninja then went to the MTT tab. I was like hey might as well try to play the nightly $70k. Two problems I didn't know the buyin and I didn't know how long I wanted to play. Well after I registered and started playing I realized it was a $50+5. I wasn't too mad about that thanks to msusyr24 making that score and inflating the bankroll. The next problem I would get over. I knew I was going to load for 4 hrs like I usually do but hey it was icing on the cake to get deep in the nightly $70k. I ended up having a good session with SNG's and got 13th in the Nightly $70k. I guess that's all fine and dandy but I really wanted to final table this one. Hell I really wanted to win it. I have been waiting so long for my score and here it is I could taste it. I am kind of disappointed in my bustout hand because maybe I went broke to easy but my stack was just too shallow to fold imo.

PokerStars Game #34901296067: Tournament #209011082, $50+$5 USD Hold'em No Limit - Level XXII (4000/8000) - 2009/11/04 0:30:15 PT [2009/11/04 3:30:15 ET]
Table '209011082 130' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 2: JerWorld (59454 in chips)
Seat 3: piAnisSimoO (641465 in chips)
Seat 5: payup123 (400184 in chips)
Seat 6: dapperson (340220 in chips)
Seat 7: wbmustang (173738 in chips)
Seat 8: 925rounder (366681 in chips)
Seat 9: punisher03 (515766 in chips)
JerWorld: posts the ante 800
piAnisSimoO: posts the ante 800
payup123: posts the ante 800
dapperson: posts the ante 800
wbmustang: posts the ante 800
925rounder: posts the ante 800
punisher03: posts the ante 800
piAnisSimoO: posts small blind 4000
payup123: posts big blind 8000
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to wbmustang [Kd Jd]
dapperson: folds
wbmustang: raises 12000 to 20000
925rounder: folds
punisher03: calls 20000
JerWorld: folds
piAnisSimoO: folds
payup123: calls 12000
*** FLOP *** [7d 5c Kc]
payup123: checks
wbmustang: bets 40000
punisher03: raises 40000 to 80000
payup123: folds
wbmustang: raises 72938 to 152938 and is all-in
punisher03: calls 72938
*** TURN *** [7d 5c Kc] [6c]
*** RIVER *** [7d 5c Kc 6c] [7s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
wbmustang: shows [Kd Jd] (two pair, Kings and Sevens)
punisher03: shows [Ks Ad] (two pair, Kings and Sevens - Ace kicker)
punisher03 collected 375476 from pot
punisher03 said, "gg"
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 375476 | Rake 0
Board [7d 5c Kc 6c 7s]
Seat 2: JerWorld (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 3: piAnisSimoO (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 5: payup123 (big blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 6: dapperson folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 7: wbmustang showed [Kd Jd] and lost with two pair, Kings and Sevens
Seat 8: 925rounder folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 9: punisher03 showed [Ks Ad] and won (375476) with two pair, Kings and Sevens

Oh well gg me and I will take the $500. It was so much fun getting that deep in a tournament. I was concentrating so hard and my adrenaline was just pumpin. One day I will make a deep run and TID but for now this just like a sample at Costco and I want the whole pie.

Other than that I still need to get stuff done at my apartment. I still have not upgraded to Windows 7. The most productive thing I have done with my life is that I have a dentist appointment set up. I have put this one off for some time and now I am pretty scared. It's gonna be painful but hey I know a certain someone wants to make sure my smile stays intact.

Anyways, I know it seems like I blog only when things go good and that is really not the case. Usually when I take breaks from blogging I have a lot going on and I don't know how to put in on paper as the say. I guess from now on I will just start typing and see what happens.

wbmustang

Light Bulb Turns On + October Results

In poker people talk about the aha moment that happens before they catch on and start crushing. For some reason I think I might be getting to that point. Gone are the days I am just going through the motions playing the game. I feel like I am more actively thinking about all my situations instead of clicking away mindlessly. I feel like I have said this in the past and I hope that it really sticks this time. Now if only I can apply these principles to everything else in life sigh.

I feel like I have so much to do around my house and not enough time in the day to do it. I have clothes that need folding, I need to tidy up my place in general, I need to finally set up my office by getting an office chair, I need to upgrade my computer to Windows 7, I need to play and study poker, and on top of that I need to read for grad school. So much to do but I feel like I don't have enough time. I have a great idea, instead of thinking about doing this things I can start doing them. Sounds real easy but not for me. J/K I am working on not being as lazy but I am taking baby steps I need to start taking grown man steps. This upcoming will be interesting to see how I balance everything out but I am sure I can. Sometimes sacrifices must be made and if that means less partying/drinking/spending money then it might be for the best. Of course I don't do this all the time, but it might happen less frequently. I mean most of the time I don't end up playing is because I go out to happy hour and get too many drinks in me and come home and pass out.

I am pretty proud of my month poker wise. I did well with a 23% ROI over 1,009 games for close to $2k. The reason I am so proud of this month is because you can see the correlation from me realizing things and my results that follow. This is why I truly believe that the light has gone on. The graphs of results will be at the bottom of my post. On top of that msusyr24 shipped the Sunday Second Chance for $45k and I had a piece of him. I really am happy for him because he puts in a lot of volume and time on his game. Just another example about what hard work can get you so congrats msusyr24. I don't know how much my share will be worth until he does the math but I am looking forward to it. This is one of the rare times where I have staked someone and they actually did good. I have staked good player countless times before and not gotten a positive ROI. Maybe this will make me take it seriously and start tracking my staking adventures.

Other than that I really can't complain about anything. Oh yeah I do have a prop bet with vertek set up. It is going to be a $500 to see who gets to $20k profit on sharkscope first. This should be interesting because lately he has been pwning me in volume but we will see what happens. If I want to win I definitely have to focus. This has to be one of my largest bets I have set up and I don't plan on losing. GL vertek I hope we both stay motivated and make money at the same time.


wbmustang

The Calm

I am proud of myself due to the way that I have played recently. It seems like I really took the points of the last blog to heart and I feel like I am playing a lot better. I am not being a "zombie" during my sessions and actively thinking a lot more and I feel like it is paying off. I have also been doing more studying and I feel like I can still do more. However, I am little bit disappointed with my volume this month. I am like 70 games away from 1k games and I must reach that goal. I feel like my month is a joke if I don't hit 1k games played and it's so easy to get there. I have my schedule and everything setup so I really am pursuing 1.5k games very hard during November.

I switched it up and played a live tournament last night. My buddy Al always wants me to play but playing live just tilts me so bad until I start playing. I love being in person and playing. You get the feel of the chips, the nervousness and excitement, and everything that comes with live poker. However, when you take a beat it stings that much more live because you can't just load up another tournament. The tournament is $50+5 and it gets about 130 people when I play. It was pretty uneventful and I busted all in pre flop with AKs. At the 400/800 level one guy ep+1 limps, another person in the cut off raises to 3k I am on the button with 11k total I ship sb calls, ep+ 1 guy calls, and then the guy in the cut off calls. I am against 52s, ATs, and 66. Obv I flop trip Kings but I get two outed on the turn so gg me. I was just so mad because I feel like I win that huge pot there then I am going on a tear. Oh well thats live poker lawl donkaments.

I sit here today at work a little nervous because my grad school classes are starting today. Sigh 4:30 pm - 9 pm on Friday and 8:00 am - 2:00 pm on Saturday every other week FML. Oh well it's for a good purpose. I just want to go ahead and get this masters degree out of the way so I can be done with school forever. Often times I keep telling myself I am going to get this degree and see what happens with poker after that. I mean I will have a masters and hopefully enough money to take some time off and grind. We'll see I could be talking to soon so I dunno. My biggest thing is how my parents will react if I do this. Lol I think about it all the time but too scared to do so. I just got a promotion, they are paying for my schoo, and so easy to just make variance free money so I will just stack it up. I know I shouldn't care about what my parents will think at this point since I pay my own bills but I don't want to disrespect them. Oh well that's all I got for now.

wbmustang

"I'm a professional. I just do my job."

Well, I haven't updated my blog in a while because I had a lot of stuff going on. I had a lot of thinking to do about why I am not where I want to be in terms of poker. When I started to think about that I remembered this quote from Man on Fire, "I am professional. I just do my job." Even though this is a quote from the organization that kidnapped a little girl it still has merit in my life because I don't think I am being very professional in ANY aspect of my life.

I have always been a pretty gifted kid. I always was able to pretty much exceed in a lot of things that I do without putting in the proper work. As I look back on my life, I think this is a big problem and one of the biggest flaws I have. I always had the talent but never wanted to work, basically I am just lazy. For me to succeed in poker the way that I want to do I need to be more professional with it. I need to stop jerking around and really focus during my sessions. I don't know what is up with me. Maybe it is my adult ADD, or something but I need to be more focused. Bottom line, I am playing for money and need to be more professional. Even though it looks like I am playing a video game I need to always be focused at the task at hand.

I also need to make a better habit about studying my games. I don't know how often a lot of people talk about studying their games and reviewing what they are doing and playing to get better. It's like I feel like I can skip a step because I feel like I am not making mistakes. Well you can feel that way, but bottom line I think you can be hard pressed to find a person that makes no mistakes while playing. I believe that the good players have a low number to non mistakes but I can't even qualify myself in this category. Why I have the mentality of thinking is beyond me but I am trying to make a character change.

Watching, the Will Smith video on vertek's fb page really motivated me. The video is a bunch of clips of Will Smith saying some inspirational stuff and it really hit home. He says that he is not the most talented actor but he will outwork anyone. This is the mentality that I must carry in everyday I do. I mean who knows what I am capable of when I work hard. I just don't want to be known as a guy that had all the talent and didn't put in the work. It's scary because that's how I see my life going and not really poker. I have so much potential I just need to untap it. I mean I am not doing bad for myself. I just got a promotion at my engineering job which pays good but I know I can do better. I am just trying to stop living my life going through the motions.

To implement my master plan, I am going to put myself on a very strenious schedule. This is only for the best and it is going to be a good starting point. I can adjust my schedule to incorporate working out but with grad school starting this weekend this is how it is going to have to be.

M-T
5:00 am - 1:30 pm Work
2:15 pm - 7:15 pm Load up and play poker
7:15 pm - 9:00 pm (the latest) - wind down poker sessions
9:00-10:30 pm

I have classes on Friday and Saturday so I will have to figure out how I can play after class on Saturday. I know this is a demanding schedule but I expect greatness from myself.

Results have been pretty meh after I went on a downswing when I wasn't playing the greatest. I am just tired of saying I am going to do this and that and not follow through. I really need to read some of my older post and count how many times I say I am going to do something and don't end up doing it and it would be sickening. Oh well all I can do is just make positive changes and keep on trucking. Well maybe I am too hard on myself but the great people are. Till next time.

wbmustang

Ran Terrible

I played today and ran terrible. It sucks so much to build up stacks just to get pwned later. Granted may be missing some little spots I need to figure out how to get the poker gods on my side. Maybe I need to sacrifice a small baby or lamb or something. J/K obv but I just wanna run hot 1x. I will probably put in a small session tomorrow and that will be it for the month. Oh well I can't really complain thats just the variance of the game. I also was running pretty good in the $11+1 20k guaranteed but spewed my chips away. I was very disappointed in myself. When I was in the hand I was just clicking buttons like a monkey and not thinking. Next thing you know my hella good stack is in with top pair 2nd kicker gg me. Hopefully can make some noise tomm.

wbmustang

Where You @?

This aint a Boost Mobile commercial but I am still around grinding. Whenever I have a pretty busy month, I rarely update my blogs. I mean I have plenty of opportunities to update but I guess I am just lazy and don't feel like sitting down and typing.

This month in poker has been pretty meh. I had a volume goal set at the the beginning of the month but had to be real with myself and adjust it. At first, I was going to try to play 1.5k and as the month went I was going to be pretty short. I adjusted that total to 1.1k games played. I mean I remember a point in time when I wasn't getting in 1k games and thought I was king ish but my eyes have been opened. I want to run at 25% and I got some time left so we will see how it goes. Currently I am around 988 games played with a 15% ROI. I still have a couple of days left for the rest of the month so hopefully I can crush. I am doing really well in the 45's but just can't get things to connect in the 180's. For the most part, I think I am playing pretty well and should be a winning player but its just about putting in the volume tbh. Kind of hard to complain about not being a winner in a game and not even have a 1k sample size lol.

I have been kicking it with Assassinato and Raventhon more recently as well. I am still kind of mad it took me so long to meet Raventhon but happy I did. He is a cool guy and when we kick it with Alex its just a good time. The dynamic is kind of weird I guess and I have poker to thank for bringing us together. There is Alex who is a younger and just came of the tour and a hella good player. Then there is Raventhon who is a serious sng grinder, aka Pimp of the Nerds, and he can even grind out rpg games just sick. Then there is me 25 year old black guy with a professional job. It's all good times when we get together and look forward to kicking it with these guys more. Just so fun to just talk hands, bs, and watch them grind. You learn so much just buy being around them and hearing them talk its ridiculous. They are going to be leaving to go to Costa Rica probably within a month so that will suck.

I am loving reading all my friends blogs and seeing the success it has it just drives me more. Msusyr24 is having a gangster month and now has that crystal star by his name. Reasons14 has grown a lot since I have met him and he also has a start by his name too. Jontsef, TheLipoFund, Vers,Vertek, Shen888, and JBrown are also guys that I talk to regularly. It's cool having the relationship with players who are good so you can see what they go through and also game knowledge from them at the same time. The number one thing that I do get from this is to put in volume. I mean you can be playing retarded, put volume in, and still be a winning player. Either way I need to find a way to increase my volume. I mean I know I work a full time job and everything but playing 2k games a month would be pretty dope. I should be getting some good money too especially if I run like I am supposed to.

I just plan on grinding for the rest of the month. I told myself I was going to go through a Deuces Cracked series before the end of the month but its looking like that might not happen. Hopefully I will actually be able to review more of my games and watch some videos. I am still looking at how much my monthly expenses are "supposed" to be so from then I can set a goal so I will know what I need to shoot for. TBH the number is like $15k but I need to add some padding onto that because obv I want to have a house one of these days. I wonder how long it will take me to get like $30k stashed away. Probably like a year or so but who knows if I actually put some volume in. Sigh on another sad note I have way more money on PokerStars than in any of my bank accounts. We gots to work on that.

wbmustang

Playing Better

For the most part I think I am playing a lot better and getting a hang of the games. The one thing I do have to deal with is just the swings in the sessions. When you are playing these things it seems like the 45's just keep you a float and then when you get a good finish in the 180's thats how your bankroll gets boosted. I just can't wait till that session where I catch on fire because you have the potential to win a lot with a couple of 180 man wins in session.

I have also been trying to review more of my HH's in genearl. I think I am doing a pretty good job about that in general. I just reviewed one a second ago wehre I got second but I played so Lol bad. Of course I was happy with the second, but there is no way I can miss the spots that I did and be a good player. I think it is better for me to be hard on my self to keep myself humble. Poker is a game with a deep rabbit whole so there is so much that you can learn. For the most part when I review my game I play good but, I just need to play better in some spots. Hopefully by reviewing the stuff I will get more comfortable with it so it will be like 2nd nature in the future.

Either that I have just been chilling basically. Trying to put in my volume and study so I can be the best player I can bee. Also on a side note I saw some black guy on the TLB front page of Stars and got jealous because I want to be there one day Lol.

wbmustang

25 Years Old

Wow, 25 years old and I can't believe. It's crazy because all I hear about the statistics. Black people are either dead or in jail by the age of 25. GUESS WHAT MOFO'S I AINT NONE OF THAT. I feel like I am on top of the world at times. I have a good job and I have a mind that helps me make money everday. I am soo comfortable right now I just can't believe it right now. Right now I am in Chicago @ my homeboys wedding just chilling and vibing.

Life can be so crazy sometimes! I feel like I am old but at the same time I feel young at the age of 25. I have so many plans and dreams that I want to accomplish. For instance poker, I want to make it so bad I can taste. This past year my results have been pretty booty and I think I have isolated why they have been that way. I talk so much shit, say I will do x, y, and z, but at the end of the day I don't do it. I have heard too many times that the only way that I will be succesful is if I play, study, and repeat. It's a vicious cycle but I know that is what I have to do. I just need to become a student of the game and put what I learn into use.

I finally got deuces cracked, watched one video and thought it was that piff! I am going to continue watching the content on deuces so I can develop into more of a thinking player. I dunno why but often times I feel like I am just like a droid and not taking my game to the next level.

Big plans big plans. I can taste success in my mouth right now and it taste great. I just am so happy that God has blessed me with another year to do something. Even if it is just waking up the next morning I am thankful. I am thankful because I have a Mom and Dad that love me so much that helped me to be in the position I am today. I am thankful because I have my little sister who is my heart beat and my best friend. I just don't know how many times I can say thank you. I know I sound like a spoiled brat sometimes which is why I have to sit back and say thank you.

I am also starting graduate school in October. This program has been delayed so many times but I am just happy that it is starting. I am so drunk right now, gone off that bay, that I don't really know what to put together to type this blog. Then I am thinking about how this blog is gonna look when I am mad old looking back on history. Well, if it ends up being a mistake I am happy. I never thought I would get this hard into it but I am. Like Jay Z says it is the allure of the game. BTW that Blueprint 3 is fire.

Well I have spewed off for enough and these are my goals for this year.

1. Make money playing poker
-I know I make money but not as much as I want. I know I need to study and take my game to the next level to be profitable. I love the game so much, am so competitive, it really means a lot for me to make money and be good in this game.

2. Get down to 200 lbs.
-It is inexcusable the way I look. I mean I was bigger in high school but, I feel like I can do a lot better. I want to get back to 200 lbs. by the time I am 26. I mean I am at my peak right now lets get it.

3. Develop my business and create my team.
-I know I need to develp Bradford LLC from the ground up. But at the same time, I know I need to created a team for me to be succesful. So I am going to try real hard to bring this business from the ground up.

4. Jay Z said it the best "Never live with regrets!" So that is exactly what I am going to do put balls to the wall and have remorse.

I know I am drunk and spewing but I have so many emotions in me I don't know what to say. I appreciate everyone that reads this blog and rides the roller coaster which is my life with me. I have big plans and can't wait to one day say mamma I made it. Well that is all. Here is to a year of greatness and prosperirty.

wbmustang

Might Be On To Something

I played last night and besides the second place I got in an 180, I think that I generally was not playing my A game for some reason. I say this because I think I noticed a leak that I have a the final two tables. Hopefully that will help me when it comes down to it so that I can have more chips when I get to the final table.

Probably not going to play today. I have a business meeting after work and then I have a double header in softball. I am just going to use this time to go over some HH's and other players HH's to see if maybe my leak is valid. Either way something has to turn around. I think that studying more will help. It is always great when studying = results and they usually do in the long term. Just feel like I am in a general rut trying to get ahead.

Either way I dunno I just think I am so competitive deep down inside. I hate feeling like I am not winning because tbh I feel like a break even player. I am hungry! My ribs are touching like a starving African because I just am that hungry to win. I can't wait for the day I really can't. I know it will come sooner than later or I will have to quit. J/k about the quitting thing but I know I need to play better.

wbmustang

My Break Through

When I started this blog I never thought I was going to try real hard and not complain about swings etc. etc. but it's the way of the game. I just hate blogs when someone is like I am crushing the game and they only blog when they are winning. Blogs are so cool because you get to see the dynamic of the person that is writing it. You get to feel the emotional roller coaster, known as poker, and how people deal with their struggles. Basically this is a mini disclaimer because I will be complaining a little bit.

The picture at the top is supposed to represent breaking through. That's all I want to do is break through in this game. That was my whole goal this year but of course things never go like it is supposed to plan. I just look at my profits for 2009 and sometimes I feel like I am wasting my time. Don't get me wrong I love this game, I love to grind, that's why I play but, can a brotha make some money. I feel like I study do the right things but often times don't get rewarded.

When you read stuff like this it will make it sound like I am either a losing player or having a super long BE stretch but I just feel like I am a better player than my results are showing. I know that vers is going through his 5k BE stretch and I guess it's kind of reassuring. He is one of the best 45/180 man grinders I know and he is going through his struggles. I just have to accept the fact that the games are tougher and I have to GRIND though it.

Yesterday I felt like I played pretty good but nothing really went my way. I bust the Sunday 1/4 million when my KK < AJ just so annoying. I am happy at how I played thought in MTT's in general. I felt I capitalized on spots to squeeze etc but some things I did may of been a bit excessive. There are def spots where I think I am better off just re raising and jamming flops instead of just shoving my stack in the middle. Either way its gotta turn around.

This next week I just plan on grinding a lot because I have friends coming into town on Friday. After that I won't be playing that much for about a week because I need to entertain them instead of playing poker. In a sense the timing is good. I could probably use a week of though. Hopefully I can start making some good profit this upcoming week. Below are my results for the month. I am down like $100 but was up to like $600 this month at most. All I want to do is have back to back winnning sessions and I think I will take off from there. Don't get me wrong thhough, the confidence/swag is there, but the results are not. Maybe PokerStars doesn't like black people j/k obv :-(.

Welcome Bizack

Guess who's bizzack
Still smell the blow on my clothes
Like crispy cream I was cooking them o's
Like horseshoes I was tossin' them o's

-Young Jeezy-

Been a while since I updated the blog. I always go out of town at the beginning of months and when I come back never update my blog and I guess basically I suck at getting back into the groove.

Last month went alright in terms of poker. I actually had a winning month but took a little bit of a downswing at the end of the month when I started playing the 180's. Sometimes I play the 180's and think wtf did I get myself into but I love them. I don't know if it is my addictive personality but the feeling when you go deep in one of those is pretty crazy. Although, you know that so much needs to go your way to get to the final table or take one down.

Some people will probably be like wtf is this fool doing up updating his blog. Well that's what happens when you got happy hr after work get some drinks in you and pass out early. Now its 3:04 am and I don't think I am going back to sleep. I mean I will pretty much gurantee myself being late to work if I go to sleep now.

Lately just been grinding the 180's and played a cash game session at Muckleshoot. I took a nice hit and I won't be playing that 3/5 game until I re up some money. It's hard because I want to build up a live roll but I guess it requires me taking a shot so I have to save up to take shots. I really don't like withdrawing from stars so I just save and take shots here and there. Oh well.

That kind of led to this funky mood I was in this weekend. Often times I read other peoples blogs and they talk about depression. I don't think I get depressed very much but sometimes when things aren't going right I get in stank moods. Kind of weird moods where I don't want to be bothered. I usually don't get like this but when you played bad and lost live and then play online and not exactly crushing it's hard to just be all excited lol. Although for the most part I usually just think about the positive. Think about how I am blessed to have a job in this economy and a skill where I can make myself some money. Kind of puts it into prespective I guess. I complain a lot but thats probably because I am lazy and don't like waking up at 6 am ;-).

I started my LLC and pretty excited about it. I think I am going to start doing some more research and looking at real estate stuff. I am trying to develop a network around me and as things get more set into place I will talk about it more. But hey Bradford Investments is an official company.

My plans for this month are just to play a lot of games. I have some trips I want to go on soon so I needs the money. Plus having a passport now I feel like I can make big time moves now :-) . Thats all I have for now I will post the results of last month below :-). Here's to success in 180's!

wbmustang

Missing Out On Money

Well, I have decided to stop being a little girl and start playing the 180's. I have always been turned away from the 180's because of the variance but you know what who cares. I think I will be pretty +ev and already have a pretty good knowledge for push shove decisions so it shouldn't be that much of an adjustment. I have already started studying some HH so it should only be a matter of time before I start hopping in those games. I just see players like jontsef crushing these games and I know he is pretty good but at the same time, I think I will be alright at these games and probably just throwing away free money. Hopefully this will also increase my ROI and hourly which will be nice. I just will need to suck it up and play through the swings.

I guess even though the money in my stars account does not contribute to my life roll I am still kind of nitty. This is kind of bad because I remember Assassinato saying when you don't have that big of a bankroll you can be kind of wreckless and when you have a bigger roll you want to protect it. I am still trying to run my bankroll up so I think I have it padded enough to take the variance. The plan for now will be to finish out the month playing the 45's then next month load in the 180's as I am playing.

I have kind of cooled down poker wise. I was running pretty hot at the beginnning of the month and now running just ok. Can't complain much because I am just sitting at home clicking buttons on a computer making money but oh well. Hopefully I can finish off strong and get started on my new challenge, pwning the 180's.

Everyday Struggle

"Im livin everyday like a hustle, another drug to juggle. Another day, another struggle!"
-Notorious B.I.G-

So I am pretty pissed off at myself right now because it feels like I haven't played an SNG in a couple of days. I can contribute this to a couple of things but I will just talk about what I have been up to lately.

On Friday I ended up going to the horse races with some coworkers. It was the first time I have seen it live and I definitely have a new outlook on horse racing. The people there are pretty funny just degenning it up betting on an animal to win. I just don't see how people can do it. It's weird because I just don't figure out how you can bet on an animal. Like I mean when you bet on sports they are actual people, they do interviews show so you think you know about the psychology of them, and at the end of the day you know humans. But with horse racing its like wtf information do you have to give you an edge on a horse. Maybe the jockey is good but the horse isn't gonna be like will imma come out there and wind because I feel good etc. Oh well kind of a tangent but just my two cents.

Later on that night, I ended up rolling with them to the casino. When we got out there I imediately signed up for $3/5. I walk in there and look at the least and it is on diesel. I put my name on the list grab a pager and head back out. They are in this lounge place just drinking so we decide to go out and gamble in the pit. I usually don't gamble in the pit but I played roulette and lost $40 oh well what a spew.

After eons, I finally got the page to go play poker. Now here is the predicament, I rode with one of my coworkers and didn't know how long he wanted to stay and watch me play. So I sat down buy in for $500 and play for a little. I sat down and got a feel for the table and notice how fishy all the players were. Pretty much a bunch of limping and nothing too crazy. There was this one cat who I thought was a fish and he was kind of luckboxing. Anyways there were only like a couple of hands I really got into.

Playing live I really am trying to get better with analyzing stack sizes etc because its no blinking on your screen. So I am getting a little better but I will give you the hands. One hand that drove me kinda of crazy internally in particular. I have about $420-450 in my stick. A tighter UTG guy raises to $15. We get two callers and now it is to me on the button I look down and oh boi like Jazze Phizzle I got AKs. So I bump it up to $65. Bam thats the first mistake I should of made it $75. Then it goes to the guy UTG and he reraises to $165. The two other callers gtfo and now it is on me. I was just thinking about his range. I was like man live players usually don't 4 bet all like. He is UTG and he is mad comfortable. I mean buddy didn't look like a ballar so I think the money means something to him. He also is rockin out on his ipod looking comfortable. I ask him how much more he has left he said $175 so I thought and folded. Plus I felt like I can just pick a better spot instead of flipping or possible being crushed. I mean these live fishes are going to pay me anyway.

Last Hand, we have a MP limper and a LP limper I am in the SB with AQo but I am oop so I just bump it up to $30. The guy in MP calls and the other guy calls. Bam flop comes AJ8r cbet $45 and the guy calls. The turn comes 9 diamonds. I was like hmm I could bet here but let me check and try to get him to bluff so I check and checks. Turn is a 4 diamonds and I am like alright I need to value bet here. I grab my chips and ended up betting $120. Now that I think about it that may be too much but hey I suck at adding up the pot live. I just am lazy and hate doing the math for it. Either way guy heeems and haws counts out chips and calls. That was the biggetst hand of the night. Nothing to excited but booked +$120. By that time my coworker was ready to leave so I dipped.

Saturday I ended up going to the Chelsea vs. Sounders soccer game. It was real cool because Qwest Field was pretty much sold out and was the biggest soccer game I have been to. Even though Chelsea's A team was out there, they still fielded a decent squad and managed to absolutely abuse the Sounders. You just see how much better the English sides are than an MLS squad. Chelsea looked so composed on the ball and did whatever they wanted to do. While the Sounders were more frantic and always looking to pass instead of shooting. Either way it was an good game and the Sounders lost 2-0. I am really looking forward to going to the Sounders vs. Barcelona game August 4th.

After the soccer game, I ended up going to the NSBE (National Society of Blacke Engineers) Bbq. It was a pretty good time and got to see most of my friends from college tghat I kicked it with. I ended up just kickin it out there eating food having a good time. After that, I just went home and passed out. I guess I kind have been pretty busy.

This brings me to my next point about why I have not been playing. I just feel like I don't have any balance at all. I feel like I can never find the happy medium of going and kicking it with friends vs. playing poker online. I mean I always get cracked on kind of because everyone is like we don't see you out. Well I feel like I don't need to go out. Why go out and spew off money instead of just coming home and making money. Now it seems like the roles are reversed. I have been going out lately and now I haven't played any SNG's. Sure I played live but I rather be playing online trying to get that bank roll going. Don't get me wrong live is a good change of pace but I just wanna get the BR on swole online.

I guess it comes down to it I am hungry but I am not putting in the time to even get better/make more money. Sure I have studied some stuff but I have to find a way to put these games in and maybe possibly go out. I dunno its something that I just struggle with. It seems like I have said something about it in previous post and just seems like a vicious cycle. Like I really do want to start going to the gym, going to the store, grabbing groceries SO I WON'T EAT OUT ALL THE TIME!!!!! But, I never really slow down to do it. After work all I think about is coming home to grind. If I don't start right after work then the games load way to slow being out here on Pacific Time. After that I am so tired from working and grinding I just go out get something to eat. Eat and go to sleep. Oh well.

I know this post has been all over the place so I apologize. I guess I should of put this on top as my disclaimer my bad.

SharkScope @ $10k

Well it took me long enough but I finally hit the $10k mark for profit on SharkScope. Some people may roll their eyes and think it is pretty wack but hey I am proud. I have actually managed to make $10k doing something in my spare time so that also makes it better. I guess I could be out having fun at the bars and clubs but hey that's more about spending money than making it.

I haven't updated this blog because I suck at doing things after I get back in town. I always feel like I am the laziest person on earth. If I don't do things right when I get back into town then my life really goes to hell. That was the case again this time as I didn't unpack anything and everything goes down hill from there. I am finally kind of back on track but hey its like the middle of the month now.

Hmm now its time to really sit down and set some goals for the month. Last month, I feel like I had a good goal trying to put in 1,500 games but things didn't happen how I wanted them to. I put in the games but I wasn't playing my A game which lead me to posting that post at the end of the month. This month I am going to shoot for 1k games played and an ROI of 25-30%. I think that I may be overestimating my ROI in these games since they have gotten a little bit hard so I might have to sit down and reasses sustainable ROI's. I will also try to play more MTT's when I am on and we will see how that goes.

So far this month I haven't put that much volume in but I think that I am playing a lot better. I still cut down tables and now I am usually 12-14 tabling during my seasons. I don't feel rushed at all and everything is flowing smoothly so I probably won't add anymore tables for a little. I feel like I am just taking everything I have learned from last month and trying to really apply it to my game. I feel like I learned so much psychologically and mentally about the game that it will do nothing but help me when I play in the future.

Lastly, I just really wanted to say thank you to the game of poker. I know it sounds crazy and people are going to ask me wtf I am talking about but let me explain. I feel like I have talked to so many different people just by playing this game. I can't say enough for the network of people that I feel like I have gained from this game. People that are always there to listen to you help you and also share their experiences. It is unbelieveable how much you can just learn just by listening to people share their past experiences. More than likely, it will keep you from making a mistake that they had made or just have a different way of looking at a situation. I really feel like the things that I have learned from other people has turned me into a much better player today.

Oh yeah I almost forgot congratulations on and good luck tomorrow TheLipoFund. It's crazy enough you took down the weekly TLB now just beat that chick Katja Thater! Vamoooooooooooos!

All Volume Aint Good Volume

The title of this blog post totally summarizes my whole month. I am very proud for myself from getting down to the nitty gritty and putting in the games but how may of those games where actually good volume? How many games was I playing my A game? Well I guess its hard to know unless I review every single HH but at the same time I know I didn't put in the best volume I could.

Last night, I was inspired by TheLipoFund who actually played for 30hrs straight trying to win the TLB so I decided to grind a long session late last night. I was so focused on getting to 1.5k SNG's for the month that I really didn't care. I just kept loading and playing. Granted that I didn't run the greates it was clear after reviewing some HH's with Reasons14 that I was not playing my A game. That got us starting to talk about how I need to be mentally prepared for the game.

We started talking about how with variance included and you are 16 tabling you have to be on your A game. I have heard many succesful players that said this same thing but I think I took that statement for granted. Last night I had a volume goal and I was forcing myself to play instead of wanting to play. I mean I always want to play don't get it twisted but, the wrong thing was motivating me on this session.

The reason I am so angry at myself is because I am hard headed and don't keep lessons in my head. When ParadiceCity was coaching me we always talked about not spazing out and really focusing on what you are doing. Now it seems like I am not for some reason. It has always been a struggle for me to focuse period though. I have a hard time sitting down doing one thing at a time. Like I only can look at something for a little then my mind wanders. I guess my mom was right when she called me scattered brain growing up lol. Anyways I either I have Adult ADD or I need to find a way to concentrate more. I have some plan of actions that I am going to take and I am going to list those.

1)Dropping down to 12 Tables.
-I think I was so focused in moving up on tables that I really started slacking with my game play. Sometimes I think I play too many tables too because I feel rushed and am not thinking about each situations to the fullest. For @ least the first half of the month I think I am going to 12 table and focus on everything going on more. Seeing what types of hands people show up with etc etc. I know this could be bad because I can get bored and tempted to surf the web or message but I will work at focusing on everything more.

2)Closing all IM programs and cutting of phone while grinding.
-I feel like I just get too easily distracted. I work from 6:00-2:30 every day and when I am off of work I want to talk to people. People usually call me when I am grinding and I will pick up the phone for like 5-15 mins and I will talk. This is very distracted and I cannot focus on my A game when all of this is going on. Thus the reason why I am going to stop. I end up missing way to many shoves/iso spots when this is going on so it has to stop.

3)Focus on playing my A game all the time.
-Obviouslly I have struggled with this because this past month I have already written about playing like a robot/zombie. I need to be focused on everything. What % of my stack am I raising with? What ranges I put this person on. What my image is perceived? How do I get max value from hands? These are just the little things that I must constantly askign myself when I am in every situation.

These are all of the things that I am thinking about that are off the top of my head. I left a thread on both forums I am a member on becauce I feel like I need more help to focus. I don't know if I need to get checked for adult ADD or what but I refuse to just grind that long for only a measily 7%. I know I am better than that and no matter how bad I run I refuse to believe I am that "bad" of a player. Below you can see the graphs for my month.

I am thinking about taking a couple of days off not really thinking about poker. I am going to relax and start next month with a clean slate. I need to take advantage of the months I have before my grad school program finally starts. Even though thats another story that I don't like to talk to this time. I hope when people read this stuff they can learn from my lessons and not do the same thing. Till next time stay classy.

wbmustang aka wbdonkstang :-(

Nice Sunday Session

Well, I went camping on Friday night so I didn't get an opportunity to play any type of poker this weekend. I was going to link up and do a ghosting session with Casp Air but we decided to reschedule and I decided to just grind instead.

I was really proud of the way that I played today. I was doing alright in the TT but shoved in a standard spot with AJ got called by QQ and proceeded to lose. The Daily 30k I did alright in but made some spewy decisions. One would be the death of my tournament when I tried to three bet all in with 67o to a late position minraise and he had AQ. The play is a little spewy because I should of had more of an idea about his range but I had just moved to the table and it looked weak. It didn't help that I flopped the 6 but like Stars usually does he turned his Q. I am just proud for the fact that I actually opened up a little and tried this because I normally never three bet light @ all and now I know what needs to be going through my head the next time I attempt it.

Early on in the session, it just seemed like I was getting absolutely owned. I can't even tell you how many times I had AA and it got cracked by people hitting sets on me. Luckily, I kept my wits and ended up a little over $600 on the day. It is making my month look a little more respectable but obv my ROI has been so bad. I look forward to grinding the next two months and maybe even reaching 1.5k sng's in a month. I really want to finish strong this month because it would be nice to move up and try to mix in some $27's if my bankroll permits it.

wbmustang

The Light Goes On

Something just clicked to me when I was talking to Reasons14 yesterday. Our conversation was just about optimal and unexploitable in SNG's. Then I got to start thinking about everything and realized that when I play poker I am playing way to much like a robot. I am not really thinking about everything that is going on. That is the very key aspect of poker. You must always thinking about what is going on, what is going to happen, what range you put this person on, etc etc the rabbit hole is so endless. Its then when I realized that I have not been putting my mind and focusing into poker enough. This is the main reason why I feel like my results have been so sorry this month.

With a new mentality, I fired up some SNG's today and had a very good day. Granted I might of ran well in certain places but I feel like I tried to be more mentally involved in my game instead of playing like a robot. I felt like today I played one of my best sessions I have in a while. I know I am actively working on my game but I am just trying to take it to the next level. I think what I am just going to try to do is just make sure that I stay so focused on poker that I want to be mentally exhausted when my session is over. I know it sounds crazy but I know that if I feel this way I feel like I would of left everything on the virtual felt. I know another corny sports reference that relates to poker but that is how I feel.

I definitely am excited to see what the end of this month brings. I am very proud of myself because I have grinded out over 1k SNG's in a month for my highest volume month. Although it hasn't been easy and has been so freaking swinging I think I have learned a lot about myself and my game. I know what I need to do to take it to the next level and that is what I am going to try and do. That means being more of a student of the game and reading more strat articles etc. I am also going to get a deuces cracked membership this month and going to stop being a nit. This should help me for preparing for my transition to cash games in the future. I know I won't be playing SNG's for forever and feel like I need to evolve even more as a player. I also want to by the book Winning Poker Tournamnets One Hand at a Time. I think this will be a good book for me to read and help me with my bigger MTT game because right now I play them and feel like a fish out of water.

wbmustang

Happy Fathers Day

Just wanted to say Happy Fathers day to all of the fathers out there especially my father. My father has been very influential in my life and I can't thank him enough for what he has done in my life. He provided me with food in my stomach, clothes on my back, and a place to live. My father is a person I can consider my hero because of what he has been through in his life. It's crazy how a little country boy from Wilson, LA can grow up and do such great things with his life. He has a wonderful family, especially his son :-), and is respected by everyone whose life he was able to impact.

I can't say enough for what my dad has done for me though. He taught me how to play baseball, football, and basketball when I was younger. He also put a tremendous amount of time into those things for me. He was always right there supporting me or being a coach on one of my teams. My dad could work all day and after work would just take me to practice and be so supportive to me. My dad also provided for me everything without even asking. He paid for my private high school, college, and even my expenses when I was in college. There is so much more that he has done for me that I can't even type because this post would be eons long.

Lastly, I just wanted to say I love you Dad for everything that you have taught me in my life. I may not of been very happy when you punished me when I got in trouble but those bumps in the road are what made me grow up and shaped my foundation of a man that I am today. I wish I could just write more about my dad but when I think about the things he has done in my life for me my mind starts going everywhere and its so hard for me to capture everything. I hope you have a great Fathers Day and know that your son loves you very much. Just know that it is my dream to not only be the man that you are but even better. It's going to be a hard task but I think I can get there one day.

wbmustang

Sigh...

I just feel like hitting my head on the table for endless hours. So sick when I look at my sharkscope and see how many games I have played and little to nothing to show for it. Oh well it is what it is I guess I just have to deal with it. It seems like this month I never got any real traction going. I win go on a streak then seems like I can't keep moving forward. I can't really complain I guess because even though I feel like that I love playing. It kind of just feels like I am in the zone thinking about what situation or decision I am going to have to make next.

I am also happy because I am starting to study more and I am sticking with it. I know I could of shut it down by now but I am stubborn and can't wait for my heater. I am just gonna laugh and grin so freaking hard when stars activates my boom switch instead of the dookie switch because I feel like I am getting shitted on!!! I know it sounds like I complain a lot but hey this is what I am feeling right now. I guess you don't have to read it if you don't want to :-p!

wbmustang

Plugging Leaks

Late last night, I went over some HH's with Reasons14. It is amazing how good he is with knowing ranges in different situations. He really studies hard and it shows because he can break stuff down and know exactly what ranges you need in each situation. Then there is me, I definitely have a good idea bout what ranges I need to shove but more often than not I am a feel based player. I keep saying that I want to get to the level where I am sick good with identifying what ranges I need and when but its kind of hard for me especially trying to balance things.

We found some leaks that I do have. I am not going to put my business out there about what leaks were found but I am going to work hard on fixing them. I think the best way to do this is to cut down some of my tables. I am going to start 14 tabling instead of playing 18 to work on fixing my leaks. I mean my leaks are not huge but every little bit counts. Especially for me, because it seems like I am basically going through like a 2k break even stretch although it might be less but that's what it looks like on Sharkscope.

Balance!!!! I know I wrote something about this a while ago but it is so freaking hard for me to find a balance between poker and actually having a social life. It's bad enough I go to work from 6:00-2:30, although I am very thankful to have a job, and then get off and start grinding. Plus people really don't even know the hustle/struggle it is being an SNG grinder. I mean my friends would look at me crazy if I say uhh sorry I can't go out to have drinks I am grinding. Plus, you never know what experience that you are letting pass by. I knew that playing a lot more volume this month it was going to be harder for me to balance thing but it is good. I need to find out how to fit all of this in together. I like poker too much and I want to be successful too much so I know I need to figure out how to squeeze in volume. At the same time I know you have to be a well rounded individual so I guess it is like a work in progress.

I am happy because I see 1k games played in site but I am not happy with my profit margin. Oh well at least I will have a bunch of fpp's.

wbmustang

Better Days

I had a good day playing today and actually won money. I don't know what happened but, Reasons14 was railing me and I was listening to The Diplomats and I went on a pretty sick heater. I was running so good it was unbelievable. I felt like I could of shoved ATC's and still won against AA. I absolutely love that feeling when you are on a heater. It's so hard to explain but you almost feel invincible like you can't do anything wrong. Even if you do something wrong, you always feel like you are going to hit that gin card and suckout.

I have actually put in a lot of volume for myself this month. I am pretty impressed too because I have just been pushing myself. There have been times where I felt like I ran like complete dog shit and I still find a way to keep on playing and staying on top of my game. It's not easy but still I grind.

It's crazy how far I have come in the time I started playing these SNG's. I remember where I only use to play one table at a time and was biting tooth and nail to cash. I always use to laugh at people shoving and was like oh I will wait to crack them. Funny how the tides have turned because now I am 18 tabling and I am the one shoving. Although I feel like the games have gotten harder, I still feel like I can be +ev and make money if I just put in the volume. I never realized how much volume I didn't put in and how small my sample sizes were per month. This month has also taught me how much I actually need to play to put in that required volume. I guess that makes no sense at all but you really don't realize how much you have to grind until you set a goal start reaching it and realize you put in mad work.

I need to put in some heavy games the next couple of days because I have some plans for this weekend now. I will be going paintballing for my first time on Saturday and totally looking forward to it. I am kind of nervous because I know it will sting like a mug when I get shot for the first time but I can't wait to go out there and try to light some one up.

wbmustang