Here is a series of events that occurs somewhat frequently:
Me, in a YouTube vlog, scenario A: “We didn’t get the result that we wanted but I’m pretty happy with the way I played. All you can really do is make sure you’re studying and applying correctly. The deck of cards will always even itself out and the results will come.”
or
Me, in a YouTube vlog, scenario B: “I’ve been hitting the books and applying some new tips and tricks. It’s a rewarding feeling when you see things fall into place, boosted by a bit of the rungood.”
or
Me, in a YouTube vlog, scenario C: “There’s a lot of bars on East Fremont, but this one is my favorite. Love the outdoor seating right on the street. And they have Joseph James Citra Rye on draft. Fuck yes.”
then
Vlog Watcher, via DM: “Hey Andrew. Thanks for the content. Really wanna check out that bar on East Fremont next time I’m in Vegas, especially since I don’t really go downtown ever. I had a question though, if you find the time to answer. I’ve seen you mention things like ‘getting in the lab’ or ‘hitting the books’ but my question is: What does poker study actually entail for you? What material or process are you following? Thanks in advance.”
Good question dude. So here’s a list that works well for my personal needs. Keep in mind that there are many ways to study, and different people learn in different ways. Maybe a one-on-one lesson is what you need. Maybe you just want to intake as much as you can. Maybe you need feedback. I think this list is a solid mixture of those things and covers a lot of bases, while not getting TOO nitty-gritty in certain aspects (see the Solvers discussion, for example).
The Hand History Lounge
Shining a spotlight on my dark spots
Nary is the poker session where there isn’t a spot that I’m unsure what the best action is. We can chalk part of that up to the seemingly-infinite situations that present themselves in live poker. Shit like, $5/$10 Bellagio reg in MP1 opens to $40, drunk-ish cowboy hat guy 3b to $420, other solid Bellagio reg min 4b, and we have QQ on the BTN… ??”
But there are also lots of spots that are a bit more routine, that maybe I should be more comfortable with, and that I just haven’t delved into with my studies yet. A hand will come up and I can write it down just afterward, and present it to the Lounge. Benton Blakeman, a long term winner from small stakes through $10/$20NL will get me a digestible thought process within an hour or two. I’m not gonna lie, it’s not easy to tell people that you don’t know what you’re doing in X-spot, especially as a so-called professional poker player. But it’s swallowing that ego that eventually enabled me to get out of grinding the $1/$3 treadmill.
At time of writing there are less than 80 people in the Lounge, and some percentage of those people just prefer to lurk and read others’ hands. That’s perfectly acceptable (and greatly beneficial too). But for me, putting questions out there about MY game and getting a reply–quickly–is huge during a session, after, and before the next one.
(You can try the Lounge and if you decide that it’s not what you’re looking for, you can cancel within 1 week for a 100% refund.)
The Upswing Lab
A 360-degree foundation
Doug has a YouTube channel that I’ve said probably contains some of, if not the most valuable poker study content for free on the platform. The only problem is that very few people are at a spot in their poker study journey to be able to digest everything he’s saying in those videos. The Lab starts at the beginning, and breaks down the process that took Doug to the nosebleeds. I remember a couple years ago, once his channel had really taken off, that people started an attempt to regurgitate his thought process in a lot more everyday poker conversations at the table.
I use the Lab to get a birds-eye view of whatever particular aspect of my game needs work. Then I apply. This, along with the Hand History Lounge, seems to serve me really well as a one-two combo for cash games.
PLO Launch Pad
Getting an edge in the game the gamblers are playing
There’s long been speculation as to whether PLO is “the poker game of the future.” I think we can say that that is half true; It will never be the game for people who fear variance, but is already the game for people who love it. And you know who loves it? The gamblers in the room. The guys who don’t give a fuck about ranges and solvers. Remember when they used to play in your NL games? They’re in the PLO games.
If you’re thinking, Andrew, there’s no edge to be found in Pot Limit Omaha… you’re wrong. This is the course that will put you on the path to navigating the four-card streets and understanding how ridiculous some people are playing in these games. And it’s in a super-digestible video format that won’t overwhelm you. You’ll get the basics, how to frame your thinking about what types of hands to play, and you’ll get to watch Coach Dylan put it into action during Play-and-Explain videos.
Learn Pro Poker
These goddamn tournaments aren’t getting any less popular
It’s early days for me in my tournament success story. Despite living in Vegas for 10+ years as a professional poker player, my Hendon Mob resume still sits (at time of writing) under $100k in winnings, lifetime. [UPDATE: WE DID IT! 6 FIGURES!!] I’ve always been a cash game player because I’ve been told that’s where a professional will grind out a living.
But I listened to a podcast recently with Alex Scott who at the time was the Director of Poker at Microgaming and is now apart of WPTGlobal. In the show, he said the poker industry has only had one year of contraction, which was immediately following Black Friday. Ever since then, the poker industry has actually grown year-over-year, and it’s been thanks to tournaments rather than cash games. Tourneys used to make up 1/3rd of the poker ecology, and cash games 2/3rds. Now, that is reversed, and it’s true for both live and online poker.
So who knows what winrates and ROI’s are attainable in the current poker tournament landscape. But it’s beyond time for me to start trying to find some proper improvement in my game, and this is where I’ll be diving in. I’m a Ryan LaPlante fan, and the guy lives for his poker craft. I’ll cross the $100k mark this year, FINALLY!, and it’ll be with the help of LPP and the 60+ total hours of video available on the site. Not to mention access to Ryan himself.
(Ryan gave me a code that you can use to save $10/mo: ANDREW10)
Choose to be self aware
In my opinion, the most important thing isn’t finding the ONE AHA MOMENT that will define your poker game. It’s having a think about what you excel at, how you personally improve, what you enjoy the most, what needs work, and who can help you. Then act. I think this applies to so many pursuits outside of poker. This is the list that I’m currently into, and I think it’s nicely balanced for what my personal interests, strengths and weaknesses are when it comes to this strategy game.
Andrew
