Going Pro In Aussi land!

bearlyther

I have decided to take a leap forward and accomadate my income solely by playing poker.  I know the risks involved but with proper bankroll management and willing to continue to learn the game i can make it.  My dad knows i play poker but he would not like the idea of me doing this for a living from home so its kind of an awkward situation.  I plan on playing as much as i can at the moment he will probly want me to get a job now.  I plan on building up my bankroll so i can afford a flat of my own then i can play as much as i want.

I deposited £50 about 6 weeks ago and have built it up to £2,306.01.  I also cashed £500 out of my account last week for my living expenses.  The idea of this blog is to keep me motivated to succeed.  I must make game selection a priority if i want to go serious about this.

My goals:

Playing £11, £16.50 dyms 4 tabling as thats what my laptop can fit.

Playing in the main event each night.

I will be staying away from cash as this is where the regs are at and there is alot more easy money to be made else where.  I keeping track of my results each day and posting my wins/losses and try to figure where i am going wrong and what i am doing well.

Current Bankroll  £2360.01

lennyh

Looking forward to this mate,best of luck,

BorinLoner

I have to admit that I would be concerned about this. That's not a massive bankroll to be able to consider yourself as a pro and 6 weeks is not a long time over which to assess your profitability.

However, I would ask a few questions:

1) Which part of the UK (Assuming it is the UK) are you living in? Obviously London is more expensive than the north, for example, and therefore you would need to make more.

2) Are you remaining in education or part-time employment?

3) Will not winning at the tables have a serious impact on your life? That is, are you able to still live at home without worrying about being fed or clothed if it all goes belly up?

4) Are you willing to reassess and do something else if it's not generating enough money for you in, let's say, three or four months?

I don't have a problem with taking a crack at turning a £2k bankroll into a professional career if it's what you want to do and if it's not going to cause you problems. I would advise you to look for part-time work or some sort of education or training anyway, just so you can keep improving your CV. Listen to Gregg Raymer's advice. (If you can remember his Top Tip) It's the best advice I've heard in poker.

Oopnorth

I second what BorinLoner said and he said it much better than I could.
That aside, I sincerely wish you the best of luck, 2k I doubt, if the worst happens will not be a devastating hit since its money youve made already.
I await this thread with particular interest, well done whatever happens on having the sphericals to even try !

jakally

My 'tick list' for going full-time was something like this :

- >100 buy ins bank roll (1 BI = 100BB's for cash)

- 4 - 6 months living expenses saved separate to bankroll

- 12 months history of profitability at or above the level required to live comfortably.

- support of immediate family

I've got a family to consider, so am happy to admit I was pretty conservative with these requirements.

Your current situation clearly doesn't appear to meet the above in any aspect.

Having said that, there are other approaches which are different to the way I looked at it.

If your worst case scenario is that you go busto in two months, but still have a roof over your head, and can reasonably easily find a job, then I suppose the risk is limited.

One thing I would suggest is to generate some cash (through poker or otherwise) to invest in your set up.

Only being able to 4 table is a huge negative, when you want to find ways to maximise your volume / returns.

LadyFingrs

I'm not going to lie this sounds like a terrible idea.

You deposited £50 and ran like jesus for 6 weeks. I don't know how well you play, but I'm guessing, based on the size of your deposit, that poker wasn't that big a thing for you before this rungood happened?

Look, go get a job, and play poker on the side bro, no way you can sustain a living 4 tabling £11 DYM's.

Dazler

have to agree with ladyfingrs this is a bit premature, i made over 2k in 2 days on cash tables and thought i was invincible and going to make a ton of money and never have to work again............. but i didnt understand varience and br management back then wish i did. It wasnt i played badly but my amazing run had run out. I ended up losing the lot and learned a real lesson i can tell you. Im not saying your not switched on and wont do the same but just consider it could happen. If you are out of work what are you gonna put on your CV 'i was playing prof poker for a year' dont think that will help you get a job if it dosnt work out. 2k is a nice jump in the time you have aquired it but it does sound like a good run too me. If you intend on playing dym at the 16 pound level, you will be hard pressed on here to get that many games and not to mention its a lot harder to get at that level as there very good players too who most i would expect do it for a living. If you had 10k which you can quite easly manage to build from 2k then start thinking about doing it more frequently. But try and keep a day job too. You can still earn a lot of money as a bonus to you money you earn from a job. And maybe consider doing it full time if it works out in a years time and you have made 20k which is what you would earn if you worked. GL with what you decide though

EvilPingu

Like everyone else, I'm not sure it's the most sensible decision in the world, but good luck.

Only being able to 4 table is a massive issue, so you'll need some money to reinvest in a better setup. Get yourself a desktop PC with a 1920x1200 monitor, you'll be able to play 12 tables with no overlap, which will probably cost you a few hundred quid but it'll pay for itself. You'll probably have about £1,500 left after that so you'd still be able to grind £11 DYMs. Even if playing professionally doesn't work out, you'll have got a better setup and you'll be able to make more money from playing the game in the evening and at weekends alongside having a job.

If you're only playing 4 tables online, you may actually be better off withdrawing some of that, going down to your local casino and finding a £0.50/£1 game, depending how soft live Poker is in your area.

devonfish5

hi bearlyther,
also loving the name btw.
i,m not giving any advice...
u have done amazing building up your roll
over the last 6 weeks....
i,m so jealous.!!!
wishing you every success mate,
:-)
devon

rancid

Sorry to rain on your parade sir, but....
I echo what has been said, don't get carried away - your not going pro - your attempting to go pro


You need to play semi pro for a year and find a game that you beat over that year or at least 6 months
Did you build this BR playing DYM or cash, if this is mostly MTT winnings then - hold on fella
If you have played cash or dym and increased this BR from £50 - £2800 in 6 weeks then go for it
Your obviously a very talented poker player or you have run like god
If you have had a nice MTT bink, then treat it as good luck and don't suddenly think your going to beat this poker lark

but good luck m8'ty - I wish you the best

plus you mention your dad would not approve, etc...
this will only serve to add extra pressure on you to win, think about it - get a part time job - do part time education - and play part time poker - think of your future young man

WHOAMI196

In Response to Re: Going Pro [Bearlyther's Diary]:

Look, go get a job, and play poker on the side bro, no way you can sustain a living 4 tabling £11 DYM's.
Posted by LadyFingrs

This^

If it was easy as that mate i think everyone would be a pro. But GL.

Woogie8688

Hi Bearly are you confused?, cos i the sure **** am!!

Within the space of 24 hours you asked on the "ask Tikay" thread about playing on sky while in Australia as a student.

Watching Ch 865 last night on a cash table ( which you say you are not going to play) you blew a whole pull up with 2 7 ???? . Nice move, Great advertising or just plain stupid ????

And now you post that you want to become a Poker pro & earn your living from solely playing a few dym's & main events where the odds of cashing let alone binking the big one are slim to say the least.

I am not your father even though i might sound like it. Even though you might not like it, listen to what's been said above, talk to the likes of Scotty77 if you can. Look for example at TommyD Full time job ( well at the moment anyway) and a part-time job that provides a nice little bonus.

Your  Choice my friend, whatever you do don't burn any bridges & be honest with yourself in whatever you decide.

barnsie

firstly it is upto you what you really want to do if you really do want to do it, do it!

i think the main issue with people turning pro is they dont realise how "boring" it can be. OK if you end up being a cody or a dempsey then the lifestyle is great you get to go to great venues e.t.c but they are the exception because they are the top 1% of players. After grinding away 6-8 hours a day for small returns for a few months it does hit you that this is not actually that much "fun"

anyway good luck

profman15

You know 'Bearly'.....

You only live once so go for it but please listen to Jakally...he seems to make a lot of sense. Look at it as a one/two month 'go' at it but try to be able to stand back and look at the wider picture.

Things always seem brighter when we're winning but a downturn when rent or whatever depends on it can create terrific strains on you.  Do you feel mentally able to handle it? To be honest, i'm glad my livelihood doesn't depend on the turn of a card. I play poker purely for enjoyment. Yes, i try to improve and win money but i see it as a win-win situation. I've had 4 hours fun for £2.30.

Why not give yourself a more detailed strategy and time to put it into place eg build up living expenses to cover two months, an appropriate bankroll and hardware so that you can play an appropriate amount of screens to conquer variance. I don't want to put you off just have a plan to make it as easy a transitionas possible. You really do need something outside poker to act as a release aid or the cat will be bruised to bits!!! HA HA.

All the best and gl in the route you choose.........but remember.

A PERSON WHO FAILS TO PLAN IS PLANNING TO FAIL.

YOU NO DOUBT DO IT IN YOUR POKER PLAY SO DO IT NOW...CHEERS

kb245

In Response to Re: Going Pro [Bearlyther's Diary]:

I'm not going to lie this sounds like a terrible idea. You deposited £50 and ran like jesus for 6 weeks. I don't know how well you play, but I'm guessing, based on the size of your deposit, that poker wasn't that big a thing for you before this rungood happened? Look, go get a job, and play poker on the side bro, no way you can sustain a living 4 tabling £11 DYM's.
Posted by LadyFingrs

+1

68Trebor

 Have to agree with most of what's been said. I remember starting out in poker approx 6 years ago and binking to £4k cashes in MTT's in a couple of months on Pacific Poker, and some people moan about SKYPoker software, and thought I was invincible. Here I am 6 years later still playing at nl20 and maybe withdrawing a £100 a month if lucky. The other thing to bear in mind is that you say you won't touch cash as too many regs and easier money to be had elsewhere. I honestly don't think there are many pros around who don't play cash as the variance in MTT's is so big. Anyway GL but I do think you are doomed to fail. I would learn cash and work your way up. 

yidette9

good luck, I wish you all the best with this

Lorraine x

WHOAMI196

In Response to Re: Going Pro [Bearlyther's Diary]:

4. Tilt management, yeah its hard to manage, i still struggle, if u drop 3 BI in a session, jus stop, come back 2moro - ive gone on spews of 8 BI+ in a session - TILT will be ur biggest threat towards ur winrate also another thing if ur serious STUDY, i mean it, ur poker time should be divided say
Posted by sikas

Also this, im well tilting at the mo mainly coz im trying to get to priority (be it that's its my first full month at sky), so multi tabling(as much time i can squeeze in) after doing 10hour shift is a killer, but at least i know i get paid at the end of the month.

Sikas can i ask how many tables do you play? do you comfortably make to priority? (im on on 1kpoints at the mo) on target playing nl50, and i hope to rack up a lot this weekend! but i cant not get into priority this month, i think i should make it, bar i dont skip to many days not playing

FlashFlush

Pretty muh what everyone else has said... 

Why are you only playing £11 and £16.50 DYMs? If your BR is over 2k thats between 200 and 150 buyins. You shoud be playing £22 and looking at increasing to £33 DYMs if your trying to make a living out of it. If you think this level is too difficult and also cash is too difficult you really don't have the game to make it your sole income!

Keep it as a hobby, when you increase your roll and ability then re-****. I'm looking at going full time myself, but would never consider it if I was only playing 4x £11 DYMs at a time. lol

rancid

Looking at this again if your playing DYM then you need to play £22 ones x8tables - 8 hours a day on average

Even if your a break even player, you can do ok with rakeback )
should be about 50,000 c4p


4 x £11 DYM = 15,000 c4p £450 - you would need to be a winner at about 8-10% roi

scotty77

What everyone on here has said.

The main issue is getting a proper grinding setup.  You need to be able to comfortably 8-10 table to make it as a 'pro'....poker is now a game of small edges and its all about getting the volume in that makes the difference. 3/4 years ago then yeah just being about to 4 table was enough.  C4P/rakeback is more important than ever too especially if you are gonna be looking to do this via DYM grinding.  This is my biggest edge IMO.  I'm not the best player but I am very very good at getting the volume in.

Your roll has to be increased.  You need at least 5k min.  As ladyfingrs has said...where did your roll come from?  If a tournie bink was a major part then you hvae basically been really lucky.  If you have grinded it on the DYMs to that figure then yeah some excellent work and you clearly have a edge on the game.

A well known DYM player, who has been making his living on DYMs for a long time, has 30BI downswings quite regularly.  

Something that people don't think about poker 'pros' is that it is a very very hard of your social life.  The best games tend to run in the evening/very early morning.  Tournies are always in the evening.  Friday/Saturdays are generally the best time to play too so GG going out every week with your mates.  Your CV will have a massive gap too, but if your plan is to spend some time aborad anyway then it won't matter so much.

Your friends won't understand that poker is a game of skill and compare it to roulette.  Even tho I have been successfull in the game for a fairly long time now (plus the TV stuff) a couple of my friends still don't really beleve me. 

However you are in a great position with regards to your living expenses and if you try it and it doesn't go wrong you won't really have lost anything.  GL