I'm Back....
That's what a friggin blizzard will do for you. In all reality, I made the comeback on Thursday night, playing some PLO--I won about $100 playing an uber-LAG style, then lost it all back. Oh, well. Bigger news for me is a return to PokerStars and my specialty, Limit Holdem. I've ground out some nice (albeit small) wins playing a couple short sessions. Tonight, I lost a couple hands where my AQ flopped TPTK and my opponent slowplayed KK masterfully and my JJ got outflopped and I couldn't let it go. That's attributable to some rust, methinks. I haven't really played LHE other than live (if you don't count the bonus chasing crap at the Cryptos) since November, so I suppose it's forgivable.
Now, what about the future? At the expense of sounding like a GA meeting gone amuck, I'm taking things one day at a time. I really get concerned with the long run, and whether playing poker recreationally, semi-pro, or whatever the hell you call what I'm doing is +EV in the long run. I'm going to be a father in 10 weeks or so, and many more important things are going to be taking up my time, and if there's one thing that I'm totally willing to sacrifice to get there, it's poker. I guess the problem for me is that I know I'm a good player, and that I'm passing up opportunities to make some decent side money, but in that sense, what is poker doing for me, other than providing me with an obsession/addiction to take up time that I will need to spend on my daughter?
When I first made the decision in October to begin referring to myself as semi-pro, I had started the discussion off both here and over at Bet-the-Pot's forums by asking, "What is my desired endpoint with poker?" Do I want to become a pro? No. The variance alone would put me in the booby hatch. Do I want to continuously move up? No, because eventually, I'd be playing 30/60 with $2000 in front of me, and my wife would either a) leave me, or b) have me committed. It makes her cringe to see me play 5/10 with $200 in front of me. Just glad she never watched me play 15/30. I just want it to be a profitable hobby. The question I have is basically when does a hobby begin to border on obsession? I never envisioned myself playing 5/10 or higher, or playing 10 hours a week or more. I know that's nothing compared to many of you out there, but for me, that's a great deal. Part of my deal with the wife about playing online poker was that I wouldn't let get to the point where it started to control me. I didn't play for a week plus, and it felt good, but something drew me back to the virtual felt. I'd like to think it's my competitive spirit, but part of me wonders if it's addiction or obsession, neither of which is very good.
Anyway, like I said, for now it's just one day at a time, and I'll see you at the tables!
Now, what about the future? At the expense of sounding like a GA meeting gone amuck, I'm taking things one day at a time. I really get concerned with the long run, and whether playing poker recreationally, semi-pro, or whatever the hell you call what I'm doing is +EV in the long run. I'm going to be a father in 10 weeks or so, and many more important things are going to be taking up my time, and if there's one thing that I'm totally willing to sacrifice to get there, it's poker. I guess the problem for me is that I know I'm a good player, and that I'm passing up opportunities to make some decent side money, but in that sense, what is poker doing for me, other than providing me with an obsession/addiction to take up time that I will need to spend on my daughter?
When I first made the decision in October to begin referring to myself as semi-pro, I had started the discussion off both here and over at Bet-the-Pot's forums by asking, "What is my desired endpoint with poker?" Do I want to become a pro? No. The variance alone would put me in the booby hatch. Do I want to continuously move up? No, because eventually, I'd be playing 30/60 with $2000 in front of me, and my wife would either a) leave me, or b) have me committed. It makes her cringe to see me play 5/10 with $200 in front of me. Just glad she never watched me play 15/30. I just want it to be a profitable hobby. The question I have is basically when does a hobby begin to border on obsession? I never envisioned myself playing 5/10 or higher, or playing 10 hours a week or more. I know that's nothing compared to many of you out there, but for me, that's a great deal. Part of my deal with the wife about playing online poker was that I wouldn't let get to the point where it started to control me. I didn't play for a week plus, and it felt good, but something drew me back to the virtual felt. I'd like to think it's my competitive spirit, but part of me wonders if it's addiction or obsession, neither of which is very good.
Anyway, like I said, for now it's just one day at a time, and I'll see you at the tables!
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home