So for my 2000th post I decided I wanted to do something for the community, so I asked you guys what you wanted in a thread. The most popular thing seemed to be a well. For those of you who don't know what a well is, here's the most amusing description I've read...

A stranger is being shown around a village that he has just become part of. He is shown a well and his guide says "On any day except Tuesday, you can shout any question down that well and you'll be told the answer." The man seems pretty impressed, and so he shouts down, "Why not on Tuesday?" A voice from in the well shouts back, "Because on Tuesday, it's your day in the well."


So yeah, essentially, in this thread, I'll answer any question you have about playing professionally, the game, myself, or any random question you have that might not even to do with poker.

I also thought it'd be cool to introduce wells to Pocketfives, since on other forums other wells have been really eye-opening. You learn a lot of things about the people who play for a living that you otherwise would've probably never known.

For those of you who don't know me I've been playing professionally for a few years now. Before poker I grew up in a suburb of Seattle. Somebody introduced me to poker when I was 16 and I got hooked pretty quickly, playing every home game I could find. My home life wasn't exactly awesome at the time so I would work at Arby's or play poker most hours after school, just to kind of get away from my situation at the time.

I left my home during senior year of high school on pretty bad terms with my family, pretty broke. I went to Alaska and worked as a commercial fisherman, and came back home and moved to the actual city of Seattle. I worked there as a security guard, usually sleeping through my shift, and then came home to play SNGs all night.

My first month doing this I luckboxed two tournaments and made $7,000, put a few grand in the bank, and then quit my job. I haven't had a real job since.

I totally sucked at the start, running break even over 1,000 SNGs, and showing a -20% ROI over my first 1,000 tournaments on Stars.I started watching training videos though, and working on my game constantly, and slowly but surely I got better. I moved through SNGs, to tournaments, to cash games.

The last year I've focused more on the live circuit, playing poker in Ireland, the Phillippines, Korea, Brazil, Costa Rica, France, Hungary, Poland, Italy, Uruguay, China, and Germany.

I no longer live in Seattle currently. I lived in Korea off and on for a year with my girlfriend there, but eventually it didn't work out. I was gone 90% of the time for tournaments or something and Korea is just too far away from the European events.I'm currently residing in Malta, doing the EPTs, playing the tournaments online, and trying to take as much money as I can out of the European economy by playing on their sites.

could you ever see yourself doing another job after poker? if so, what sort of job?

edit : great idea btw, love it

cool idea

I've played with you quite a bit in the last few weeks or so. So assuming you remember playing with me, what do you think of my game? What are my strengths and weaknesses as a player iyo? If I remember correctly, you are still 20, like me, are you planning to travel the live circuit in the US when you are 21?

Could you see Russia from your commercial fishing boat?

Tea: black or green?

Enya or Kenny G?

Japan or China?

Mr Big Cheese or Mr Big Queso?

Mkind16 or Mick Foley?

 

Originally Posted by donkthorne04

What do you love most about poker, what do you hate most about poker, and why?

Damn, great open ended question.

The thing I love most is probably just being able to relax for the first time in my life. It was really hard starting out, but once I reached a certain bankroll milestone and started playing cash games, and with practicing good bankroll management, it's been pretty chill. I have more freedom than pretty much anyone I know. I have more time for the things I like to do every day, like read, work out, etc. I've gotten to travel more than I ever thought I would be able to in my life.

I love playing final tables, and being deep in live events. It kills me not having a big live final table, just because I want to play one so bad. The money is almost secondary. I just love big money pressure poker.

What I don't like...I don't like degenerate gamblers as people. I don't mean sick workaholics, I mean people at these live events who have weak egos and need you to recognize them, hear their bad beat and acknowledge how cursed they are, or recognize their achievements and tell them how great they are. I don't like a lot of really negative people, and there are a bunch in tournament poker.

I don't like the stigma being attached to being a poker player. I don't like how its hard to lead a normal life at times. Most people meet their friends and partners through work or school, when you're doing neither of those things it can get lonelier. I have a better set up now, since a lot of poker players live in Malta, but oftentimes the only person I see every is my roommate. When I have had girlfriends I just see them too damn much since I work at home, and many women don't understand that just because you're at home doesn't mean you're not working, and that you can't just drop everything at any time.

It's fun being in different places, but the actual act of travelling sucks ass.

What do you do to maintain your motivation to play cards?

Whats your thoughts on all of the multi accounting that has come to light?

I believe I remember you saying something about being backed once. Whats the best and worst part of being backed?

TYVM for your time

 

Originally Posted by mathclub

could you ever see yourself doing another job after poker? if so, what sort of job?

edit : great idea btw, love it

I'm incredibly incredibly lazy now, and I can't stand having a boss, so it'd be hard.

I actually really want to write. Not articles, actual books. I think I'm a pretty average poker player, and a much better writer. The intensity in poker is obviously much greater when its the big stage, but the day to day grind can be pretty dull. I'd like to balance my life out a little more. I've actually started writing quite a bit here in Malta, and I'm hoping it leads to something down the line.

A real job though, ugh, it would take serious rehabilitation.

 

Originally Posted by ofxaxrevolution

What do you feel MOST contributed to your success in playing poker?

Hard work and being honest with myself.

I still never watch a HH and see what I do right. All I ever see is what I did wrong. If you ever think you're faultless in this game you're just done. There's so many guys that were doing well a year ago, but when the times change they don't adapt, because they just can't accept that how they used to play is wrong.

Training videos are huge. I've gotten into the habit of watching one over breakfast. Discussing HHs with friends is also huge.

Every time I have gotten lazy with doing my homework in poker I have not done well, and every time I have just tried to love the game and play each hand the best I can I have done well.

When I have let other shit effect me and played when I was burned out I have never done well.

 

Originally Posted by omgitsjimbob

When you first started, what tools/books/anything did you use to get better?

I read every book there was at the start, but most of them were garbage. Harrington On Hold'em and Ace On The River were the only two I'd probably read now.

Training videos, and discussing hands with good players.

Take a few hands from every session and just analyze, ask for thoughts, you get better. Have your friends sweat you and sweat them too. Put in the hours, and don't just mindlessly grind during them.

what limits or sngs or MTTs were you playing when you decided you were a 'pro' and no longer just making some coin. thanks for this, mad props.

 

Originally Posted by ronkend

What was your break? The one tournament/week etc that got you going?

I had tons of little lucky scores, no huge ones. I guess my biggest windfall was when a friend of mine put me into bigger tournies for the first time, and I chopped the 200r that first week. Didn't have any makeup at the time.

Sickest thing was he had Watchthesea's action too, and he was the guy I chopped it with.

 

Originally Posted by Mkind16

Tea: black or green?

Enya or Kenny G?

Japan or China?

Mr Big Cheese or Mr Big Queso?

Mkind16 or Mick Foley?

Green

Enya

Queso

Japan

Mkind

How do you invest or store your bankroll? And, do you ever plan on going to college?