Randomness

No big news to report, but i have been playing somewhat regularly and have managed to get deep in several tournies since my 3rd place finish. Unfortunately nothing major, but i'm still really pleased with my progress. I don't post often so i will posts some random stuff here.


Cash Vs. MTTs
When reading forums or blogs i often see players post about the frustration of playing for hours in a MTT and not cashing or having insignificant cashes.I simply don't have this problem, no not because i cash all the time lol, its just that i don't get frustrated. Perhaps its because i dislike cash games, but i think it also has to do with my approach. Most players like to see that their bankroll is steadily increasing... so each session, week, or month they want to see that increase. But for me i think that one 1st place finish will equal or be greater than a cash game player's winnings (playing at an equivalent buy-in @ small stakes) over the same period of time. So i'm not concerned about winning every tourny or going deep for small cashes... I know that the big score is coming and so i continue to put in work.

Bankroll & Field Size
Ever since i deposited $95 to FTP its been all about bankroll building for me. At first i just wanted to get to a certain amount so i could start making regular withdrawals. But recently I've begun to notice that most regular big wins for online players come in smaller field tournaments. Obviously it is easier to win in a 300-800 field tourny than in a +2500 field. The buy-in usually limits the field size, so the higher the buy-in the smaller the field... I think the ideal buy-in for these smaller fields is between $75 - $216.

My goal then is to increase my bankroll to $5500.00 where i can directly buy-in to the $55 50/50 tourny on tilt, take occasional shots at $75 buy-in and try to sat into the 109s and 216s. Eventually I like to have at least a 12k roll so that i can play up to the 109s regularly. Obviously with smaller fields and higher buy-ins the players will be better buy i believe i will be able to hang.

Establish a Routine & schedule
Ever notice that when a NBA player goes to take a free throw or a MLB pitcher goes to pitch or batter to bat that they follow the same sequence of actions? Why is this? I believe it is what signals to the brain that they are ready to perform. It prepares them to perform exactly as they practiced. I believe this can be applied to poker also. I am working on a pregame routine that i believe will allow me to get into the right frame of mind to perform my best in a tourny. It will not guarantee a win obviously, but it will make sure I bring my 'A' game.

In addition to this pregame routine I also want to establish a kind of schedule. Most times we just log in, see whats starting soon and jump in. Instead i'd like to know which tournys i'm joining ahead of time and play these same tournaments regularly. This creates a comfort level with the particular tournament and structure as well as players that increases the chances of success. I know that there are Pros that play various games at the same time, but for the small stakes player it might just be better to specialize for the time being.

RTR Challenge
RTR is a small fast growing forum community, And while i don't get involved with forums much, I enjoy the small challenges they often run there... and so far the members seem to be really good people. I recently signed up for a$4 180 man challenge and it looks like i'm gonna take it down.

I haven't been motivated to play these much because of the time issue but this challenge did the trick. These tournies are soft as ever and i crushed one last night taking 1st. When we got 3 handed i was chip leader and the other two were pretty weak, so i toyed with them alot and eventually dropped to 3rd place. lol You can tell when players think you're done and start to play like its just a matter of time before you bust, right :)... unfortunately for them i still had 24bbs so i was not concerned at all. I just focused, quit the shenanigans and eventually busted the 2nd guy, then crushed the other guy heads up... we started HU almost even stack and i think the only pot he won off me was when i folded... lol. gg sir.


well that's it for now.

-Isgrinder