Rhodeman77
Straight Flush
Do you play Hold’em is exclusively?
-
This site contains affiliate links. If you choose to make a purchase after clicking a link, Poker Chip Forum may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!
I play high stakes poker AMA (6 Viewers)
- Thread starter Bmeister51
- Start date
What do you do for a living that its not (for whatever reason) preferable to play 10/20 full time?
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Biggest winning session I profited 45k in about 8 hours playing 10-20. Most of it in three hands but obviously a big build up over time.
Biggest losing session was surprisingly 15k and that transitions into your next question.
I go to the casino with a set limit usually 10-15k. I'm fortunate to be able to play at this level and not have it affect my lifestyle if I lose even multiple sessions in a row (and believe me it has happened). So I go with 10k or something if i lose I leave thats it. I'm not going to be in for multiple buy-ins trying to get it back. I lose, I'm done and I try again next time.
I thin keveryone has to learn to manage their tilt. It;'s hard not to get tilted sometimes and yes I have donked off a stack because I was tilted 100%. I'm much better about it now though than I ever was. When I get that feeling I'll just get up from the table. Take a bathroom break, get a coffee or a scotch and just walk around and clear my headspace. I'll think about how I'm going to button it up and get to work and just clear my head so I get back to the table in the right state of mind. It's a stupidly boring response but it's what works for me. I think if you can minimize your tilt you'll see a rapid improvement in your game. Part of that comes with being comfortable losing too and just realizing its just a game and sometimes youre just in a situation where youre going to get coolered or lose your stack no matter how you play the hand. There is a bit of luck involved in poker haha but its the long term results that tel lyou what kinda of player you are. I've been on a 10 session losing streak and nearly an 80k downswing. I've been on a heater for months at a time where I'm up six figures. For me its more about the challenge of being a really good and well respected player than the money. If I player professionally and this was my income I think I'd hate it . That lifestyle is a very difficult one to balance so just choose to look on the bright side that its only a game and it should be fun.
Geremie
Full House
Do you plan on playing in bigger games? 200-400 or 500-1k?
Asking a lot of things:
Do you have a sense of your winrate vs regs? Whats the turnaround look like in the playerpool you're in? Whats your mental state - do you think you can beat anyone in the game at any time? How quickly do you assess others' ability? Do you think "top pros" (ie regularly appear on TV, talked about in various threads) do anything different than what you do in the game? What are the top 3 things you pick up on new players?
Do you have a sense of your winrate vs regs? Whats the turnaround look like in the playerpool you're in? Whats your mental state - do you think you can beat anyone in the game at any time? How quickly do you assess others' ability? Do you think "top pros" (ie regularly appear on TV, talked about in various threads) do anything different than what you do in the game? What are the top 3 things you pick up on new players?
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Yes I play Holdem exclusively. PLO is not poker lol its a game of "All In" and running out draws. (jk jk to all the PLO players here I'm just kidding)
I dabble in smaller stakes mixed games sometimes as they can be fun and a great way to kill some time and I pop into a PLO game every now and again but never at my home casino.
Pitbull888
Waiting List
Which top 3-5 poker books do you recommend?
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
I own my own business and I work in Sports. For anonymity reasons I won't say more than that but sufficient to say I make a good living and money is not something I will worry about in my life. I'm extremely grateful for that.
Kidsthesedays
3 of a Kind
Can we see some graph porn?
I remember watching an interview with Barry Greenstein a while ago and he talked about firing a player he staked for quitting while he was ahead. The staked player was up but then quit after a few hours just to be sure he booked a win. Barry fired him from the staking deal since Barry was upset the guy stopped.
Barry's main point was that players quit too soon when winning and play too long when losing. If I had understood this when I started playing poker it would have helped so much.
I think you are playing higher stakes the proper way. Owning a business and playing with a bit of discretionary income is the way to do it. Playing poker as a career seems insane to me. I could never handle that amount of stress.
Barry's main point was that players quit too soon when winning and play too long when losing. If I had understood this when I started playing poker it would have helped so much.
I think you are playing higher stakes the proper way. Owning a business and playing with a bit of discretionary income is the way to do it. Playing poker as a career seems insane to me. I could never handle that amount of stress.
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
I don't know.... You know the idea of it is really exciting but as I mentioned earlier I play at a level where the results if I lose are not going to affect my life but it still super competitive and satisfying to win at. At that level those stakes are life altering for the negative to me. If I lost 100k or 200k in a session it would probably not affect my overall life but it would be such a significant blow to my ego I think I'd be furious with myself so probably not.
It's also really hard to play at those stakes if you dont know someone who runs the game and will vouch for you. High stakes action worldwide is generally private hosted games at casinos and the players are all MONSTERS. Thats why the tournament circuit has all these high roller events cuz the best pros in the world dont have any high stakes cash games to regularly beat up. So with all that involved I probably wouldn't play that high. I know plenty of pros and regs that play in our game that would in a heartbeat but at some point I think it stops being fun and starts being reckless.
Kidsthesedays
3 of a Kind
Do you want to or have plans to play on LATB or any stream?
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Kain8
Flush
Do you take any precautionary measures when leaving a casino or arriving at home to ensure your own safety?
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
I defintely have regs and pros that I know for a fact I'm up a bunch on and a few that own my soul no matter what I do. Surprisingly I am more profitable against the pros than the wildman regs.
The turnaround is pretty minimal. Most players stay at that level. Some go down after they get smashed and try to build back up but its a pretty stable rotation of 40-50 guys who all play the game.
I think its defintely possible to beat anyone anytime but there are some things that pro players do and especially with the bigger names that just cant be taught. You see it all the time where they make some moonwalker call or bluff at just the right time and that isnt an accident they just know where they're at in the hand 100% of the time. Only a few players I've every seen or played with have it but its just an awareness that is so next level. I dont have it the same way they do and if I was up against ivy or negreaneu yeah 9 times outta 10 theyre mopping the floor with my ass but I think having the confidence to think that you can beat up on anyone anytime is more important that actually having an edge. I call it the poker-ceblo effect lol. Believe in your game and it doesnt matter whos across the table from you. I guess that answers your pros question too.
I think in the lower stakes you can asses someones ability rather quickly and thats because at lower stakes youre generally dealing wiht people who have a rudementary knowledge of the game. Its easier to bluff and pick off bluffs and people who don't play regularly are way easier to exploit cuz they've never seen the same tricks I see everyday. At the higher stakes it is WAY more difficult because eveyrone has their own tricks and will play subversively all the time. So it takes a lot longer but after you've played a couple hundred hours with people you know their game and what theyre capable of generally.
Top three things I pickup on new players is their comfort level when they sit down. ie are they taking a shot are they a reg are they a wild man etc. Their hands played per orbit. And what their tolerance for pressure is. If its 2-5 and a guy sits down with 500 in black chips I know hes got more in his pocket and he's going to punt. If he sits down with a rack of red and doesnt play for the first few orbits I know hes knitting and gonna be togh to bluff and he usually has it when he raises
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
It's funny you asked that because one of the guys who plays in our game reguarly and is a wildman reg is going to be on LATB. He does some CRAZY shit so we're all reallhy excited to see him mix it up with those guys. It's going to be hilarious. He's stacked me a bunch of times and sucked out on me even more so I secretly hope he loses piles lol but hes a good guy and an absolute game maker with deep pockets.
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Yes. I always valet my car so I'm never walking through a parking garage late at night/early in the morning. I have a knife on me just in case that I keep in a small deep pocket in my bag and I'm always checking cars behind and next to me as I leave noting the make model and color to be sure I'm not being followed. No one I know has ever been robbed but I know its happened so Always making sure to be aware and alert. As for getting home I dont really have to worry about someone rolling up on mny when I get out of my car because I live in a high rise building with a sealed key fob entry only garage. I will say coming home with 60k in pumpkins or waling through the casino knowing thats in your bag make you hyper alert lol.
Kidsthesedays
3 of a Kind
What's his name or date he's playing? I wanna tune in for that.
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
I can't tell you his name just for privacy reasons and I think its happening in early January if what I was told is correct. If this thread is still bumping I'll post a link to the video from youtube once it airs fair?
Kidsthesedays
3 of a Kind
Yeah that's fair, the date is good enough. We'll figure out his name on stream
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
This is 100% correct. When you're losing and trying to get unstuck you make mistakes. Players who get up just to book a win is a sensible thing to do but you miss out on a ton of value sometimes. I've defintely played too long when I'm losing but I've also made some huge comebacks. Just this weekend I was in for 10k and got coolered all the way down to 1200. Battled my way back for a 6k profit that night cuz I stuck it out. I've also bee in situations where I'm playing just a few hundred dollars up for 8-9 hours and then hit a rush and cash for 20k. You just have to know when to stay and when to get up. Its difficult to do.
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Only place I play is the horseshoe in hammond. I've been to a lot of poker rooms all over the place and its the best poker room in the midwest 100%.
There's plenty of games at the shoe that are good for low stakes. They always have a 1-2 and a 2-5 going. Grand Vic is awful I wouldn't suggest going there. They actually run a 5-10 that plays like a 10-20 but they have so many shitty rules. Its not a mandatory straddle game. You cant wear headphones, sunglasses or have a hood up. You can't chew gum and you can't take chips home with you or else they ban you. Plus its a $1500 cap to start and you can buy in to the big stack so after a couple hours it gets big but its just a shitty room and poorly run.
Past that I cut my teeth in 1-3 and 2-5 when I was underage at the Rockford Games and CPC. Those are soft rooms and they move around so sometimes they're close to home which is nice. I'd start there if I were you. If you have any kinda game to ya you can play the $500 cap 2-5 at the shoe and dabble into 2-5 with a small buy in cap. the 1-3 is crappy so I wouldn't go there to play that small. Past that Potowatomi is a decent room. I'm not up there regularly so I'm not sure what they spread regularly but im sure they have a decent crop od 1-2 and 2-5 tables. Their big game is a 5-5 or 5-10 Omaha game I think but it doesnt run very often from what I understand.
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Sorry I missed this one. I actually have never read a poker book in my life so I don't think I could recommend anything lol. I did take both Ivy and Negreanu's MasterClass and they were pretty cool. I wouldn't say life changing but if you're not familiar with picking up tells or know much about the meta of poker and ranges/positioning etc they would be good to check out.
Ever play tournaments or strictly cash?
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Ya know I played in the WSOP and a few circut events both here in Chicago and in Milwaukee and I think one MSPT event at Ameristar... I generally dont play tournaments as I think the varience is way too high. I actually don't know how pros make any money doing that lol. I'll play a tournament if I want to but defintely not my bread and butter. Sometimes its for me and others its not. If it was about the money then I'd never play tournaments unless its the Main Event. You can make so much more money. If you play 12 one hour levels of a tournament and get busted you could be giving up thousands of dollars at the cash table. Not to mention the only way you make big scores in Tournaments is if you win or get really close to winning. In a lot of instances the juice isn't worth the squeeze and remember even if you're one of the best tournament players in the world youre cashing maybe 20-30% of the events you play in. So you'll lose 8 our of every 10 buy ins. If youre playing 10ks it can mount up real quick.
Dodger
Flush
Cool thread. Following along. Thanks for taking the time to answer questions for the PCF community.
OP
OP
Bmeister51
Straight
Anytime! Ask me more questions I'm enjoying this too haha
How much math do you do at the table? I have played with some live players that I sense are not math players but just have insane feel for the game after playing many hours live.
So do you consider yourself more a feel player or a math player.
So do you consider yourself more a feel player or a math player.
Create an account or login to comment
You must be a member in order to leave a comment
Create account
Create an account and join our community. It's easy!
Log in
Already have an account? Log in here.
