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August 1, 2005
Bad Week and July Recap
Last week was not a good one but thanks to a 4th quarter rally it somehow ended up being a winning one. I started it off up about $6500 last Sunday, then followed that with the worst day of my life, losing almost $9k. I took two days off for my girlfriend's birthday and then came back and lost some more. I actually thought for a while that I was down $14k total on my streak due to a clerical error, when in reality it was really only just over $12k.
I was supposed to go to a golf outing tomorrow but decided on Friday to cancel since it would pretty much ruin two days of play as well as my sleep schedule. My friends were probably upset but I'm glad I did it since I ended up playing late into the night and winning about $6,500 for the day. That brought the week to a close up $745, about 1/10th of what I probably should have made in that amount of time but still vastly preferable to losing.
I actually think I handled the bad streak well. It was a little disconcerting losing so much but I don’t think I let it affect my play at all. Mathematically speaking losing 200 big bets is well within the realm of possibility, especially at those games. Even 300 appears doable, though I might be fairly concerned if it happened. I've not lost 200 big bets at anything since I began playing online regularly but I have come pretty close a few times. These games should have much more variation than anything else I've previously played so it makes sense that I should experience larger swings in both directions than I have at any other game. I'm anxiously awaiting the upward version.
Unfortunately today I lost another $4k, so the new week started off on the wrong foot. Since it was the last day of the month though here are the ring game stats for July:
Hrs: 65.5
Win: $13,401
Rate: $204.60
I lost about $4k in tournaments in Vegas though, so after everything is said and done my bankroll is right back to where it was at the end of May. Oh well.
I had mentioned at the beginning of the year that my goal for 2005 was to make over $250k. 7 months are now gone so the target would be a little over $140k. I'd guess that all things considered I've probably only brought in slightly less than $100k so far this year. My initial goal had not factored in the month taken to write the book, and even still had I skipped the WSOP to grind the $30 games I'd probably be ahead of schedule, but as it is I'm a bit behind. That leaves me 5 months to make about $150k, or $30k a month, which actually shouldn’t be too hard if I can keep the work ethic up.
As far as hours go I've done a decent job this year, having played more than I had at this point in 2004. I don’t have the old figures handy (they're buried on another hard drive somewhere) but I remember not playing many hours from July-September last year. I seem to be going pretty strong lately so I don’t anticipate that. If anything I think I'll play more than usual.
I do need to start cashing some money out of my online accounts. I have just been leaving most of the money in there all year, other than living expenses and WSOP buy-ins. I want to save up enough to buy a house which means I have to cash that money out and pay taxes on it. It would be far better to cash, say, $150k out this year and $150k out next year than to just cash out $300k next year since it would put me in a lower tax bracket. Maybe I'll just wait until December and then thin out the accounts.
Well I'm off to bed. Tomorrow promises to be another long day full of bad beats. Better rest up.
Posted by themaroon at August 1, 2005 2:35 AM
Comments
dewd,
saying you pay your taxes the year you pull the check and not the year you win is asking for an anal probe irs audit.
Posted by: Dave G at August 1, 2005 12:10 PM
Yeah, you need to talk to a CPA or tax attorney.
Posted by: ChiefsFan at August 1, 2005 4:02 PM
You really should talk to an accountant (and one who is familiar with gambling income) as the way you now seem to be handling taxes on your winnings is clearly not in line with IRS regulations. Better to get this all straightened out now before any real problems occur.
Posted by: ActionBob at August 2, 2005 3:13 AM
Hi, I came across your journal while doing a search on google related to poker. I was wondering if you had any wisdom for a tight/aggressive player you wouldn't mind sharing (Perhaps you already wrote once on this, but I have yet to read through your entire journal.. A link would be incredibly appreciated). I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on how people played their hands and was wondering if I could throw a couple of scenarios your way some time for some input.
If you have the time, thank you! If not, thank you for putting all this wonderful info up for us aspiring players to read. Keep up the grinding, and I wish you the best.
Also, if you happen to have AIM and a little bit of spare time, I would thoroughly enjoy chatting with you for a bit.
Thanks for reading my ramblings haha =).
Oliver (Oneirois on Pokerstars)
Posted by: Oliver at August 2, 2005 10:25 AM
Dave G, ChiefsFan, and ActionBob: In the financial markets money earned off-shore is not taxable until it is repatriated. A strong case can be made that the same is true for off-shore gambling.
Moreover, the IRS has no way of knowing/proving you have off-shore earnings until you cash the check. Party Poker certainly isn't going to issue you a W-2G and send a record of such to the IRS.
Posted by: fun160 at August 2, 2005 4:30 PM
fun160: True, the IRS can't prove you have the money offshore until you bring it back, but they sure as hell will ask you to document it when you do. With the IRS, when you report the money you have to prove when and where the money comes from.
Matt: Follow Chiefsfan's advise and consult a tax attorney or CPA before making the financial move. You will be glad you did!
Posted by: mortal_one at August 3, 2005 5:00 PM