Scotty77 IN THE WELL

Tikay10

Ryan, at my request, & following a suggestion by a grumpy bloke from Derby, has sgreed to do an "In The Well" for us.

So we need, err, some questions for him.  

Tikay10

Ryan,

When I first met you, playing bits & bobs at G-Luton, you were, well, pretty bad at poker, & a bit of a donater. I was certainly a better player the time, or I thought so. Now, not so much, lol.

Now you seem to get the lot, both at cash, & MTT's.

How did you manage to improve your game so much? Advice from others, coaching, or just worked it our for yourself?

 

Tikay10

Any particular player who has most impressed you?

THEROCK573

whats the best piece of advice anybodys ever given to you in poker regarding mtt's and who gave you it?

VespaPX

Was there a defining moment in you poker career where you realised that you could actually play for a living?

Tikay10

How bad is Chompy?

supercrazy

Is there any poker training videos out there for tournaments, that you would say really helped your game?

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Ryan, When I first met you, playing bits & bobs at G-Luton, you were, well, pretty bad at poker, & a bit of a donater. I was certainly a better player the time, or I thought so. Now, not so much, lol. Now you seem to get the lot, both at cash, & MTT's. How did you manage to improve your game so much? Advice from others, coaching, or just worked it our for yourself?  
Posted by Tikay10

I agree I was terrible back then! When we first met tho I was actually winning regularly on the low stakes cash tables - that's how good the cash tables were back then.  Also back in those days at the G Luton, I was fairly inexperienced at live poker and got bored so easily and wanted to win every hand.  Online with 6 tables where you are always in the action is certainly still my preferred format of the game.

How did I improve?  Well there wasn't really one magic moment, just a lot of things that clicked into place at the same time.

I actually think the biggest factor tho was getting 'known' on Sky Poker.  It made me want to be better and gave me a huge driver to move up the levels.  Think this happened when I was grinding 20-50nl and the TSP promotion came at the perfect time for me where I actually abandoned cash games for 3 months and played MTTs just to give myself the best shot at getting a TSP place.

Something that people vastly overlook is having poker friends too.  Around this time I started talking to 3 people a lot about poker, and we are still great friends to this day.  Being able to talk about hands is huge but also just the support network from likeminded people is vastly underrated.  Grinding poker for a living can be tough so you really need to have a core group of people who you can trust to turn to.

And of course hard work.  Poker is like anything in life. You see the players in the chat box or on the forums who constantly moan about bad beats, player XYZ is so lucky, it's all rigged etc who just blame everything except their own game. As long as you are harsh with yourself and your own ability at poker then that is a major major step onto becomming a winning player.

chicknMelt

Great idea this...

Hi Scotty, congrats on your recent form. Seems to be going pretty amazingly for you atm!

if you had to start again from scratch, how would you build a BR?

do you play any other forms of the game, other than NLH?

do you have a routine that you follow for your grind etc?

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Any particular player who has most impressed you?
Posted by Tikay10

There are too many to name actually - so many players have such great attitudes to the game.

In terms of known Sky players it is Sam1986.  We actually started at the same time.  Sam didn't really tilt as much as me and played a lot more so moved upto the higher levels quicker.  I wouldn't be surprised if he is the biggest winner on Sky Poker and I think that is mainly due to his attitude.  Never seen him moan about a bad beat, call players names.  Just gets the job done. 

We were at the Vic a couple of years ago and he got into a 4bet pot with KK. He is headsup with an older gentleman.  Sam cbets a QJ8 flop and the guy raises.  Sam quickly folds and gets show 22.  From memory he has lost close to a grand in that pot and he was smiling away, having banter and wanted to know how the guy 'owned' him.  I can safely say that most players would call the 22 man some names, type 27 Whastapp messages to poker friends and just be hating life at that time.

MattBates for MTTs.  Easily the best player on the site for MTTs and someone who I really respect for the hard work they put into the game.

And this one is a bit left field however DontTellMum.  I've never really played with him but the sheer committment he must have to play so many tables and for so long can only be admired.  I've no doubt that in terms of BIs he is probably the biggest winner at his levels.

Outside of Sky Poker. Patrick 'Pleno' Leonard.  I've never known anyone in poker to work so hard and be so in 'love' with the game.  He has had a fastastic year and it's so deserved. 

There is also a group of players who I'm friends with who 'get the lot'.  Simon Deadman, Andy Hulme, Mitch Johnson, Alex Goulder and Keith Johnson.  Simon has won the world this year live and Andy gets the lot online.  I think that a lot of their success is due to the bond they have between them.

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

whats the best piece of advice anybodys ever given to you in poker regarding mtt's and who gave you it?
Posted by THEROCK573

I don't know if this is the best MTT advice ever, but it is something that my coach has been trying to install in me lately.  It is the concept of 'buddying up'. Basically identify a player at the table and always be involved in a pot with them, whether it be 3betting them or calling everytime they open.

Of course there are situtions where you sometimes have to 'give up' hands like when the blinds are fairly short or if someone behind you adapts, but it's a concept that is working well for me at the moment.

Tikay10

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL : I don't know if this is the best MTT advice ever, but it is something that my coach has been trying to install in me lately.  It is the concept of 'buddying up'. Basically identify a player at the table and always be involved in a pot with them, whether it be 3betting them or calling everytime they open. Of course there are situtions where you sometimes have to 'give up' hands like when the blinds are fairly short or if someone behind you adapts, but it's a concept that is working well for me at the moment.
Posted by scotty77

God bless Orford.

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Was there a defining moment in you poker career where you realised that you could actually play for a living?
Posted by VespaPX

I think it just natually happened.  As time has gone on, I've wanted more from poker.  Ask me 4 years ago and I'd have probably said if I can make £2k a month grinding online for the rest of my life then that would do me.  Now the goalposts have changed.  Back in the day seeing players like Redmond and LJamesL crushing the higher stakes games were a huge inspiration and I certainly did think that if those guys can make a living from poker, then why can't I?

It all nearly didn't happen tho.  I was looking at getting a job, had a few interviews booked in etc and had £27 left in the world.  On one night I spun this upto £1k on Sky.

I then had a choice of using it for life stuff, maybe going on holiday or using it as a bankroll for £20nl.  I decided the latter and to this date the only time I've ever had to fill our any employment forms are when I was offered the role on Sky Poker TV!  I have done a series of blogs on PokerPlayer magazines website about all of this if you are interested.

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Is there any poker training videos out there for tournaments, that you would say really helped your game?
Posted by supercrazy

Not one training video comes to mind.  I do subscribe to RunItOnce and try and get in a few videos a week.  And this year I bought a block booking of coaching from one of the UKs best MTT players for 2014.  

I think when it comes to Sky Poker with fairly small player pools, going thru hand histories and keeping very upto date notes are by far the most important tho.

Not having tracking software/HUDS and no antes certainly allow for Sky to be very profitable if you put the work in, hence why Matt Bates is the best MTT players on the site.

Tikay10

Quick interruption.

The thread will last for about a week, then we will do someone else.

Note that on Monday, Ryan heads off to the EPT in San Remo, so he may be absent for a few days.

And let's hope he gets the lot in San Remo - he keeps getting close, & it's only a matter of time.
 
If he manages a good run, I'll Post updates on Sky Poker.

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Great idea this... Hi Scotty, congrats on your recent form. Seems to be going pretty amazingly for you atm! if you had to start again from scratch, how would you build a BR? do you play any other forms of the game, other than NLH? do you have a routine that you follow for your grind etc?
Posted by chicknMelt

If I had to start it all over again I would again go for cash games.  From what I see of 20nl on Sky Poker there is still a lot of money to be made.  I now rarely more than 8 table cash games but it would be a very big grind of 14 tables at least and playing a lot.  Making the most of rewards and promotions is crucial when you are building up.  I'd also be satting into every main event on Sky.  Getting a decent MTT bink as a boost to your BR is huge for your confidence.

Nope, not really.  I play PLO for a bit of fun sometimes.  I aimt o get better but I don't really have the time.  I think if I ever had a huge score like an EPT I would certainly get coaching in some of the weirder formats purely for going to Vegas and getting a WSOP in one of the strange events.

I don't really have a routine except on a Sunday where I will be playing from 2. As MTT buy ins get huge on that day, I start of the session with a few cash tables to try and 'pay' for the day.  I'd definatly advise any MTT player to start doing this as it really helps with the downswings.

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Quick interruption. The thread will last for about a week, then we will do someone else. Note that on Monday, Ryan heads off to the EPT in San Remo, so he may be absent for a few days. And let's hope he gets the lot in San Remo - he keeps getting close, & it's only a matter of time.   If he manages a good run, I'll Post updates on Sky Poker.
Posted by Tikay10

The plan is to be in San Remo but I've had a nightmare with my car, so not sure yet.  Fingers crossed tho.

If I don't go to San Remo tho I am certain I will be playing the Irish Open for the first time this year - starts next week.

GELDY

Some live mtt players cannot make the transition to becoming consistent live online players.
What reasons do you think might explain this?

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Some live mtt players cannot make the transition to becoming consistent live online players. What reasons do you think might explain this?
Posted by GELDY

Firstly live poker is just generally far softer.  The boredom factor is huge.  So the average live player will be easier chips.  Also there are some people who are just more naturally suited to the live game - picking up on tells, chatting to the players at the table or the patience involved with live poker is all key.

Online with 4 tables and maybe the football on TV, you can just chill and don't need to make mistakes.

With sample sizes of live too it's hard to sometimes judge if they are really a winning player.  You get to see 30 hands an hour live.  If you 4 table MTTs on Sky you would likely see 250-300 hands an hour. 

The_Don90

I think its pretty common knowledge about how you ground up your roll from almost nothing to what it is today. Sure i read somewhere you won a flip with 100% or close to of your br in play. Do you think thats the most important flip you've ever won? And where do you think you'd be now if it had gone the other way? 

Payney1978

What proportion of cash/tournaments do you play and what do you think you are best at?

Cheers

Mark

chicknMelt

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL : If I had to start it all over again I would again go for cash games.  From what I see of 20nl on Sky Poker there is still a lot of money to be made.  I now rarely more than 8 table cash games but it would be a very big grind of 14 tables at least and playing a lot.  Making the most of rewards and promotions is crucial when you are building up.  I'd also be satting into every main event on Sky.  Getting a decent MTT bink as a boost to your BR is huge for your confidence. Nope, not really.  I play PLO for a bit of fun sometimes.  I aimt o get better but I don't really have the time.  I think if I ever had a huge score like an EPT I would certainly get coaching in some of the weirder formats purely for going to Vegas and getting a WSOP in one of the strange events. I don't really have a routine except on a Sunday where I will be playing from 2. As MTT buy ins get huge on that day, I start of the session with a few cash tables to try and 'pay' for the day.  I'd definatly advise any MTT player to start doing this as it really helps with the downswings.
Posted by scotty77

cheers Ryan

I have never had coaching, but the more I think about it, the more I think it would be a good idea. Can you recommend and good, reasonably priced coaches? Have you ever done any coaching?

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

I think its pretty common knowledge about how you ground up your roll from almost nothing to what it is today. Sure i read somewhere you won a flip with 100% or close to of your br in play. Do you think thats the most important flip you've ever won? And where do you think you'd be now if it had gone the other way? 
Posted by The_Don90

Yep.  £27 flip at £30nl when I had just started applying for jobs.  QQ v AK.  A flop.  Still won it tho.

I'd imagine that I'd have found a job in accountancy as that is what I have the most professional qualifications in.

LARSON7

Fish and Chips or Curry?

Celtic or Hamilton Accies?

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

What proportion of cash/tournaments do you play and what do you think you are best at? Cheers Mark
Posted by Payney1978

I try and aim for 3/4 days to cash and 2 days for MTTs.  I think that I am better at cash games but the lure of the big scores for MTTs will always be there so try to sat into the big comps as much as I can.  Far prefer the more stable nature of online cash.

When tables are low on both I will mix cash and MTTs.  

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL : cheers Ryan I have never had coaching, but the more I think about it, the more I think it would be a good idea. Can you recommend and good, reasonably priced coaches? Have you ever done any coaching?
Posted by chicknMelt

I have never done coaching and have been asked many times but it's something that I don't feel confident in.  If you are on FB then add me on there and I'll put you in touch with my coach.

scotty77

In Response to Re: Scotty77 IN THE WELL:

Fish and Chips or Curry? Celtic or Hamilton Accies?
Posted by LARSON7

Curry and as a good friend of mine is a Celtic fan it feels only right to go for Hamilton Accies.

wynne1938

Hi Ryan, congratulations on hitting the jackpot!

I'm in a MTT,Blinds are 100/200

My postion is in the cut off(6 table),

UTG and UTG+1 fold

I have K8O, how would you play it, every one is evenly stacked?

a00rock

Hi Ryan I enjoyed railing your Jackpot take down a great result but Andrew gave you a good game even taking the chip lead at 1 stage all be it briefly lol.

Q  What are your poker goals for the rest of 2014 having had a very good start to the year?

benc

Sorry if i am repeating any questions but have a few..

How old were you when you really gave it a go at playing for a living?  Did you still live at home?
How did your family/friends ( who didn't understand poker) react to your decision? and how did you go about explaining that poker is not just pure gambling but a game of edges?
What kind of hours do you put into playing/studying poker a week (or used to when you started out)
Does being a poker pro adversely affect your social life /relationships and how do you think this would differ from just working a standard 9-5 if at all?

congrats on the results recently.

jdsallstar

Hi Ryan

You said earlier you suffered from tilt worse than Sam, was tilt a problem for you? do you still tilt? and what do you do to help stop it/prevent it?

and 2nd question what would you advise is the best way to improve - books, coaching sites etc?