\"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I don't post much around here anymore, as I was sucked into the time vaccuum that is OOT long ago. So, I haven't quite kept up with this forum, and who's doing what, in quite some time.

I'm most interested in hearing from the guys who were posting here about a year ago, back when I was still interested in learning [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] and toiling away in .50/1. Guys like zuluking, btspider, davelin, jaran, entity, aaron w, bottomset, droolie, tiltaholic, and any of the many others I'm sure I left out. (of course, nobody is excluded from this post). What games are you guys playing now? are you guys striving to move up, or are you content where you are?

I'll start off:

I'm still addicted to bonus whoring, and as such spend most of my time between 2/4 and 3/6. I sometimes play higher, but not usually. I have a roll for much bigger games, but am content with a good hourly earn with small variance in the small stakes. I'm preparing for some major life purchases that will deplete almost all my bankroll (and make me a happy man), and as such am pretty risk averse.

You?

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I played alot of 0.50/1 and did bonuses. Right now I am playing 10/20 6m and will be a "pro" in two weeks - ie: I won't have a job and we'll see how much I play.

-DeathDonkey

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

One year ago I was not playing poker since I was studying intently for my PhD qualifying comprehensive exams. I had left off at .25/.5. When I passed them in September I got a monitor so I could 4 table and started playing .5/1. Bonus whoring really builds up the old roll [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]. I still posted some a year ago (not all that much though).

I don't play all that much, but right now I'm at 2/4. My dissertation comes first, looking for a job second. I like to think and learn about the game a lot, and post frequently in my spare time though. Mat eventually made me mod.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was bouncing around .5/1, probably mixing in .25/.5.

I'm currently lagging it up with DeathDonkey at 10/20 and hope to be playing 20/40 or 40/80 live next time I'm in Vegas.

Rob

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

Uh, I hate you guys.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

They also play 15k+ hands/month. I'm lucky to get in 10k.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was midway through my 1/2 foray. About the beginning of December, I had moved up to 2/4. Then I went to Italy for a semester abroad (one of the best times of my life) and pulled out my entire br to help finance the trip (and well worth it). When I returned, I took my remaining vip points and bought in for $50 on empire. I quickly built that up to about $200 in two weeks. Unfortunately, I was unable to find summer employment, and spent the entire summer withdrawing money to pay bills. So, I'm right back where I started, at .5/1.

-Jaran

PS-I now have a job!

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

a year ago, I was playing 11sngs, terrible, and had busted out my orig deposits twice

now I'm playing 3/6 6max, struggling but hopefully fighting through it

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

Let's see...

Fall 2001 - I jump into the world of online poker after playing some $2/4 at Foxwoods (sneaking away overnight from a summer math camp with another counselor... it was a weekend... and I let one of the other counselors know in case anything happened). I start playing $.50/1 (the cheapest stakes at the time... maybe a year before the poker explosion). The poker playing is very irregular as I go through my Senior year of college.

Summer/Fall 2002 - As I prepare to move to grad school, I decide to pick up poker again as a "regular" hobby. But with all of the necessary adjustments, such as moving to a new city and figuring out the new academic thing, and a dial-up connection on a single phone line apartment, I don't get to play very often.

Spring/Summer 2003 - Time ticks on, I settle in, I move, I settle in again, get high speed internet, and finally start to get some playing time.

Fall 2004 - After 10k hands at $.50/1 (finally!), I move up to $1/2 full.

Summer 2005 - Another 10k hands and I've cleared $1/2 full with a confident game and slide into $1/2 shorthanded.

Fall 2005 - I'm about to add a Party Poker account and start playing some 7-stud H/L8 along with more Hold'em. I'll probably jump into $1/2 (stud) because of the betting structure ($.50/1 has $.25 antes!). I might also step out of SH to tackle the beginner tables. I think I've played some 4k hands at $1/2 SH in the last couple months, but I'm visiting family right now and can't check those records. I expect this will slow down my advancement in hold'em because I don't intend to play any more often than I am right now, but I'm interested in learning something new. (Oh yeah... I'm starting year 4 of graduate studies... and on starting a new academic year, see below...)

For those who have been around a while, you might be surprised at the stretch of 10k hands in about 9 months (even though I've alluded to it many times [img]/images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img]). I'm in no hurry. I've got time on my side (and if I don't, then the little time I have remaining is much better spent doing things other than playing poker).

On starting a new academic year...
[A 25-year old's soapbox]My hope for the college-aged players is that you guys develop a well prioritized life that isn't poker-centric. Don't get me wrong; poker is great fun. But don't spend all of your free time 4-tabling to move up in levels faster. You're going to regret it.[/soapbox]

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
They also play 15k+ hands/month. I'm lucky to get in 10k.

[/ QUOTE ]

I've only played 10k hands in a month once. I normally play between 4k and 8K. but, all of it is while bonus whoring, which provides a subtanstial cushion for downswings(this has been my first losing month ever).

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was in the nanos -- nickel/dimes. Had a couple of bad swings there and at 0.10/0.20, but that just motivated me to get better. Came back to crush 0.10/0.20, then moved to 0.25/0.50. Around June of this year I moved to 0.50/1 and discovered bonus whoring. Two weeks ago I moved up to 1/2.

I started in the nanos because I wasn't ready for large swings in my bankroll. I started with $25 and that's all I allowed myself. I have a feeling that were it not for the 2+2 books, I'd still be in the nanos. I had a couple books (Lee Jones' being one of them) and while it helped me preflop, my postflop game was abysmal. After the 2+2 books I firmed up my preflop and started to learn what postflop play was about. As a result I have been progressing through the levels rather quickly. (<10k hands for each)

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I'm posting this so I can bump it on Sept 1 2006!

A year ago i was in South Africa on a Holiday paid for by a combination of nano NL and $5-10 MTT tourney final tables (ahh the sweet, sweet $7 PL MTT on Victor Chandler, how i miss thee).

Since then I've switched from nano NL to Micro Limit up to $1/2, bought pokertracker, SSH, and started posting here regularly, after a mere 3k hands on PT (but about twice that at this limit) things are going well in this strange new world (crosses fingers).

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I was playing at 1/50th the stakes I am now.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

yo!

started playing in March 2004 - moved to 1/2 around a year ago. struggled at 2/4 for a while, and now settling into 3/6 since end of july. sometimes i donk around at 5/10 when i'm feeling focused.

i still post exclusively here because i'm not smart enough for SS and i'm a creature of habit.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
because i'm not smart enough for SS

[/ QUOTE ]

somehow I doubt that. still in Inman?

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

About 6 months ago I was in 2/4 and getting prepared to make the jump to 3/6. Subsequently I moved over to Empire to take advantage of rakeback, cashed out a significant portion of my roll and saw the development of the new 6max tables. I also read HOH1 and HOH2 and have had some success in SnG's and MTT's. Currently I'm bouncing around .50/1 6max, 1/2 9max and 10+1 SnG's.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
They also play 15k+ hands/month. I'm lucky to get in 10k.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's also a lot easier to log 15k hands in a month when you're 4-tabling 6max, as that's about 350 hands per hour.

Rob

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

Just wanted to say thanks but I don't play that many hands / month :P

Though hopefully I will start when I stop working my real job in a couple weeks.

-DeathDonkey

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

About this time last year was when I first started trying to seriously learn the game, had just bought SSHE and was playing .5/1 "fulltime" on Party. I was a breakeven player, though I made a little money with the help from rakeback [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Moved to 1/2 for a brief period, then started playing 1/2 6max starting in around March or so. Did ok, then when rakeback was taken away from party, I switched over to UB where I ran real hot on 1/2 6max and then moved up to 2/4 6max where I kinda floundered for a while.

Cashed out about half of my BR to pay for a new widescreen laptop and moved back down to 1/2 6max on Eurobet, which is where I'm treading water now [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I played a staggering number of micro hands starting early last summer through this spring. I really enjoyed the stress free pummeling and whoring at .50/1 and made a remarkable amount of money by taking advantage of all the intro bonuses at all the party skins and many other sites as well.

As those intro bonus opportunities dried up and my game got much beter I realized I was leaving too much money on the table for my time. The ridiculous cost of a second child starting in daycare made me take my poker time more seriously and I've been inching my way up since the late spring.

Knowing I needed to improve my SH play in order to move up successfully I played about 20K 1/2 6mx hands late spring/ early summer and somehow eked out a profit (with massive amounts of help from quercus, death donkey and titlaholic, you guys are the best!)

Mid summer I moved back to full ring and have recently played about 10K 2/4 full hands. Currently I'm whoring 2/4 4-tabling and starting to play 3/6 full while 2 tabling between reloads. I admit I play 2/4 on the auto-pilot side but when I play 3/6 I actually concentrate, work on reads and try to improve my game.

The only problem I have right now is that I don't play enough hands. Only about 4K this month. I need to find more motivation and time (vacation and surgery set me back but I still feel like a slacker)

6-max made me a better player but was awful swingy. I left because it was making me hate poker. Many of you remember my tiresome bitching I'm sure. I left 6-max but not for good. I still hit it occasionally when I need to get a lot of hands in fast to beat a bonus deadline. I will continue to dabble in 6-max as it certainly helps my full ring and I'm sure that's where the money is at higher limits. If I ever get over myself and stop caring about the swings so much I'll probably try to make a go of going up the six max ladder. 6-max is such a difficult game to see the longrun in. 10k breakeven hands is two months of playing for me and within that are massive ups and downs. It seems like it would be easier if you were playing it full time so the longrun would approach more quickly but then again I have no clue. It's probably just more intensely difficult the more hours you play. Entity and DD are certainly much tougher than I am. Seeing you guys succeed has been very ispiring. I just wish I had your stones!

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was trying to play .5/1 off of those free $50 bonuses you can whore for at Party Poker.

Right now I have the roll to play 3/6 but I'm building at 1/2 as a matter of personal preference. Ideally I'd like to take that roll to 3/6 by November.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I barely know such a game exists. Started playing on April, Full Tilt play money game. Started play 0.5/1 on Party on May.

Right now I am trying to prove that I beat 1/2 game. Hopefully I can move up to 2/4 in a month or two.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was just lurking and privately complaining about suckouts and getting pwnded at .5/1.
Started posted, started playing Paradise .25/.5, started winning, currently playing 2/4.
After recently switching apt's, I'm having a hell of a time getting internet access at home, so I haven't played in about a month. Frankly I don't miss it as much as I thought I would, since I go running after work and have since quit smoking. Maybe it's just a coincidence, but I feel a lot better about myself, and I'd like to reinterate what AaronW said for you college kids.
Of course - I might be a chain smoking, chain posting addict again when my internet finally gets hooked up.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was playing Magic the Gathering, masturbating, and doing my dishes in the bathtub. Now I am a winning 2/4 player, have a sweet lookin girlfriend, and do my dishes in the sink.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I'm splitting my time between 2/4 short and 3/6 short (but mainly 2/4) with the occasional 5/10 live. I cashed out most of my roll (left only about $1500) and went to Europe this summer as well as some other places. Couldn't be happier with my decision. Had I not done that I'd probably be playing 5/10 short right now. Poker is just a hobby for me that I happen to make some extra money off of and I'm content sticking at these limits for now - though I would like to play bigger eventually.

edit: I should also add that I don't play nearly often enough. Seriously. 10k hands per month is a lot for me. I'm usually at 4-7k.

edit 2: I'm very glad I caught the shorthand bug. It's fun. I've been playing the odd MTT here and there too. Tourny's are something I'd like to put more effort in to.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago I was just rediscovering poker (having not played at all in many years and never having "studied" it). After much farting around I started playing seriously at the end of December after much reading and much lurking at 2+2. Played about 500 hands of .50/1 in trying to clear a Party deposit bonus when I got frsutrated that too few hands were being raked and decided to play 1/2 instead. Luckily ran well, eventually moved to 2/4. Played a bunch of 2/4. I managed a 200+ BB downswing towards the end of my stint at 2/4 just as I felt I had datamined 3/6 enough and observed it enough to think I could beat the game. The downswing was painful but I really felt I was playing pretty well so moved to 3/6 anyway. Ran well at 3/6. Played some 5/10 and then decided to make the jump to 6-max. Spent 30,000 hands at 5/10 6-max essentially breakeven while I learned the game. Haven't "learned" it sufficiently yet, but am doing OK and hope to move to 10/20 6-max sometime before the end of the year when I feel comfortable enough to do so. Nice thing looking back is that I deposited a total of $1K in the beginning and now have a decent roll for for 10/20 from a combo of running well, rakeback, and some minimal bonus chasing.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

A year ago at this time, I had just read SSH and was playing .5/1 and played two tables for about 4,000-5,000 hands a month.

Now I am 4-tabling 5/10 full for between 18,000-22,000 hands a month. With occasional forays into 10/20.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

a year ago I was a donater at .5/1. the epitamy of weak-tight. I posted here, but didn't get much out of it because I was mostly looking to lick my wounds.

~ march I started really reading the posts here and started to actually learn something. I went from single-tabling to 2-tablings, bought and read SSH, and learned a ton. I'm now beating .5/1 full for ~3.1/100 and 6-max for ~2.7 over ~12k hands on each.

and I just started bonus whoring... I don't know why I didn't before. I'm 73 hands from clearing the full august empire bonus

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]

On starting a new academic year...
[A 25-year old's soapbox]My hope for the college-aged players is that you guys develop a well prioritized life that isn't poker-centric. Don't get me wrong; poker is great fun. But don't spend all of your free time 4-tabling to move up in levels faster. You're going to regret it.[/soapbox]

[/ QUOTE ]

Let a 34 year old give you an Amen! I didn't have poker when I was in college. I had my studies and Magic. My priorities were out of whack. Now I am a bitter old man who lives alone with his dogs and cats.

Moral of the story: Date a lot. College may be the last time you are surrounded by people your age who are mostly single.



[/ QUOTE ]

A year ago I lost my first $50 load in party poker. I got PT, SSH and started reading SSH. My bankroll has been on the increase ever since.

I whopping 30K hands later my post-flop game has improved a lot. I am still struggling with pre-flop looseness. Luckily I have a steady job and dogs that love me anyway.

-D

P.S. grjr, does your graph still look like this? http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...mp;o=&vc=1

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
I cashed out most of my roll (left only about $1500) and went to Europe this summer as well as some other places. C

[/ QUOTE ]

Sweet.

that's way more productive than me wanting to buy a huge ass TV [img]/images/graemlins/smirk.gif[/img]

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I started playing hold'em almost 3 months ago. I started at .5/1 but quickly moved to 1/2 to clear bonuses at a much better rate. The bonuses plus free gifts from PSO were enough of a reason to play even if I was going to start as a losing player. I also took a quick stint at 1/2 6 max to get a feel for how to play SH to apply it to my full-ring game (and it definitely helped). I wasn't a losing player.

I've read this forum at work for considerable amounts of time and I've been reading poker books on my 1 hour bus ride to and from work. I've read SSHE 3 times, TOP, Weighing the Odds, SS2, ITH, Hold'em for Dummies [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img], and am currently working on HEPFAP with Inside the Poker Mind coming up. I also received tutoring from a pro which helped tweak my game and to give me confidence in my skills.

I'm currently playing 2/4 and winning at an ok rate for 10k hands, but I know I've also been running bad. One 200 BB downswing and one 150BB downswing, followed by a couple 100 BB upswings. Variance is making me go insane.

Oh and I'm now trying to post more as I don't feel like a total idiot in this game anymore.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

probably playing diablo II/ Counter strike/ fighting games

now all the time i would spend playing/refining those games, I play poker/refine my poker game instead.

I wish I found poker sooner

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

OOT will suck a lot more out of you than time. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

A year ago I found poker on TV. I saw Ferguson and Matusow wearing Full Tilt shirts, so I checked it out. I played a little at the free NL tables, lost my 1st 1000, reloaded and went on to win over 35,000 in a weekend. Poker is easy, right? So I put some cash in, maybe $50, and start to play $10 NL tables. Inside of a week the money's gone. Next payday another $50. Whoosh, gone in a week and a half.

In a chat with Howard Lederer I asked him what book I should read. He tells me to read ToP. Right away I get on Amazon and order ToP and HEPFAP. I figured that if I read ToP I must be advanced, so I got HEPFAP. My loss rate started declining until January when I actually started to be a breakeven player. That was when I switched to limit.

Some time in Feb I started lurking around 2+2. In April, armed with SSHE but still in a downswing, I attacked Paradise, got my granny bonus and left with the money I put in plus another $50 or so. On to Party with $500. Still in a slump at the start, I managed to get out with about $700.

I had left about $10 in Full Tilt and so I added another $90 and started playing .25/50 then .50/1. I withdrew the $90 a week later and still had money to play. I wasn't worried about being under rolled because I had money in Neteller. A month later I took out another $250, leaving about $60 there. That was an insane rush there, only playing about 3000 hands with $300 in profit.

With my new found riches I am doing 1/2 and, if I cant find a decent 1/2 game, .50/1 at Paradise for the AugMill bonus.

I guess I've done ok in the past year, the 1st 6 monts paying tuition, the last 6 collecting from the students.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
probably playing diablo II/ Counter strike/ fighting games

now all the time i would spend playing/refining those games, I play poker/refine my poker game instead.

I wish I found poker sooner

[/ QUOTE ]

This is funny, since I was in the same boat. But I still play counter-strike...

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
probably playing diablo II/ Counter strike/ fighting games

now all the time i would spend playing/refining those games, I play poker/refine my poker game instead.

I wish I found poker sooner

[/ QUOTE ]

This is funny, since I was in the same boat. But I still play counter-strike...

[/ QUOTE ]

I lied, I still play CS [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
But I still play counter-strike...

[/ QUOTE ]

funny thing: i quit counter-strike because i kept getting so mad at cheaters and even the lucky headshots from good players. now i play poker....and get mad at suckouts [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] go figure [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

Isn't there some character called servbot on CS? I ask because I played against someone with the nom de poque of servbot. I said in the chatbox that it was a little unnerving playing internet poker with someone/something called servbot. He saidit was something to do with CS. I replied "All of your base are belong to us."

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I'm currently stuck in a no man's land.

My roll is way too big for .5/1 or 1/2 but my game and my emotionally stability is not ready for 2/4 or greater.

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

[ QUOTE ]
I'm currently stuck in a no man's land.

my emotionally stability is not ready for 2/4 or greater, therefore my role is not too big for 1/2 .

[/ QUOTE ]

FYP

Re: \"Where are you now\" Micros thread
 

I didn't find this board until February or so, but I started playing last August at .05/.10 on Pacific with $20 (which I got 2 free books for) after reading SSH. I kept track of my sessions in PokerCharts and followed Mangatang's step by step plan (http://www.kingscascade.com/OnLine.html).

Just moved up to 3/6 6-max as of last week.