IAmNeo

Wow, it's really impressive you've been able to keep up with this blog so consistently. Well done! I really enjoy Ryan Holiday's work too. His books are really accessible and give me a deep appreciation for stoicism. I always feel more grounded whenever I read anything from his series, and I think it makes sense to focus on them as a practice.

I'm glad to see all is going well with poker and Nacho CFP. Best of luck finishing this challenge. :)

I think you can find a reasonable balance between battling and grinding. For every solid nosebleed reg like Munez, there's also 500 shitty 25nl regs that never got their career off the ground because they're shook. The base rate of conservative / scared players is very high in poker, so it's natural that they're well represented in high stakes.

Treating poker like a sport and battling / taking shots can be an important form of self-expression that's harder to quantify in a spreadsheet, and often resonates with a part of you that fell in love with poker in the first place. Doubtful you got into poker to tick [x] Sit Out Next BB the moment the rec leaves.

I also usually caution young players I talk with to be careful because sometimes they can be overcome with hubris or not internalize the real-life impact of the money they just lost. Sounds like you're committed to pursuing poker in a smart way, but I wouldn't ignore aspects of this career that are a bit harder to measure either.

Personally, I think the best way to go forward is to play the highest stakes you can and de-prioritize pumping volume at something like 5/10 if you can help it. Not sure if you read this, but Pat Howard wrote a blog post explaining that: Stakes > Winrate > Volume for making money in poker. He says "Increasing volume or win rate increases your income linearly. Increasing stakes increases your income exponentially."

Blog Link

It is stressful because it means you'll go through long stretches where you get punished by negative variance, but the upside to crushing high stakes is so massive that I think it's best to focus on that. In particular, nosebleed games generally only run with a rec, so your winrate will be higher. Most 20knl games I've played are softer than the average 2knl ACR game as well because a substantial % of 20knl regs are semi-retired bumhunters that have been in poker for like 10+ years and don't stay sharp.

WPN Rake for HU:
2knl - 1.46 bb/100
3knl - 0.96 bb/100
5knl - 0.59 bb/100

Heads up is probably best to think about as playing for sport / competition / staying sharp, but it'd be hard to make a ton of money from it. Particularly, if you're a good player and establish yourself as being decent at HU, then the only action you'll get is from other top players. My winrate has been very good so I see a lot of potential there, but it's incredibly challenging and subject to extreme variance. I'd suggest only attempting it if you enjoy the pursuit of learning HU and battling strong players.

I like the blog so far. Thanks for sharing and best of luck!

You're the real nacho in my heart, though.

Good luck! :D

Buying in for 20k is pretty baller tho o.o

Also, when I see your sn on RIO I tend to think of you as either: "The Nacho" or "Nacho Libre". What do you think?

Finally, when is there gonna be a Nacho public discord? I need to chat with my fellow Nachonians.

Sorry to hear about all this, Cyd. I hope it'll all be for the best. Keep moving forward.

Nice blog. Best of luck!

Nice to hear you've been feeling good. :) I live near the beach and tend to go for 60-90 minutes walks there to relax & exercise. I can tell I'm much happier in life when I can just listen to music and enjoy the fresh air / sights / sounds instead of being in my head and thinking about shit I have to do.

It's definitely really satisfying to play a shorthanded match against regs you think are good, even if it isn't +EV at the moment. A lot of SSNL/MSNL regs get stuck in the mindset that everyone 1-2 limits up is so much tougher and smarter, but I think a healthy dose of contempt / disrespect for the competition is good for your career. Everyone has leaks, even 5knl gods, so I believe it's important to never put anyone on a pedestal.

Wow. Looks like things are coming along really nicely. Shame it didn't work out with Nacho Poker, but at least you were able to part ways amicably. Best of luck and keep going! :D

Best of luck, sir. :)

Seems like it's been a good year for you, Pat. I hope you can be a light for other players looking to make their way in poker and accomplish the dream. Good luck next year!

Awesome progress! Best of luck next year. :)

Best of luck. Have fun. :)

Very well done. Congrats!

Have you applied to Detox? If not, are you waiting for something?

I'd strongly suggest you follow through with this, particularly joining Poker Detox. Do whatever you can. Write Nick Howard your application via skywriting if need be. We make players like you into midstakes crushers on a routine basis, so I think of our program as the golden ticket if you can get in.