Can I compete in WPT events but not play full time?

[kinger]

I just played in the Pokerstars WPT. I didn't cash and I am now 0-4 in these WPT events. I am a good player, I profited $18,000 playing poker last year as a part time player. Each WPT event that I have played in, I satellitted in at cost of about 10% of the entry fee so I definitely know what I am doing. My goal has always been to play in these major events and hopefully make a final table. I have a wife, 2 kids, and a fulltime job. I make very good money and have no interest in ever playing poker fulltime. I can't tell you how much time I have spent in the last year analyzing hands, playing tournaments, reading books. It seems like every minute that I am not working or with the family, I am thinking about or playing poker.

But my lack of success in WPT events really bothers me. I lost 1/2 my chips in a hand that I had KK and my opponent had AA. I think that I was given enough information to lay down the hand but still didn't. I am convinced that a very good player could have made the laydown.

I am writing this because I am coming to the realization that in these major events I cannot compete against players that play full time. Of the 750 people in the tournament, there has to be 500+ that play more or think more about poker than I do. How do I compete against someone that plays 5 times more than I do? How can I make better decisions that these people?

Has anyone else come to this realization? Or are there other people that are in my same situation that regularly cash in these big events?

I am debating making a run at the WPT at Foxwoods in April. It will require multiple trips to Foxwoods just to win a seat. Is this all a waste of time?

[Kurn, son of Mogh]

I lost 1/2 my chips in a hand that I had KK and my opponent had AA.

Tough break. Bad luck.


I think that I was given enough information to lay down the hand but still didn't.

Preflop or Postflop?

I am convinced that a very good player could have made the laydown.

If you're talking preflop - cue Dan Harrington laughing his ass off.

[kinger]

Kurn,

This was not a bad beat post and not a hand analysis post, that was not my intention. I did not have enough infomation preflop or on the flop, but by the turn and river, I felt my opponents actions indicated that he either had AA or a flopped set of Q's or J's thus giving me enough information to save the 1500 and 2000 I spent on the turn or river. I am purposely not giving the exact info because I already know where my mistake was and don't need additional advice on that. I am curious if people think I can compete at a WPT level if I do not play as much the full time players.

[Bang584]

I have no direct experience with your situation, but in general the more experienced players will dominate the less experienced ones. I'm not saying you'll never be able to cash in a WPT event, but it will probably require a little bit better than average luck. I am in no position to critique your playing skills, but like I said, more experience is correlated with more success, so I think you'd be better off playing tournaments with similar-sized buyins to your satellite fees. For instance, if you play $500 satellites, play $500 tournaments instead. You'd probably have a bigger edge in these smaller events since you are capable of winning the satellites.

[Banks2334]

0-4 in WPT events isn't much of a sample. Good pros can go long stretches without cashing. If you feel like most of the field is better than you, then why do you keep playing those tournaments? Try some of the lesser buy-in events.

[creedofhubris]

[ QUOTE ]

I just played in the Pokerstars WPT. I didn't cash and I am now 0-4 in these WPT events. I am a good player, I profited $18,000 playing poker last year as a part time player. Each WPT event that I have played in, I satellitted in at cost of about 10% of the entry fee so I definitely know what I am doing. My goal has always been to play in these major events and hopefully make a final table. I have a wife, 2 kids, and a fulltime job. I make very good money and have no interest in ever playing poker fulltime. I can't tell you how much time I have spent in the last year analyzing hands, playing tournaments, reading books. It seems like every minute that I am not working or with the family, I am thinking about or playing poker.

But my lack of success in WPT events really bothers me. I lost 1/2 my chips in a hand that I had KK and my opponent had AA. I think that I was given enough information to lay down the hand but still didn't. I am convinced that a very good player could have made the laydown.

I am writing this because I am coming to the realization that in these major events I cannot compete against players that play full time. Of the 750 people in the tournament, there has to be 500+ that play more or think more about poker than I do. How do I compete against someone that plays 5 times more than I do? How can I make better decisions that these people?

Has anyone else come to this realization? Or are there other people that are in my same situation that regularly cash in these big events?

I am debating making a run at the WPT at Foxwoods in April. It will require multiple trips to Foxwoods just to win a seat. Is this all a waste of time?

[/ QUOTE ]

It doesn't sound like the money is an issue, since you make decent money both at poker and in life, and it sounds like you made enough at your other poker games to cover the satellites for the WPT.

So what is the issue? Do you feel it's a waste of your time to qualify? A waste of the $1000 you spend qualifying through satellites?

I assure you that if you can satellite into a WPT event for $1000, your overlay is huge and it will be a profitable opportunity for you.