1. 2008-07-03 19:26:07

   Entry #1 - The big news....

   Well it's pretty much official. This week I declared my intention of being a full-time pro by January 1, 2009 - or sooner if possible. I've arranged to transition my duties as a Real Estate Appraiser over to my business partner of 5 years during the remaining 6 months of 2008.

   My plan is to continue on the path of accumulating 4-6 months of living expenses through poker in addition to my playing bankroll. I'm currently playing $1/$2 and $2/$4 cash games online and have been logging wins of anywhere from $400/day to $1,300/day. In all honesty, I don't see much opportunity to make a living from tourneys - though I'll still play them occasionally in order to mix things up and offer a myself a challenge.

   The bankroll is building rapidly and steadily at this point and I'm beginning the process of setting myself up as a business, getting a separate checking account, and investigating proper handling of my poker income and deductions for tax purposes. The 6-month window between now and Jan 1st, 2009 should give me plenty of time to get used to the "business" part of this endeavor. It'll be much more than tracking $/hr and ROI and hitting the "Withdraw" button on FullTilt - and there's no denying that it will be imperative that I maintain detailed records of everything from how long I play, how much I win, how much I lose, tourney entry fees, rakes, and any travel expenses if I happen to go to Vegas or something as part of conducting my "business".

   As time goes on and as success permits, I have ideas and hopes of branching out and offering consulting services to the growing poker market. Perhaps providing a service of some kind to groups or organizations that have an interest in a poker themed learning/bonding experience.

   Anyway - for a glimpse of what's been happening with me most recently, see http://ksnydersj.wordpress.com

   Cheers,
   Ken

   Posted by Ken at 2008-07-03 19:26:07

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Comments on “Entry #1 - The big news....”

1. • Posted by Kaps g 2008-07-10 21:07:59
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   • Great , You have potentials .

2. • Posted by E g 2008-07-07 22:50:54
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   • Good luck Ken. Now I know you are not a "Wanna be Pokerpro" but a real poker pro. Still go to the meetups, I may need to double up sometime. :-)

3. • Posted by Jason M g 2008-07-07 17:55:23
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   • Go, Ken, Go! :p

4. • Posted by Teresa g 2008-07-05 05:24:32
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   • Thanks, Ken! I wish you lots of luck and success

5. • Posted by Krishna (unverified) g 2008-07-04 20:06:28
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   • Yeah - it is very hard to become pro now.
     In spite of having good bankroll the added pressure and the swings will make it very tough to play good.

     My capcha is A24K - decent hand for hi-li but junk for PLO.

6. • Posted by Jason M g 2008-07-04 19:08:02
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   • I agree with you, Parag. I couldn't pull that trigger. Most pros have a bankroll to play their game PLUS 6 months of living expenses, which should cover the swings. Still a bit tough...

7. • Posted by Mr. Segan g 2008-07-04 16:00:09
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   • I have been thinking about the same thing, but I think its too much pressure for me to know that this would be my only source of income. What if I have a bad run. Not sure if I can handle that kind of pressure. But, Good Luck to you Ken. Keep us updated how you do.

8. • Posted by Krishna (unverified) g 2008-07-03 23:38:04
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   • Good luck with our new career.
     I think I talked to you once about PNL.

     Are you going to play live as well?
     Do you play 6max or full ring?

     I play cash myself although micro limits.
     Tournaments are about volume and math.
     Cash is about adjusting to opponents.

9. • Posted by Luke (unverified) g 2008-07-03 22:04:00
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   • Good luck man. More power to ya. keep us posted. I wish I enjoyed playing cash games but I just dont. I came really close to moving to vegas until I got an offer I couldnt refuse here at Oracle.

     So I take it your gonna be mainly an online player? whats your handle? I'm
     consumer on full tilt.

10. • Posted by Jason M g 2008-07-03 21:05:04
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    • Congrats, man. Let me know if I can help in any way. I should take you up on that beer, tell you a few stories, and then you can tell me some of your plans :)

11. • Posted by Ken g 2008-07-03 20:50:24
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    • Hey Teresa - well, I knew almost 2 years ago that this was what I wanted to do. I've been putting lots of time into cracking the books on the weekends and measuring results - with the majority of my play happening on weekday afternoons/evenings. Tourneys turned out to be the up and down yo-yo for me. Starting out, I think that's ok because your loss is limited to the tourney buy-in. Once I broke through the cash game, it's been pretty lucrative. A loss/bad-beat isn't as devastating because you can re-load as long as you're not on tilt, and get it back and then some if you're up against a donk that doesn't take the money and run. Overall though, the thing for me is being able to average at least $300/day in order to make the transition. At 5-days-a-week for 50 weeks, that's a $75K/year salary. My assumption is/was that once I was on track for that milestone that I could make the leap. My hope is that earnings will likely go up because I'll be focused solely on poker and will be able to devote 8 hours/day if necessary - rather than the 3 hours on weekdays and 5-ish on weekends. I think I'd be able to live fairly comfortably if I averaged $400/day ($100K/yr) and would thrive if I were fortunate enough to earn anything over that on average.

12. • Posted by Ethan g 2008-07-03 20:39:42
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    • Awesome! Good luck and keep us posted.

13. • Posted by Teresa g 2008-07-03 20:24:46
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    • So Ken I have a question. How/when did you know for sure that this was what you wanted to do? Can you sort of pinpoint a moment? I understand what you mean about the tournaments. Whenever I play cash games at casinos (Vegas or here) I always do really well with profits of $200-300/hr but I've always felt that the ups and downs could potentially be catastrophic since it would be the only source of income. I just don't know when exactly ppl make that decision, and how it's clear for them and I'd love input from you.

      Good luck!