2025 $0 - $500 Bankroll Challenge
Long-Time Lurker, First-Time Poster – A Freeroll Comeback Story
Poker has been a part of my life for the past 18 years. I got my start on Full Tilt back in the glory days, grinding freerolls and, inspired by Chris Ferguson’s legendary bankroll challenge, built mine up to $5k from nothing. Then online poker disappeared in Australia, and with it, my regular grind. I shifted focus to business, family, and the occasional live tournament or cash game, leaving poker as more of a passion than an obsession.
These days, I’m a husband, a father, and a business owner first, and a poker hobbyist second. I still get my fix playing 1–2 live tournaments a week, but it’s strictly for fun. Winning is great, but it’s not the centerpiece of my life anymore.
Over the past year, I’ve dabbled on Ignition, had a few deep runs, and pocketed some decent tournament scores. But here’s the thing. Whether it’s $2k or $10k, it doesn’t move the needle for me anymore. I’ve built a business that’s doing well, so poker winnings are more of a bonus than a necessity. Still, the love for the game hasn’t faded.
Recently, a few guys at my local tournaments mentioned CoinPoker, and it caught my attention. Freerolls everywhere. It brought me back to my roots, grinding from zero, and I figured, why not? It’s 2025, and I’m setting myself a goal. Build a bankroll from freerolls, starting with nothing but time and discipline.
I’ve already played three freerolls and cashed for $0.41. Not exactly life-changing, but it’s a start. The plan is to grind my way to $10, then start mixing in some 50 cent and 20 cent tournaments. I won’t be able to follow the standard 100 buy-in rule for a while, at least until I can get the roll to $100.
No cash games, no distractions, just tournaments. That’s how I’ve always played, and that’s how I’m approaching this challenge. I don’t know how long it’ll take, but the goal is to hit that $500 mark by the end of 2025 and then see how far I can take it.
This isn’t about the money. It’s about proving to myself that I’ve still got the patience, skill, and grind to make something out of nothing. Let’s see what happens.
Starting bankroll: 0.41
4 Replies
glgl nice goal
Thanks mate!
It’s been an interesting couple of days online, filled with highs, lows, and plenty of lessons along the way.
Now that I’m back in the office, the grind has slowed down a bit. I’m sticking to 4-5 freerolls each evening once the kids are asleep. Even with the reduced volume, it’s been exciting. I had a solid run in the tournaments recently, managing to build my bankroll up to 70 cents. Unfortunately, I took a shot at a 50-cent MTT and came up short, wiping out most of it.
Since then, I’ve been working to rebuild, and I’ve managed to run it back up to 62 cents. It’s not much, but I’m planning to take another stab at the 50-cent MTT soon. These moments test your patience and mindset, but I’ve been embracing the grind.
Like any poker player, I’ve had my share of bad beats lately. To me, they’re a good sign. It means I’m making the right decisions and getting my money in when I’m ahead. That’s all I can control.
The fields have been quite soft, which is encouraging, but they require a few key adjustments. I’ve been 3-betting more with premium hands and overfolding on a lot of rivers. I’m floating less and playing tighter than I normally would. It’s not flashy, but it’s been effective in these tournaments.
There have been some bright spots too. I’ve placed in the money a handful of times, cashing for 4 cents and 6 cents here and there, and even made a few final table runs. Those moments remind me why I love this game and motivate me to keep pushing forward.
Between sessions, I’ve been putting in the time studying preflop charts and working to improve, even if it’s just a little bit each game. Progress might be slow, but every step forward feels like a win.
I am quite green to this so unsure how to share hands from Coin Poker, I will look into it and start including some hands I was unsure on to try and get some additional poitns of view.
Bankroll: 0.61
We took another shot at the 50-cent Turbo MTT, but it didn’t quite go to plan this time. Busted early on with queens running into set over set. Tough spot, but that’s poker for you. Sometimes the cards just don’t fall your way.
On the bright side, I managed to cash in two other tournaments for a grand total of 12 cents. Big money, right? Winning! Haha.
While playing, I noticed a bunch of 1-cent satellites popping up, so I’m thinking about adding these to the mix. They seem like a great way to get more volume in without risking much of the bankroll.
I also realized I need to start taking screenshots of my cashes. It’ll make it easier to track results and keep myself accountable.
For now, I might pump the brakes a little on the 50-cent buy-ins. After losing $1 so far, it makes more sense to focus on freerolls and satellites until I can run the bankroll up to $10. That way, I’ll have at least 20 buy-ins before diving back into the 50-cent Turbo MTTs. Better to stick to the plan and build from there.
Bankroll: 0.21
