Back on track?

If you remove my experience with Rush Poker (to be explained later), February has been a positive month so far.  I have had 8 cashes in MTTs so far - 3 PLO, 3 NL, 1 NL (6H), and 1 PLO H/L.  In fact, a couple were really deep runs: finished 16th out of 2259 in 6 handed NL and 17th out of 1246 in PLO.  I have tried to broaden my range of games, and it has improved my ROI.  Half of my cashes this month are in PLO.  If I am running deep in non-NL tourneys, there is clearly some weak play out there.  When it comes to PLO, I'm no  CK.

I tried Rush Poker on FTP, and I liked the concept a lot.  Too bad for a couple of things: 1. I'm  not getting rackback on FTP; and 2. I got cleaned out on the river every time I got my money in with the best hand pre-flop.  I suppose that should be expected if I am playing at a 10NL table.  In any event, after losing a few buy-ins, it was enough for me to end that experiment.  It will be interesting to see if other sites put together a "rush" equivalent. 

Over the past couple of days, I have been playing more cash games on PokerStars because of its 40 billion milestone hand promotion.  It has been a nice little gimmick to increase volume by offering bonuses to those involved in 1 million milestone hands on the way to 40 billion.  It would be nice to catch one of these bonuses to increase the bankroll.  There are various SNGs and MTTs related to the 40 billion milestone as well. 

Down month

This month was probably one of my worst months that I can remember.  My MTT play never took hold.  I had a couple of min-cashes in both NL and PLO MTTs.  My month would have been much worse, except for some decent ring game play (NL and PLO).  Looking back, I really got crushed in large MTTs, but not smaller MTTs.  I don't understand what accounts for this difference in results.  Variance is one thing, but a consistent down month reflects a leak that needs to be fixed.  My best guess is that I have been pressing in the wrong spots.  I have tried to play more aggressively, but it needs to be better targeted.  I hope to turn things around next month.

I played in a few WBCOOP events.  I have to say that the start times were brutal.  Starts around 5 or 6 EST ran right into parental duties, especially with my wife traveling.  In any event, did my best to play and strategically used Sesame Street as a babysitter.  I ran relatively deep on Thurs, but got knocked out 25 away from a min-coupon.  Not everyone runs like CK - congrats on the $215 coupon.

Registered for PS WBCOOP

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker! The WBCOOP is a free online Poker tournament open to all Bloggers, so register on WBCOOP to play.
Registration code: 297776

Generally speaking, I'm not thrilled with the times for these events.  Start times coincide with times when I need to pick up my pups from daycare or feed them.  In any event, I will still try to play, and I may even open up my range of events.  I am usually a NL player, but I may try to play the PLO and 8 Game if my schedule allows.

So far this month has been a negative month.  I have had only 2 min-cashes in MTTs so far.  The month would be a whole lot worse if I were not doing well in 9-handed cash games.  Perhaps it is due to less play on my part.  Also, I have been playing more on Absolute Poker to take advantage of rakeback.  Rakeback is something I should have taken advantage of long ago, but I guess better late than never.

I hope to see you fellow bloggers in the tourneys.

Happy 2010

I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday season.  Many people use the new year to make resolutions for the upcoming year, but I use this time of year to reflect on the past year. 

This year from a poker standpoint was good.  I increased my play significantly this year over prior years.  I steadily improved my ROI throughout the year by playing smarter and adhering to strict bankroll management.  From a professional standpoint, I started my own law practice after spending 8 1/2 years in mid-law, and I managed to reach my meager benchmarks.  From a personal standpoint, my 2 little pups continue to grow and provide me with daily joy, and my wife has put up with me for yet another year.   All in all 2009 was good.

As for 2010, I am hopeful that I can continue to play significant amounts of poker.  However, there will be some challenges at the beginning of the year.  For those entrepreneurs out there, you know that when you own a business, the revenue stream may not always be constant.  Well, 1Q 2010 revenues are starting to shape up, but they are not there yet.  If they don't get there, some difficult choices may need to be made.  Feeding the pups come first, and it may require taking money from the bankroll.  I would also like to continue working for myself, but we'll see if that remains possible.  This second year is make or break.  Now I see why most small businesses fail within the first 2 years.  Let's see what this new year brings.