Climbing the Zoom ladder

@tomaloc I think I agree, my red line and blue line probably do point to my inability to fold. It's is something I have been focusing on this week, as I feel it is my biggest leak.

Week 4

Starting date: 19/11/2016
Starting BR: $94.81
Last week BR: $86.95
Current BR: $102.72
Change : +$15.77

Hands this week: 10,141
Hands total: 40,100

Graph
This week

Overall

All in EV

So it seems complaining about EV seems to have sorted it out But in all serious I am not sure how happy I am about it, as it means this week I have been getting my money in bad. A large chunk of the All in EV up swing came from a 3 way pot were my QQ came out on top of KK and one other. For now though I think I am just coming to put EV out of my mind, else I will become one of those people who complain about it when it doesn't go my way and then doesn't mention it when it does.

Session log

So I have been completing a session log each day that I have played. In the "Before" section I write about what I studied in the hour session before I started playing. This helps me keep an idea on what sections I have been covering, and which parts I have been neglecting. The during are notes on my thoughts, feelings and confusions during play. I then use the after section to address the problems during the session.

I plan on keeping this up for each session. I feel it gets me in the right frame of mind before I play. I also used the notes to set up a "warm" up system involving covering overview sheets of different aspects that I need to keep in the front of my mind during the session.

Goals
Last week goals:
- Study 20 mins for every 60 mins played. Had 2 days in a hangover coma so didn't play, but the days I did I managed the study
- Review hands played 20 mins for every 60 mins played. Had 2 days in a hangover coma so didn't play, but the days I did I managed the study
- Complete duo lingo everyday. 5 out of 7 days complete (due to being hungover)
- Play sport at least once. Played both 5 a side and went rock climbing. Felt very good for it,
- Don't drink too much. Failed

Next week goals:
- Study 20 mins for every 60 mins played.
- Review hands played 20 mins for every 60 mins played - focusing on hands where I over called.
- Complete duo lingo everyday.
- Play sport at least once.
- Don't drink too much - might be difficult with 1 Christmas party

Week 4

Starting date: 19/11/2016
Starting BR: $142.96 (did another deposit bonus so +$48.15)
Last week BR: $150.87 (did another deposit bonus so +$48.15)
Current BR: $156.28 (did another deposit bonus so +$48.15)
Change : +$5.41

Hands this week: 2,880
Hands total: 42,980

Graph

Thoughts
Another deposit
Suckered into another deposit bonus on PokerStars;

That 10% (well 8.47%) chance of $10 was too +EV for me to skip And again I won the massive;

But it is still half a buy in

Hands
Not managed to play many hands this week. A Friend was back for Christmas so a few of us went out on Monday so didn't get to play any hands. There is also a Christmas party tomorrow so might be a low volume week.

"Leaks"
Blind leading the blind on my leaks however;
Not seeing sets - Currently still running into sets hard. Not sure if it is that I just don't think of them or that I don't believe people when they are giving me "signals".
Two pair - similar to set I seem to only think Pair < Straight < Flush < Full house. Two pair and sets don't ever really enter my mind.
Bad Call - I have made a new review tag for "Bad Call" even if it turns out profitable. This is normally from me talking myself into them not having what beats me.
Crazy ranges - NL2 what more can I say, more crazy 3bet calls from UTG but not much I can do with that.

Work done
I have been reading a mixture of the Grinder's Manual and The mental game of poker. Really really finding the 1 hour study before useful getting me in the right frame of mine. I am also liking sticking to the one source of information for now, makes me thinking feel a lot clearer as I am not thinking about contradictory ideas.

Move up?
With that new deposit and with $30 worth of star points I have a big enough bankroll for NL5 however I have really don't think I have "earnt" it. I don't think I have become consistent enough, but then maybe should move up just because i can afford it? Answer on a postcard

What bb/100 you have at NL2 ?

Originally posted by AgapieGheorghe
What bb/100 you have at NL2 ?

Across the full challenge is only at 1.6bb/100 which is pretty poor. However if I do it since I started with more study and I think playing better it is at 7.88 for 14k hands. Still not huge but I do feel I am improving. Thinking might stick at NL2 for another 2 weeks or so at a minimum and just see how it goes.

If u can hold that 7bb over 20-25 k hands and you have the Bankroll then I think you can try NL5 to get a feeling of the new limit.
No need to loose to much time at NL2.

Week 5

Starting date: 19/11/2016
Starting BR: $142.96 (did another deposit bonus so +$48.15)
Last week BR: $150.87 (did another deposit bonus so +$48.15)
Current BR: $141.37
Change : -$9.50 (+$6 fom spin & Go)

Hands this week: 7,147
Hands total: 47,247

Graph
Today - What a car crash

This week

Overall

EV
Skip this bit as it is just me whinging

Star coins - Spin & Go
So after reading @AgapieGheorghe's blog I thought I would use some of my star points to buy some $1 spin & go tickets.
It spins to x4 and this is then the first hand;

That is what we like to see. If only every spin & go went like that. $4 profit
2 won = $6 3 lost = $0 = Cost 500 stars coins
So not really any better than if I had just straight converted it. It was "funish" as a break however just doesn’t really feel like you are playing poker and comes down to variance a whole lot more then I am use too. I see it needing a lot of games too notice your edge compared to just variance. Think for now will just save the star points and convert them for straight cash.

Goals
Last week goals:
- Study 20 mins for every 60 mins played. Review hands played 20 mins for every 60 mins played. Had 2 days in a hangover coma again so didn't play. But everytime I was playing I managed it. with my 1 hour study before I played.
- Complete duo lingo everyday. 4 out of 6 days complete (due to being hungover)
- Play sport at least once. No sport
- Don't drink too much. Failed - Too much tequila

Next week goals:
- Study 20 mins for every 60 mins played. Review hands played 20 mins for every 60 mins played
- Complete duo lingo everyday.
- Play sport at least once. (Unlikely to happen as off work)
- Don't drink too much - should be easier as no parties this week.

Edit
Thought would try and play through EV....

More favourite All ins lost - Merry Christmas to me. At nearly 10Bi below EV again

That feeling when you win a Spin&Go from the first hand tho

Catonthemat I don´t know how are you, I´more a lone wolf I prefer to be alone and work alone but you can ask for help here on the forum.

Many people read the blogs here but not all of them interact or leave you feedback. But I know from experience if u ask for help people are willing to help you.

What are your Open Raise ranges ? Call 3bet ? 4bet ?
How you play postflop ? You have a plan or you play accordingly with your HUD + reads ?
How does your HUD looks right now, what stats do you use ?

Can you use HM2 to show us your stats ? Something like this :

Have put an exclusion on for 24 hours just to cool off. I think EV seems to always snowball on me as I play worse after it as well. Just takes too much out of me seeing my All ins lose all the time. Has come to the point were I am no longer happy to see AA

Gonna have the break over Christmas and just do the studying and go over my database and find other leaks that I can change rather then focusing on the biggest one which I can't. Hopefully come back with a more positive vibe then

No offense, but looks for me like you are just "making profit" through deposits I would recommend some specific things, for example join professional teams who help you up from this struggle, what i see so far is, when the red line goes up, you play super agressive, i mean more like playing tooo many hands, forcing tooo many spots etc..

If you need help finding the right way, which you do as you just deposit instead of making proftis, avoid studying etc.

Study is the way, google bestpokercoaching and you see how the RIGHT study material makes you REAL money.

check [Edited by Lazza61 - Linking to our competitors is not permitted under our forum principles

UpCrownGuy I dont think is ok to put that link here on Pokerstrategy.

Catonthemat I added you to the community.

:f_mad:its ok, as it is no advertisement, it is a recommendation to what i believe in!

Update
@UpCrownGuy I never said I was making profit and am very clear my balance is only going up due to me depositing, hence saying moving up in stakes would be cheating.

@AgapieGheorghe Thanks for the posts

So I took a break over Christmas and haven't played a great deal and hardly any structure at all. I have played about 6k hands and am still getting buttf**cked by EV. My last post had me at a difference of $20, the difference is now up to $32 which I am finding hard to take at NL2. I think it is also responsible for some of my worse mistakes that have also hit my progression, such as making bad calls after getting f**ked by an All in. I no longer get any excitement from getting AA or KK as I "know" they are going to end up losing in the end. This is my mental game and it is really acting as a blocker now. I am half tempted to start a new slate and wipe all my data, but that isn't going to help anything really. Other then make me graph look prettier.

On the productive side I have started reading The Grinders Manual again, which should help the technical side of my game. I am still dipping into The Mental Game of poker, but I really can't seem to use any of the suggestions to get past the fact that EV hates me. I have also switched from Zoom to normal tables. This seems to be going OK and has also limited my bad calls. However they still happen and I still struggle to find the fold button even when I am telling myself what they have any why they have me beaten. I think I just need to start believing people when they are betting and not think they are all out to get a bluff past me, especially as this is very rarely what they are doing and a lot of the players just play straight forward.

Anyway best of luck at the tables everyone.

Update
Wanted to come back with a positive update as have been going pretty well. Then my last session happened, I just couldn't catch a break. Played 2800 hands and my hole cards looked like this;

AA and KK getting walked or cracked for the whole session. At one point I felt very lucky as had 3 KK at once, all 3 got walked

Also a little worried about how my graph is looking for the last couple of days;

I have about 6k hands where I don't seem to have moved anywhere....Which makes all the time spent pretty pointless really....

However have more structure in place and hopefully should start to see some results soon. I feel that I just can't move forward and am likely to stay stuck in NL2 for ever