Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge

Essexphil

I did one of these last September. It really helped focus my game. I had a fairly ordinary September from a profit perspective, but it definitely provided a kick-start for the rest of the year.

I spent most of last month clicking buttons, rather than playing poker. Yesterday was a nice day-binked a Vegas side package on here, just missed one on another site (9/150, 2 packages), and had some other deepish runs. So-confidence rather better, and hoping Victor Variance keeps smiling for a while.

Month goals:

1. To achieve top 20 by end of month on Aussie's "best player"-I think I am currently about 420th)
2. To win 2 tracked MTTs
3. To final table 10 tracked MTTs
4. To FT a Main or Mini
5. To end the month in profit

This will not just be about poker. While some of it will be re progress on goals to help me (and hopefully others), I will also deal with my thoughts on poker and life generally. However, I don't want it to be just about me-the more people who comment on this thread the better. It can be good to look at a snapshot of a month of a person pretending to play poker seriously.

It will only deal with May-I know I cannot compete with the long-term brilliance of threads such as Quickfeet, Tomgoodun or Jac. Let's see what May brings....

Phil

Jac35

This'll be really interesting 

Congrats on your Vegas package btw

markycash

Well done on the package and good luck with this Phil.

Arrogant

Gl, i think you will reach your goals.In the top 5 tournament players on this site from my experience at the tables.

tomgoodun

Well done on the Vegas seat Phil, that's about 40 years on the trot you have played there isn't it

Follow your goals with interest, g lk.

aussie09

good luck phil.

it's something i will folllow every day. 

your current position in the top 500 Best Player league is 362nd

up 59 places yesterday

Tikay10

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

This'll be really interesting  Congrats on your Vegas package btw
Posted by Jac35

Define "really interesting" please.

Jac35

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge : Define "really interesting" please.
Posted by Tikay10

Less tedious than Can an old dog learn new tricks 

glencoelad

Hi Phil,   good luck with the challange, im sure you will hit the goals, i thought you had 

already ticked off the top 20 player list....i have you down as one on here.

 Perhaps you dont do the volume of games as some others .

 FANTASTIC result on the package, great to have it tied up and a nice trip to look ahead to.

 The thread will be followed by many....i look farward to it, good luck at the tables.

Tikay10

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge : Less tedious than Can an old dog learn new tricks 
Posted by Jac35

I might just spite re-start it now.

Jac35

Already bumped

Essexphil

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

Gl, i think you will reach your goals.In the top 5 tournament players on some of the tables from my experience at this site.
Posted by Arrogant

FYP, but thanks

Essexphil

Thanks for the good wishes, although it feels a bit weird men complimenting me about my package:).

So-an update on day 1:-

The highs-er, see Rob (aussie's) spoiler. Sounds good, until you look and see just how little success can cause that jump. Clue-all goals untouched....

The lows:

• got to expect that an element of run-bad (and play-bad) was due. Thought it might not be my day on the 3rd hand of the day. Me-QQ. Flop Q87 rainbow. Villain shoved-and won (87ss with a runner-runner flush)
• discovered that a good friend is not well (the person who started me playing on here, AceGooner)-not for me to go into detail, but hope he is better soon
• I wish to apologise to everyone who may be forced to read that an old dog cannot learn new tricks (apart from giving up smoking, please)

Good luck all-more tomorrow

 

Phil

aussie09

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

Thanks for the good wishes, although it feels a bit weird men complimenting me about my package:). So-an update on day 1:- The highs-er, see Rob (aussie's) spoiler. Sounds good, until you look and see just how little success can cause that jump. Clue-all goals untouched.... The lows: got to expect that an element of run-bad (and play-bad) was due. Thought it might not be my day on the 3rd hand of the day. Me-QQ. Flop Q87 rainbow. Villain shoved-and won (87ss with a runner-runner flush) discovered that a good friend is not well (the person who started me playing on here, AceGooner)-not for me to go into detail, but hope he is better soon I wish to apologise to everyone who may be forced to read that an old dog cannot learn new tricks (apart from giving up smoking, please) Good luck all-more tomorrow   Phil
Posted by Essexphil

sorry phil, not intended as a spoiler.  more in praise.

Essexphil

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge : sorry phil, not intended as a spoiler.  more in praise.
Posted by aussie09

Not a problem-1 of the goals is to promote your excellent site. Please feel free either to give an update or post a link to your site for it (as long as Sky don't mind)

Tikay10

Marv.

aussie09

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge : Not a problem-1 of the goals is to promote your excellent site. Please feel free either to give an update or post a link to your site for it (as long as Sky don't mind)
Posted by Essexphil

thank you phil, kind words.

you will see your top 500 Best Player position here...
www.PokerSuperHero.com/best

To help you find your performance in different leagues, I have added a brand new FIND page to help you see the pages on which you feature today.

Type in your alias into the yellow cell and see a "yes" next to each page. This guides you and you can select specific pages from the menu.

Incidentally, you can FIND all 23,270 players in the 2,744 major tournaments so far in 2017.

It will be updated every morning too.

www.PokerSuperHero.com/find

.

Essexphil

First the update:

Managed to brick 5 or 6 MTTs yesterday, so still languishing in 360th on the leaderboard. On a more positive note, managed to get through a preliminary round and a quarter final towards a "Main" Vegas package. £275 Semi Final to come on 7th May. Meanwhile, feel the need to start running deep in an MTT on here to get the challenge up and running.

Essex as a County produces some fine poker players. This site has some excellent players-MattBates, ChicknMelt, Jordz are fine examples. Elsewhere, there are further examples-the Essex players listed on Pocket5s include the likes of Chris Moorman and Luke Schwartz, and there are several good live players from Essex playing at Southend/Stratford as well as further afield. Nevertheless, I think it is fair to say that the County of Essex is particularly strong on Sky in terms of the best players on a site-I wonder why that is?

Essexphil

Finally-some real progress.

Month goals:

1. To achieve top 20 by end of month on Aussie's "best player"- (currently  420th)-up 198 places to 162
2. To win 2 tracked MTTs-won 1
3. To final table 10 tracked MTTs-1
4. To FT a Main or Mini-0
5. To end the month in profit-not yet, but the losses are smaller

Onwards and upwards (hopefully)

Phil

markycash

Good progress so far Phil.

Best of luck going forward!

aussie09

well played yesterday phil, it was good to see your win so early in your quest.  up 198 places is one day is spectacular.

to make things easy for you and your thread readers, the webpages that are best for each of your goals are reached using the following links.


Goals

1. To achieve top 20 by end of month on Aussie's "best player"- (currently  420th)-up 198 places to 162
www.PokerSuperHero.com/best

2. To win 2 tracked MTTs-won 1
www.PokerSuperHero.com/monthbest
www.PokerSuperHero.com/results

3. To final table 10 tracked MTTs-1
www.PokerSuperHero.com/monthbest

4. To FT a Main or Mini-0
www.PokerSuperHero.com/jackpot

5. To end the month in profit-not yet, but the losses are smaller
www.PokerSuperHero.com/monthprofit


Incidentally, your profit in the 21 major tournaments you've played so far in May is £44.95. 

Essexphil

Every poker player knows the feeling. Some days you get it in good, and get outdrawn. Some days you never get going. And sometimes, just sometimes, you get days when you feel you cannot lose. For me, 1 of those rare days was yesterday.

1 hand from the Final Table of the Main will show what I mean. There are 5 left, and I am in the BB, and am chip leader (but not by much). UTG raises, SB calls. They both have about 30-40 BBs. I have 55, and flat call. Flop comes 952. I bet half the pot (I've been doing that a lot)-both players shove. For the 1st time in my life I (briefly) considered folding middle set.

The original raiser had 22. The other player had a hand too-can't remember if it was 2 pair, or top pair and a flush draw. I hold, and had over 80% of the chips 3-handed. I would love to say that was skill, but it was not-I know I would have lost all my chips if I was either of the other 2 players

Progress

1. To achieve top 20 by end of month on Aussie's "best player"- (currently  420th)-up 52 places to 110
2. To win 2 tracked MTTs-won 2. New target 4
3. To final table 10 tracked MTTs-2
4. To FT a Main or Mini-1 New Target 2
5. To end the month in profit-looking hopeful

Shiny new star on Sharkscope completes a good day.

On a lighter note, late on I was 1-tabling on a tablet. It has some form of autocorrect function. Apologies to any railers who may have been confused when my "ty" to their good wishes came out as "Tyler"!

Promise to moan about bad beats/how I never get any luck etc tomorrow

Good luck at the tables

Phil

Tikay10

So Phil is an Aerosmith fan, it seems. Or maybe he means Liv.

PS - well done Phil, you are going along great.

Jac35

Great stuff Phil

Wp

Jac35

I thought he was likening himself to Tyler Durden

Essexphil

Decided to take yesterday and today away from poker. It is important for me to have regular time away from the tables. It is necessary to recharge the batteries-might play a little late today, but likely leave it until tomorrow. (For "recharge the batteries" think "old").

It was sad to see that PKR went into Administration yesterday. Sad for many reasons. They tried to be different. They had some of the worst players in the world. Oh, nearly forgot one-THEY HAVE MY MONEY!

The way that this unfolds will be a key test for the Gaming Commission. Firstly, in my experience, "segregated player funds" only definitely works when a site needs to continue trading. Secondly, will the Administrator accept that the segregated funds are separate from the other assets and liabilities. Thirdly, will those funds bear any liability in relation to the Administrator's (colossal) fees?

This sorry situation shows the need for good bankroll masnagement. I suggest any high-value poker players should create a separate poker bank account, and make regular withdrawals into it whenever funds on a site go above a certain level.

Tikay10

^^^^

Yes, quite something to see PKR go into Administration & insta shut up shop.

In theory, of course, all players balances should be repayable on demand - as in now, immediately.

They were quite a sizeable room at one time, with a significant share of the UK & RoI facing market. 

Once they lost liquidity & moved across to MicroGaming it was only a question of time before it was GG them.

On balance, quite sad I suppose.

PS - Hope you get your cash Phil. It will be quite a cause celebre if it is found that the funds are not available to pay all player balances immediately.     

 

markycash

Good to see you are going along very nicely with the challenge Phil.

Also great to see you take some time off to re-charge the batteries. It is all too easy to put in absurd hours when we play poker and completely lose the balance.

I didn't realise PKR had went into administration. It will indeed be interesting to see how that plays out.

Great advice regarding having a 'poker bank account' to safeguard against such things. I have tried never to keep too much in any one place since Black Friday. 

Tikay10

^^^^

Here you go Mark;




https://calvinayre.com/2017/05/05/poker/pkr-shuts-financial-difficulties/

There is also a thread about it Next Door.

markycash

In Response to Re: Essexphil's May Sky's the Limit Challenge:

^^^^ Here you go Mark; https://calvinayre.com/2017/05/05/poker/pkr-shuts-financial-difficulties/ There is also a thread about it Next Door.
Posted by Tikay10

Cheers Mr T! 

Didn't actually get breakfast yet so this will give me something to read over my bowl of cornflakes

Tikay10

Also, see;


https://www.mpn.poker/blog/pkr/