Improve at Poker

Just wanted to talk a little about studying poker.

How much time do you average per week actually studying poker? If you're anything like me, an average micro stakes grinder, then the answer is not much.

Yet we still want to win at this game and make lots of money... well thats just not going to happen. Unless we put in the effort required to get better. There is no activity, outside of the lottery, that i can think of where you don't have to put in a huge effort to get better at something in order to make good money.

Musicians, Pro athletes, Business Execs, Doctors... you name it, before anyone makes it big in any of these professions they have to put in a lot of work, Poker is no different. Sure some may be naturally talented/smarter, and it comes a little easier to those fortunate few, but even they put in a lot of work. For those of us less fortunate we have to get by on pure hard work and determination.

Again if you are anything like me then the urge to play is often stronger than the urge to study. I want to get in there and mix it up mano a mano rather than read about doing it. Of course the more you play the more situations you get to see, but that alone is not enough. when playing you often dont have the time to completely analyze a situation right there at the table. By studying away from the table we get to take everything into consideration and come to a better decision.

For instance, In a tournament you may be faced with a tough decision whether to call, fold, reraise or reshove. You could be in this situation several times and not be sure what to do. Away from the tables you could assign your villain different ranges and calculate your EV with different hands for each of these options. Now when you're at the tables and the situation arises again, you are prepared.

I've learned a lot and my game has improved tremendously since the beginning of the year, but i feel there is more i could be doing. I've decided that i need to spend at least 15 hrs each week studying poker.

My study will include the following;

-Reading poker books
-Watching PXF videos
-Reviewing my own tournament hand histories
-Reading various sites/blogs
-Reading & maybe contributing on some forums

I already do most of the things on this lists but not on a consistent basis and not with the right mindset. I'm about to change this and hopefully it will push my game to the next level.

-Isgrinder