Gutshot and Two Backdoors – Qualified. Another PLO Thread

Update #2

Another week has passed, and the grind continues. Results have been better compared to the start of the month, which is encouraging. It’s funny how last week I felt completely lost in this game—like I had no clue what was going on—and now I feel the exact opposite.

But the one thing that always holds true: if you want to achieve anything in this game, you just have to show up, put in the hours, and grind.

Something I’d like to start incorporating more is study time. Not exactly sure yet how I’ll fit it into everything, but it feels like I havent done the theory work too much!

Graph update for the current month:

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Hand #1

Hand #2

Progress: 4,315 / 80,000
Fewer bad rivers this week—progress!

Good luck at the tables!

Blog Post #3

Quick update for the week—had one solid session, but the rest was pretty uneventful. Took two days off as well, so not a ton of volume overall. Still, the grind continues!

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Progress: 12,520 / 80,000
No pairs? No problem

So, the month has wrapped up—and overall, it turned out to be a decent one. I was struggling through the first half of May, but luckily things turned around in the middle and I finally started stringing together some wins.

There were a few interesting hands, but I don’t remember all the details clearly anymore. Might need to start jotting them down right after the session if I want to include them here moving forward.

Graph:

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Progress: 15,670 / 80,000
This month: fewer bad beats, more good vibes.

Weekly Update – The Highs and Lows

Another week has passed. Put in the usual volume, but variance was definitely putting on a show—either running red hot or completely card dead, no in-between. That’s just how the sessions played out.

The good news: managed to end the week strong and inch even closer to the challenge goal!

Graph:

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Progress: 21,865 / 80,000
Flopped the nuts, rivered reality — still grinding

Weekly Update

First few days of the week were rough—nearly booked my biggest losing day of the challenge. Thankfully, some late-session sun run came to the rescue and flipped the script.

Closed out the week strong, running well and playing solid. Logged the usual ~40 hours and feeling good about the overall progress.

Graph:

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Progress: 30,825 / 80,000
Grind. Suffer. Sun-run. Repeat.

Weekly Update – Sleep is the Real Boss

Sleep schedule’s been all over the place this week, and it definitely affected the grind. Played a bit less volume than usual while trying to reel things back in. Nothing too crazy happened—just another week in the trenches.

The grind continues.

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Graph:

Progress: 32,300 / 80,000
Body says sleep, bankroll says one more orbit.

Another week in the books!

Put in solid volume—around 55 hours—but ended up taking a small loss. Definitely played below par in a few sessions, and capped the week off with my biggest hit of the challenge so far: -4.5k in one session. Won a couple hands, but lost every flip that mattered. That’s PLO for you.

Haven’t used Mastermind in a while—wondering if there are any newer tools out there besides Mastermind or Monker to study? Would love to hear if anyone’s using something else lately.

Also thinking of dipping my toes into tournament PLO. Any recommendations on good courses or resources?

Graph:

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Progress: 29,900 / 80,000
Keep on trucking—through flips, punts, and post-flop pain

Another week wrapped up. Played a bit lighter than usual—around 35 hours total. Sessions were mostly uneventful, small ups and downs, but managed to finish slightly in the green.

That said, the last three weeks have been more or less break-even overall. Getting a year older now… so if the poker gods are listening, a little birthday run good wouldn’t hurt!

See you next weeeek!

Graph:

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Progress: 33,920 / 80,000
Older, wiser, still flipping for rent.

Another week in the books. Played the least amount so far—sleep schedule has been completely random again. Trying (once more) to fix it... but when the late-night games are juicy, it’s tough to walk away. That’s the eternal struggle.

The last 4 weeks have been a breakeven grind—not exactly thrilling, but at least it’s not a downswing (yet). Been losing most of the 3 and 4-bet pots lately—flopping air or getting cracked. Standard PLO pain, still waiting for variance to throw me a bone.

On the bright side, I finally jumped back into Mastermind and started doing some work. Could (and should) do way more though. Grinding always feels easier than studying, but refreshing concepts definitely helps long-term.

Graph:

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Progress: 30,430 / 80,000
Breakeven brain fog, powered by four-card delusion

Breakeven stretch continues! Had some wild sessions this week with huge swings, including my biggest losing session of the challenge so far at -5.2k. The games have been great, but variance has been relentless.

Played a few online tournaments on Sunday and managed to snag around +2k from them. Not sure yet if I’ll add online results to this challenge—volume has been tiny so far—but I might start combining results at the end of the month.

Graph:

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Progress: 30,330 / 80,000
One step back, one sun-run away from glory

One day I will win again! Currently feels like I’m stuck in a downswing. It’s not massive in terms of buy-ins, but this breakeven/swing stretch is dragging on and getting pretty unpleasant. Losing flips and sprinkling in some bad play definitely hasn’t helped.

From the highest point, I’m down over 10k—again, not huge in buy-in terms—but this ~250-hour stretch feels long. If anyone plays live, what’s your biggest downswing or breakeven stretch? We never know when the end is coming, but hopefully the upswing is just around the corner.

All I can do is keep showing up and trying to play better. Until next week’s update!

Graph:

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Progress: 24,045 / 80,000
Grinding, bleeding, but not folding.

Didn’t put in too much volume this week—around 20 hours total. Took the weekend off to visit a friend in Kelowna for the first time. Beautiful place with awesome views and a laid-back vibe. Definitely worth a visit, and a reminder I should travel more around Canada. One day!

Poker-wise, managed to climb a bit out of the hole. Nothing major, but progress is progress. This coming week, it's back on the grind. I’m a little behind the original pace, but it’s still very doable.

As always—just show up and put in the work. Hopefully, the rest will follow.

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Graph:

Progress: 30,365 / 80,000
Refreshed, refocused, and ready to chase the run good.

Weekly Update – Still in the Stretch

Another short week of grinding—played around 22 hours total. The week started strong after a solid weekend, but Friday brought a wave of frustration with my game. Only played a quick two-hour session that day. The tables didn’t look great, and being annoyed with my play, I decided to call it.

Took Saturday off to relax a bit more and reset. This week, I’ll be back in action and doing my best to climb again. Right now, I’m in the biggest breakeven stretch of the challenge—close to 300 hours—so hopefully I can finally break through it soon.

Graph:

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Progress: 32,440 / 80,000
300 hours of breakeven—variance clearly wants a longer relationship

Weekly Update – Monster Pots & Missed Sun Runs

Weeks are going by but cash is not coming in! Can I still beat this game?

Dollar-wise, this week looked like the last—down a bit overall, with the breakeven stretch dragging on. But Saturday brought some fireworks: probably the craziest session I’ve ever had, including the biggest pot of my life so far. And since variance still has me in its grip… of course I lost it. On top of that, I dropped a few more big ones in the same session. What could have easily been a +20k night with a little run good ended up as a small losing day. I have to be happy with taking the right spots—but damn, it’d be nice to win a few of these monsters again.

Outside of the cards, the sleep schedule is still a wreck. Every day it drifts later by a couple hours, so by Sunday I’m waking up around 5–6pm, then spending Sunday/Monday trying to reset. Ideally, I’d play tournaments on Sundays, but it hasn’t worked out with these late starts. I know discipline is key in the long run, and I am improving compared to past years—playing more live hours than ever—but there’s still a long way to go.

The big one:
Game: 1/2/10/35 PLO
Stacks: Me ~7k, BB ~4k, Straddle ~5.5k

UTG+1: I open $120 with A644ds
BB calls
Straddle 3bets $495 → we both call

Flop: T66r (1500)
Straddle bets $1,450 → I call, BB folds

Turn: Kr (4400)
Villain checks → I shove $3.6k → he calls

River: T (11600)
Villain shows JT97 for rivered trips. I’m cooked.

At first I thought he only had a T + gutshot, but he actually had a double gutter.

Two orbits later, I tangled with the same player again:

I had AA43ds vs his AKJ7ccc → he flops K77, I lose another ~7k pot.
Later, I get it in with AAKTss vs his 6543ss for ~2.5k → lose again.

With a little run good, it could have been the best session of the challenge. Instead, it turned into a beating. At least the guy I lost to was a really nice player—he’ll be back, and I’ll be there when variance flips sides.

Outside of poker, I’ve been thinking more about starting something on the side—business, project, whatever it might be. Got a few ideas, but if anyone wants to throw out random thoughts or share what they’re working on, I’m all ears.

Graph:

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Progress: 30,285 / 80,000
Biggest pots of my life—variance made sure I only got the receipts

Weekly Update – Groundhog Weeks

Weeks go by, but dollars are not coming in!

Another week, another repeat of the same story. Life feels like Groundhog Day—but instead of days, it’s weeks. Win a little one week, dump it the next. One day I’ll break that cycle again!

I’ve been trying to shift more focus online lately. I actually prefer playing online, but grinding long hours behind the computer feels tougher than sitting for 8 hours straight at a live table. For now, a mix of both seems like the best balance.

Keeping this one short—next update should be a bit lengthier as I’m expecting some new things both in poker and in life.

Graph:

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Progress: 29,775 / 80,000

Weekly Update – Volume Low, Spirits Up

Short one this week. Didn’t put in much volume again, with a bit more focus on online.

On the bright side, I think I’ve found the perfect solution to downswings: if you don’t play, you can’t lose, right? 😅 Luckily, still managed to book a win for the week.

Next week’s update should be longer—some new things are coming up, and bigger posts take a bit more thought. This thread was always meant to keep me accountable, not to write a book (for now).

Graph:

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Progress: 33,875 / 80,000
Small volume, small win—variance can’t catch me if I don’t log on