Longing for Consistency
Monday, June 27, 2005
Limit Challenge Update: After some severe swings, I'm up about $114. My high was $126, and I'm striving to get back there. I want to get to the next level so bad. I don't know if I am making decent progress. I've logged in what would amount to almost (or over) 20 hours of play over the course of a month. $114 for a month's work isn't very good, and $114 for 20 hrs work is nothing to write home about either. But I am having fun while doing it, and (hopefully) I am building something significant with this low-limit grind.
Mother Highness gave some good advice. When the limit challenge is over, I might withdraw my original $50, and know that whatever I am playing with is profit. That $50 will also boost my 2005 winnings, which is back in the black, but below $100. That's a whole other sad thought.
The $30+3 SNG I played was a foolish mistake. I don't know if my then $207 bankroll was enough to risk so much. It was the most full SNG and I thought I'd give it a go. After I lost, due to some less-than-good play, I felt really stupid. Thank god for the limit challenge for keeping me focused.
That brings me to today's discussion. Consistency. I consider myself a decent player. One thing I lack is consistency. I'll go on good runs, and then bad runs. Part of it is luck, but the other part of it is my play. I get too loose, or I play spot on. This is not the way to become a great poker player. I need to work on consistency, like I had in the first few months of the year. I went on a tear, winning 11/12 home games, or something thereabouts. Vegas caused me to dip, but I fought my way back...only to dip again in AC. Maybe the real problem is my casino-play, which is a terrible thought, because that is where the real action is. What's a man to do?
Here is what a man is to do:
1. Stop tilting. I've gotten better at spotting myself on tilt and calling it quits. I still am terrible at doing this in a casino because the action is right there in front of me. Its hard to walk away. In general, though, I need to stop tilting all together. Maybe I'll read some Dahli Lama books to remind myself about acceptance and the pitfalls of negative emotions. I know that I might sound like a tool, but trust me when I say that when I'm reading the works of the DL, I actually think in a calmer way.
2. Realize the reality. There are going to be bad and good runs of cards. But overall, I'm always climbing upward (with the exception of casino play). So, while I may have lost nearly $20 in a no limit challenge session this weekend, I won it back over the course of three sessions over the next 24 hours. I cannot focus on the -$20 without realizing that there was a corresponding +$20.
3. Address the casino issue. Maybe some of you might offer me some advice here. Clearly, I do not play my best in a casino environment. I guess I am a little intimidated. Plus, I am used to (and prefer) short-handed tables, like the 6-person online tables or the 6 to 8 person homegame tables. Perhaps I can focus on tournaments in AC, but they seem few and far between, when you are on a budget and can't enter a $100 rebuy.
That's really all I can think of right now. To anyone out there who is interested in an SNG challenge, including DNasty, let me know. My current limit challenge is over on July 10th. Stay tuned for the results. DNasty suggested an SNG challenge earlier, and I think it would make for an interesting experiment. My suggestion is to start with x dollars, maybe $50, and then allow the members of the challenge to play whatever SNGs they want. If you go bust, you are out. Otherwise, the person with the most $ at the end of a month wins. $25 wager. It would have to be on the honor system, but then again, I think it would be easier to show proof of an SNG win, than proof of a limit challenge win, which can be as little as .50 after 2 minutes of play.
Think about it.
Pokerific!
posted by Jordan @ 1:22 PM,
3 Comments:
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At 2:22 PM,
GaryC said...
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Jordan,
I am definitely up for the SNG challenge. Once you come up with some rules, let me know. I need to back off the cash games for a while anyway.
GaryC -
At 5:46 PM,
said...
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I am up for it! Let me know. I can help out with planning or whatever is needed!
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At 7:38 AM,
D said...
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I am still down for the SnG challenge cause my Limit Challenge has seriously stalled. I am still up nothing like u, but my time I am able to put into it is not very much. I have a problem trying to grind out 10 bucks from a limit table while I am able to make more money from MTT. Oh well, SnG Challenge, it will be on for sure.
