£1050 to £2050 challenge/// Diary of a HUSNG Hyper grinder// Current Balance: £1230.2

benc

No offence, but you won't maintain a near 10% ROI at Turbos, and there's virtually zero chance of doing it at Hypers.

That said, I've played you alot and you're deffo good enough to win against the fishy folk you'll see all the time in these games. Only warning is BRM... I have no idea what your BR is and you don't have to be so tight at Turbos cos imo the edge is a lot bigger but against at Hypers it always seems to go in runs, you will win a bucket load and then you will lose a bucket load, you just want the losing one to be smaller than the winning one. But literally no matter how good you are, you have to be prepared for the fact you WILL lose 10 games in a row even if all 10 games are against massive fish.

As GaryQQQ once said, you basically have to be completely tilt-free to play Hypers, although to be fair, I play them and that is definitely not a statement to associate with me lol.

Good luck

benc

Hello i have been playing poker on sky for a couple of years now and over the last few months have concentrated mainly on grinding heads up turbos and more recently hypers mainly at the 5.25 level and somtimes 10.50, i thought it would be useful to keep track on here whilst engaging myself with the community and providing a small insight into the mad world of Heads up. I plan on updating regularly with games played, profit/loss and average profit loss. I want to predominantly stick to 5.25 turbos and hypers when the traffic is low for turbos. I will also post interesting hands occasionally and some of the best bad beats suckouts i encounter along the way. My aim is to maintain a 50p a game av profit and stick to 5.25s for the moment.

benc

Thanks for the reply lambert, Yep i'm decent with bankroll management i have about 85bi for the 5s and want to be disciplined and stick to them for a while as i know i can crush them. Is it possible to find out ROI for a specific game without paying on scope? as i'd be interested to see what mine is from when i starting putting in alot of volume around the beggining of october to end of december ont he 5s, out of interest what do you think is a sustainable ROI for turbos?. I dont plan on playing hypers really at all the variance is tough to cope with and i didnt feel i had much of  an edge/ confidence in my game at all. Just frustrating when people dont sign up for turbos for a while so have to stray over occasionally, and yeah i've put in enough volume now to have seen the massive highs and lows, feel my mindset is definetly capable of dealing with turbo swings now. Anyway i saw you are going to take a few shots in some MTTS good luck.

Anyway back to it, played a quick session around 50minutes i think, played 14 won 9 lost 5. didn't really encounter many tough spots, will post a hand in a minute that id be interested to see opinions on. Will probably be putting in a few hours later this evening so will update again then.

Games played: 14
Profit/Loss: +16.50
Average Profit/Loss per game: £1.18

benc

Ok so was just interested in what others thought about this hand, when he bets out- do we:

 1)Call and re-assess on the turn,2) Raise to call/fold a shove,3) Shove

benc	Small blind		15.00	15.00	740.00
x	Big blind		30.00	45.00	1215.00
	Your hole cards	9 A
benc	Raise		45.00	90.00	695.00
x	Call		30.00	120.00	1185.00
Flop
		7 Q 8
x	Bet		120.00	240.00	1065.00

Lambert180

Well generally I think @ Hypers 5% would be pretty amazing, 3-4% is very good.

Turbos can probably get more like 6-8% if you're very good.

People who are signed up can check for you, I'd just ask on the forum if anyone will do a search for your HU SnG stats from X date and they will, off the top of my head Dohhh and PatWalsh are usually happy to do it.

Lambert180

So many hands in these games do depend on how the games been going and what the opponent is doing, like are they donkbetting alot?

Normally I'd jam over his bet. Don't like calling with your stack size, leaves you stranded if the turn is like 3clubs, you don't ever wanna raise and fold to a shove and you don't really wanna be raising to induce a shove, I'm quite happy to see them fold.

splashies

Since Oct 1st, your record for £5.25 HU's is...

Played: 2,329

Profit: £1,404

Av Profit: £0.60

Av ROI: 11.6%

Very Very impressive. Keep it up. 

Lambert180

Wow pretty sick stats Benc, keep it up mate.

benc

Thanks for posting them stats splashies hopefully i can maintain a similar level and build a decent bankroll to have a proper go at the 10s. A bit of background info i'm a psychology student in my final year at uni, been playing poker since i was about 17, realised i had a minor addiction when i spent hours grinding just to become a virtual millionaire on facebook poker. Found my way onto skypoker not long after i turned 18 played mixture of cash dyms tournys and just donked around for a while, then around this time last year i spent time trying to improve my game reading books, articles etc, played alot of 10NL in the summer did alright. Anyway i withdrew everything due to funding issues at the beggining of uni semester and deposited a tenner to do some accumulators then decided to play some turbos and built up from there. Started to put alot of volume in properly from october whilst balancing uni work which hasnt been as difficult as i imagined, just recently finished an exam period and have two weeks off now in which i plan to put in alot of hours.

p.s  in regards to the hand i posted, yep i should of added some info about the player, he was donk betting alot, trying to win every pot so i did'nt know whether i should be waiting for a better spot against him. Anyway i shoved he turned over 56 for the straight draw and hit the 6 on the river. I was obviously happy getting it in upon seeing the hands, i just wasn't sure whether i liked the shove or not knowing that i could maybe wait for a better spot.

benc

Managed to get a decent session in 2-3 tabling most of the time from about half 8 till 1, stuck  to turbos despite it being quite slow at points for the games to fill up. Anyway i played 59 in total, won 35 and lost 24.
was a pretty standard session longest win streak was 6 in a row and loss streak was 4 in a row. I feel like i have improved some aspects of my game in the latter stages by getting some experience in hypers and am glad that i managed to adjust back to turbos quickly, hoping i can get through a good few hundred games this week and not have to stray into a loss at any point now i've built up a good initial profit.

so after tonights second session my total now is.

Day 1
Games Played: 73
Profit/Loss: +£66.75
Average Profit/Loss per game:+0.91p

* just looked over my spreadsheet put in the wrong stats have now edited to correct stats

benc

Hand of the session, nice to see a decent flop when your in a flip situation.

benc	Small blind		75.00	75.00	1175.00
x	Big blind		150.00	225.00	600.00
	Your hole cards	6 6
benc	All-in		1175.00	1400.00	0.00
x	All-in		600.00	2000.00	0.00
benc	Unmatched bet		500.00	1500.00	500.00
benc	Show	6 6
x	Show	J A
Flop
		6 6 K

samboram45

wicked stats and good diary , keep it up , jus interested to know ow man tables do u play at  a time?

benc

Thanks Samboram, i like to 3 table when i feel i can play without distractions and am not too tired. If not i will normally 2 table (maybe whilst sort of watching of tv or something, and if i get into a game with someone decent who is rematching me then i may drop down to just that 1 table due to more concentration being needed against better players, would say thats more when i have ventured up to 10s though.

macapaca

In Response to Re: HUSNG challenge/diary an insight into turbo and hyper grinding:

Thanks Samboram, i like to 3 table when i feel i can play without distractions and am not too tired. If not i will normally 2 table (maybe whilst sort of watching of tv or something, and if i get into a game with someone decent who is rematching me then i may drop down to just that 1 table due to more concentration being needed against better players, would say thats more when i have ventured up to 10s though.
Posted by benc

Hi bend, do you fancy a hour or 2 hu turbos at the £5 level about 10 o. Clock?

Forum fun ftw

benc

Hello Mac,  i'll be on from 8 o clock onwards probably untill 12-1 so just hunt me down and play me. Obviously im aware that alot of players will crush me in these games so i dont want to commit to like an hour or 2 of play without having played before, happily do like a best of 5 though.

benc

Right quick update, Played a quick session of about 11 games earlier in the afternoon, then played again from half 4 untill 7, so about 3 hours i reckon. Just going to refer to them as one merged session. In contrast to last night this is the realistic insight into HU grinding. As anyone who playes them regularly will know sometimes you can get it in good against every flush draw, straight draw, overcards to the board, bottom pair but by the river your opponent will somehow end up winning the hand. It is important to understand when giving these games ago, as if you view all the games short term you end up belieiving you are maybe a brilliant player when you streak a few wins together and then lose and wonder why you were phil ivey one minute and a total fish the next. Anway i managed to finish just over break even which i was very happy with as not long ago i'd of probably tilted my way to a big minus figure. Will be putting in another session from around half 8 onwards, hopefully maintaining the average profit, although i'm sure it will swing loads as i continue the diary.

Anyway session 2: total played: 51. Profit/Loss: +2.25

Total
Games Played: 124
Profit/Loss: +£69.00
Average Profit/Loss per game:+0.56p

benc

Right just finished my latest session, was about 4 hours 2-3 tabling most of the time. Anyway so i pretty much carried on where i left off, cudn't get any momentum going, wont moan about the hands as the updates will just get repetitive and boring, to summarize i just wasn't running well at all. I dont have too many bad losing sessions, but when i do i think tilt must sneak into my play in some way, maybe slightly adjusting how i play hands because of previous beats. I will be looking over some of the games tomorrow to see if i was making many mistakes as it's easy to think your playing perfect and the poker gods are against you when you have a few bad beats in a row but in the cold light of day i'm sure i'll notice some leaks i can work on.

Also played 16 hypers at the end of my session, 3 of which were 10.50 also played 2 10.50 turbos earlier on, which luckily went well otherwise i would of been in minus on my overall profit/loss, however i'm still aiming to avoid hypers/ moving up for the moment, especially towards the end of a losing session as thats a recipe for disaster. So i will be trying to stay disciplined in future. Positives are that i'm glad i managed to get a large volume of games in over two days, even playing through tonights session when things were not going well at all, and also i'm in profit overall which is the most important factor.

So in the second session i played 64 profit/loss: -£52.25

Total
Games Played: 188
Profit/Loss: +£16.75
Average Profit/Loss per game:+0.09p per game

benc

Just a quick hand from earlier this afternoon, can use it to look back on when i get beat after beat that i hand them out sometimes too....

benc	Small blind		100.00	100.00	1390.00
x	Big blind		200.00	300.00	310.00
	Your hole cards	4 Q
benc	All-in		1390.00	1690.00	0.00
x	All-in		310.00	2000.00	0.00
benc	Unmatched bet		980.00	1020.00	980.00
benc	Show	4 Q
x	Show	K K
Flop
		5 3 6
Turn
		A
River
		7
benc	Win	Straight to the 7	1020.00		2000.00

benc

After last nights session i decided to review a few of the games, make some notes on anything i noticed that contributed to the loss and work on it today. Noticed a few things, one in particular was i was doing well at grinding people down to 400-500 but then calling off shoves way too light. I reckoned that this was due to experiencing a few bad beats, which led to almost being in a rush to finish off games, which ironically probably cost me alot of games. I decided that today i would only play two tables at a time in order to concentrate on the plays i was making and how the opponent was playing so i was adjusting properly, rather than just cruising through games. I also decided i would make a note in my excel sheet that tracks results next to each game in regards to key hands, how i won lost etc.

The session went alot better i managed to recoup last nights loss with a little extra, i played only 5.25 turbos for this session. Looking over my notes i was winning my fair share of flips and 60/40 type hands which was good and i also felt i was playing alot more patiently and making folds that maybe i would not of made last night.

In total i played about 3 and a half hours. Played: 36 Profit/Loss: +£61

Plan on getting another session in later, going to play the mini turbo bounty hunter as well but will keep that seperate from the Heads up track, so will probably be one tabling Hu whilst playing the Bh.

Total
Games Played: 224
Profit/Loss: +£77.75
Average Profit/Loss per game:+0.35p

benc

Hand of the session....

x	Small blind		25.00	25.00	880.00
benc	Big blind		50.00	75.00	1045.00
	Your hole cards	A Q
x	Call		25.00	100.00	855.00
benc	Raise		200.00	300.00	845.00
x	Call		200.00	500.00	655.00
Flop
		9 A 7
benc	Bet		375.00	875.00	470.00
x	All-in		655.00	1530.00	0.00
benc	Call		280.00	1810.00	190.00
x	Show	5 2
benc	Show	A Q
Turn
		10
River
		Q
x	Win	Flush to the Ace	1810.00		1810.00

GaryQQQ

Great diary, and excellent results. You've already gone straight to the top of my HU STT 'players to avoid' list!

benc

Thanks Gary, do you plan on playing some HU once you build a bit more of a bankroll? i'm guessing playing the 1.05 and 2.10 standard structures would be a pretty low variance way to build up once your at the 15-20pound mark?

clarke1789

Impressive to claw your way back to decent profit - keep it up. Am grinding the 2.10's daily now and hoping to build up. Only on a tiny average profit of £0.08 over 67 games, nowhere near big enough sample I know but hopefully broll will slowly build. Will keep you up to date and keep reading this - good and interesting stuff. 

benc

Thanks clerk can  put some progress reports in here if you want, add a microstakes insight and id be interested to keep an eye maybe update every 50 games..,

clarke1789

Okay sounds good, I will post a report when I reach 100 games, broll permitting!

benc

Just ended my second session of the day, busted the BH early cudnt resist calling a min 3bet with suited A flopped flush draw got it in against overpair and didn't hit. the session was going ok was breaking even for a while, didn't think i was running bad more just running big hands into bigger hands a fair amount. Guess my play just deteriorated from there as i went on a bit of a losing streak which again i will review 2mo. i've never played such a volume of games before so i could be tiring myself out mentally so should probably cut down a bit on the hours go for a more scheduled time table rather than just contantly playing, normally i would have uni work, girlfriend telling me to stop playing and other things going on which would stop me putting in such volume but im alone at my uni house atm so its pretty much fifa and poker between eating and sleeping lol.

Anyway positives are i made a profit for the day and am not in the red, and have hit £43 in cash for points which means im on track for my highest ever total. Also a mention for slyklist i ended the session by one tabling against him in a first to 5, he won 5-4 and gave me an idea of what it is like to play the guys at the higher levels. I enjoyed the games as i had to adjust to being put to the test more often,make some more moves and basically play out of my comfort zone, its a massive difference to almost robotically playing against some of the average 5.25 players. I think its important to play good players when you can, even when you sacrifice your edge as it can almost be treated like a learning experience, which can be invaluable in improving your own game. Anyway well played slyklist but i think you should stick to the higher games... lol

So for this session
Played:57 Profit/loss: -£30

Total
Games played:281
Profit/Loss: £47.75
Average profit/loss per game:0.17p

zixxernine

good thread, interesting to read, keep up the good work

: )

Z

GaryQQQ

In Response to Re: HUSNG challenge/diary an insight into turbo and hyper grinding:

Thanks Gary, do you plan on playing some HU once you build a bit more of a bankroll? i'm guessing playing the 1.05 and 2.10 standard structures would be a pretty low variance way to build up once your at the 15-20pound mark?
Posted by benc

Once I'm rolled I'll focus on MTTs which I find by far the most profitable form of poker. MTTs don't earn many poker points, particularly at the low buy-ins, so I'll probably mix in some hyper turbo HU STTs to give my points total a boost and ensure I reach the monthly 500 C4P threshold.

benc

Just had a brutal 3 hour session which has taken me into a loss overall, felt i was actually playing quite well, making the right calls and getting it in good a majority of the time, just feel like i am running below average at the moment.

I genuinely believe that this could of been a huge winning session if say 75% of my hands held up when the cards were flipped, however it wasn't to be...looking in my excel sheet i got top pair in against bottom pair on the flop 5 times and lost by the river, not sure if this is because i'm giving off an agressive image at the table but i guess i cant complain about getting it in good just needed my hands to hold up and the session results may have been a little different. Had the usual horrible beats AAs cracked by A2, losing alot when i got it in with AK v A6 type hands. The cards just wont fall my way at the moment and this is giving my confidence a bit of a battering. In the past i have excluded myself for short periods when i have found lost a bit of confidence and come back refreshed, so i'm going to have a think about what to do next, maybe i'll drop down play some micro Hu for a few hundred games, set a challenge of climbing up once i have earned a set amount of buy ins or something as at the end of the day poker is about enjoyment and the last couple of days i havn't been enjoying playing. Also if anyone has any suggestions or interesting challenges they would like to put foward feel free. I will update later this evening about my plans after the west ham game, hopefully west ham will win and i will be forever tilt free...

played 63  Profit/Loss: -£65.45

Total
Played: 344
Profit/Loss: -£17.70
Average profit/loss per game : -0.05p

benc

benc	Small blind		25.00	25.00	645.00
	Big blind		50.00	75.00	1280.00
	Your hole cards	A 2
benc	Raise		75.00	150.00	570.00
	Call		50.00	200.00	1230.00
Flop
		A J 5
	Check
benc	All-in		570.00	770.00	0.00
	Call		570.00	1340.00	660.00
benc	Show	A 2
x	Show	5 K
Turn
		Q
River
		5
x	Win	Three 5s	1340.00		2000.00

benc

So the above hand is what i referred to in the post above the hand,shove top pair on a drawy board hoping for a call, get the call, but time and time again i had lost by the river. Also got slowrolled by a super aggro guy with AA pre flop when i shoved on him which was rather irritating.