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July 17, 2005
The Recap
Well the Vegas trip is finally done. I don't think I'll be traveling anywhere for quite some time. Maybe Borgata in September, but possibly not even that. Poker Stars put out their WCOOP schedule and it looks great. I added up all of the hold'em events and it game to $7,300, plus whatever add-ons in the $200 nl rebuy event, so probably around $8k total. I might just run all of them and see what happens. Maybe I'll even squeak in a couple PLO tournaments as well.
The last month and a half was a total rollercoaster. The first two week trip to Vegas was pretty much an abortion. My vacation was great, however, and really helped me clear my head. The second leg of the WSOP trip started off badly, with me going out of the tournament in just over 2 hours, but after that my bad streak seemed to have fully subsided and between the few live tournaments I cashed in and the ring games in the hotel room I ended up more than recouping all of my losses.
I realize that I probably would have made a lot more had I just stayed home and ground it out on Party in the $30/$60 games the whole time, but I wouldn’t have had nearly as much fun. I met a number of friends/readers out there and ate a lot of good food. Actually one of the worst beats of the trip was this cold that pretty much ruined my appetite. There were at least 3 occasions where I couldn’t finish my entire order because of it. I don't know if I've previously even done that 3 times in my life.
I also got a lot of people's different perspectives on poker. Some were actually very enlightening. It's good to find new people whose game I respect and talk to them. I learned a lot about various different games and got a few new ideas which I may share later.
I also learned a valuable lesson, which is that tournaments suck. They are fun to play in but the variance is just too high. They really aren't a good way to make a living. We all get lured in by the promise of winning a lot of money quickly but in the end it's just not worth it. I can't imagine what the touring pros must go through in a year, nor would I want to. Except for maybe a handful of people it can't be as profitable as just grinding it out on Party Poker, so what is the point?
Still they are a nice change of pace, and I think I'll try to play a couple more big ones every year. When you look at them as more of a hobby than a potential income stream they can be a lot of fun. I get pretty bored with limit hold'em sometimes, and I still have a lot to learn about no-limit and tournaments. I feel pretty confident in my game but still have significant room for improvement, and learning is what makes poker enjoyable.
So I guess in the end I have no regrets. I took a shot. It was an expensive shot but I could afford it, even if I hadn’t just gotten it all back in one week. And what I learned on the trip couldn't even have a dollar value attached to it, but if it could it would be a very high one.
Now I'm really going to try my best to grind away on Party for a few months at those juicy $30 games. I may make a short trip to L.A. with Chris at the end of August to play some supers for the WPT event there. Other than that there probably won't be much in the way of tournaments in the future, other than maybe a couple Sunday tournaments.
Posted by themaroon at July 17, 2005 11:34 PM
Comments
I think the view of tourneys as a fun hobby is right on, as you say because of the ridiculous variance. A backing arrangement would cure that of course.
Bon Appetit!
Posted by: Quiet Lion at July 18, 2005 1:34 AM
"A backing arrangement would cure that of course."
is that an offer?
Posted by: eric at July 18, 2005 5:05 AM
I have to disagree about tournaments not being a good way to earn money. I am still collecting data, especially regarding personal performance, but my theory is that it is possible.
Some people are not made for the grind. The times I have tried it have not been good. Tournaments hit an entirely different poker spine. They reward different aspects of your game, and they punish different aspects.
I think a lot of people are mistaken when they think the way to win tournaments is to get a big stack and pummel people to victory. This is reinforced by watching 6-handed final tables on TV, where the big stack really does have a big advantage. But I have watched a lot of tournaments, and the chip leader with 30 people is a lot different than the chip leader with 6 left.
Anyway, there is a lot to tournaments, as your new friend QL surely knows. I read Lion Tales, it's great.
Enjoy those juicy ring games and welcome back home.
Damien
Posted by: Damien at July 18, 2005 10:47 AM
I am currently averaging about 2.5x my entries in NLHE tournaments which is slightly better than I'm doing in cash games so I too must disagree with your assertions that tournaments are not profitable. Great players earn 6-8x entry fees.
Certainly, finishing just outside the bubble is the most punishing aspect of these tournies as you've spent an inordinate amount of time to earn squadoosh. That said, many good players will make it to the final table 5-10% of the time, earning substantial amounts and negating the 20-30% out of the money.
On the other hand, you seem to be killing the high limit cash games on Party so why stop?
Posted by: sloegin at July 18, 2005 4:31 PM