1/2 NL Grinder

[AlexisBelle]

Well my friend and I decided to quit our jobs and grind 1/2 NL exclusively. We are both 24 and have been studying the game for about 5 years before deciding to take the shot. Naturally.... girlfriends, friends, and family all said it was the stupidest thing we could do. I'm happy to say after playing 30 hours a week for 3 months, we've both been averaging a $1200 profit per week. That may not be a huge sum for many of you, but for my personal tastes this is ample money to live with. Many say to move up to 2/5 NL, but if I'm happy averaging 12 a week as a consistent winner, why bother? We jump between 5 casinos so only a handful of people really know us and our style of play. Hopefully the run will last because it's minimal stress playing 1/2 and I'm having a hell of a time!! Sorry, this is sort of a brag.... Any other 1/2NL grinders have any success stories to share?

[dozer]

Yay for you?

[AlexisBelle]

Damn right after so many people saying you can't make enough money to live off of playing 1/2

[Brad1970]

I play alot of 1/2nl also & while you are doing great, keep in mind this is baby nl & the donkeys will be donkeys. They can lay some horrendous beats on you. So don't get a big head just yet.

[AlexisBelle]

Indeed - I've lost many a buy-in playing online these past few years. Sucking it up online has taught me some decent money management through my transition into live play.

[NicksDad1970]

As much as I'm embarrasse to say this but I think Mike Matusow said it best when he said something like "people talk about how easy it is to make it in poker for a living. Let's see how they act when the cards have been slapping you in the face for 3 weeks."

I mean I'm an average player who works for a living and I get pretty pissy when I'm catching bb after bb.

[KurtSF]

Wow. You're my hero, and no, I'm not being sarcastic.

$40 an hour is awesome. If my approximations are correct, its still only 10k hands, so beware small sample size. Just the same, nice brag.

[atrainpsu]

Congrats on your success thusfar as a 1-2 grinder. Good to hear you are enjoying it. In my experience, it was not always minimal stress. I have logged over 1000 hours of 1-2 in AC and even this very easy game can be stressful. Once you go 9 or 10 sessions without winning, suddenly losing $2000-3000, can really bring down your psyche. I eventually grinded through my big downswing and was back making some descent cash. Eventually I got burned out and tried to get a job working for the man. I have made trips down to AC every few weeks and I enjoy the game like I used to. Now Whenever I come home, I wish I was there doing something fun for a living.

Some other notes for you:
1) Many people will say that you are running good and that your $1200/week isnt attainable. Over the summer the games tend to be better and some 1-2 games play very big, so under optimal conditions a 1-2 game can have an EV of $40/hr or so. It's likely though, that you are eventually going to get games, where your EV is in $20something/hr range.

2) As for moving up to 2-5. Your up $14000 or so and after expenses plus your intitial bankroll, your bankroll should now be $10000+. This is fairly ample for a 2-5 bankroll. Right now your winrate is $1200/week at 1-2. What would your thoughts be if your winrate was $700-800/week? I don't recommend moving up, especially since you seem very comfortable playing 1-2, but I would reevaluate this situation giving yourself $700-800/week and decide if that would be ample money to live with.

3) Family, girlfriends, and friends opinions matter in this situation. If you have a serious girlfriend, having a variable income makes it difficult, and they probably won't understand that winning $3000 in a week doesnt mean that you have $3000 to blow on her.

Anyway, I tried to touch upon everything I can think of. BTW, where do you play? Are these games 300 max? Care to share a little about your style of play? PM me if you want.

[sweetjazz]

I think you need to seriously consider moving up to 2/5 at some point if you want this grinding gig to last long term. If you're not capable of beating the 2/5 games for a good amount, it's unlikely you're going to make $40/hr long term in the 1/2 game. I don't know about NJ, but here in Louisiana, the 2/5 game actually plays LOOSER than the 1/2 game (though more aggressive). So there will be higher variance, but good players can make a lot more in these games.

At this point, you might consider taking a shot at 2/5 when the games look really juicy. Or if you prefer to be more structured, you might start by deciding to play 2/5 every other Wednesday or some such to start a transition in.

Of course, you have to be willing to drop down to 1/2 if you run bad initially at 2/5. And you may have growing pains transititioning to a more aggressive game.

But as much as I think your story is great so far, it's pretty unlikely you will earn $40/hr long term at 1/2 because (1) that true winrate may not be achievable (depending on game quality and your skill set) and (2) even if that long term rate is achievable, you will likely go for long stretches earning much less when you run bad.

Good luck!

[AlexisBelle]

Good points. For right now my mindset is if it's not broken don't fix it blah blah. Will definitely keep what you said in mind though. Playing 2-5NL every third day seems like a great idea.