Learning a New Game: Gripsed's PLO Adventure

PLO Adventure Week 1 Recap

The first week back from vacation was mostly about getting back on the tables and used to playing again
My first couple of sessions were quite sloppy due to overwhelm of tables, stream, chat, etc.

But i pulled it together for the first Sunday where I locked in and took it serious

Tournaments played 4
$33 PLO - 19th place for $0 (top 10 paid)
$22 PLO8 - 20th for $32.86
$6.60 PLO8 - 17th for $11.39
$8.80 PLO - 3rd for $114.24

The session had me finishing in very slight profit with rebuys, but I was really happy with my play.

I think I did a solid job with preflop & ran well in the key all ins in the $8.80 and that's what it takes.

Final hand i got outflopped on my KKQJ suited vs some unders, but if I win that I'm tied for 1st 3-handed.

Really enjoyed the first Sunday session, gonna work on more preflop & watch some of Phil's course this week

Then back at it next Sunday!

PLO Adventure Week 2 Recap

I'm still shaking off some rust and finding my flow again on the tables.
I've been focusing a fair bit on fitness recently and it's helping me stay focused for the long grinds.

On the study front I feel like I've been slacking a bit, but it feels like I'm doing things in the right order
Get physically strong and mentally sharp, then start supercharging the learning process.

It just feels like it's much easier to learn and retain new concepts when you're feeling good.
So anyway, gonna invest in a treadmill to go with my standing desk and see where that takes me.

On to the poker!

This sunday I sold some action for the $215 PLO8 in the ACR Client
So we were able to take a shot at a nice big prize pool

Unfortunately, our arch nemesis Duka Lonkic had other plans...

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2667456233

Twitch

Duka Does it Again... IN THE $215!!! - gripsed on Twitch

Tournaments played 5
$215 PLO8 - no cash
$33 PLO - no cash (2 bullets)
$22 PLO8 - no cash
$8.80 PLO - no cash (3 bullets)
$6.60 PLO8 - HU CHOP FOR $250! (2 bullets) #DaySaver

I know it's not a monster win by any means, but it still feels great to navigate a stack all the way til the end.

I was medium stack for a good chunk of the tournament and then just ramped it up once we got 7 handed on the FT.

What I'm most proud of though, is that despite busting the bigger tournaments earlier and only having my smallest game on screen.
I still stayed focused, gave it my best game, and in the end got a great result!

I think if I hadn't been working on my fitness during the week I would've tilted it off more easily.
So, here's to keeping that momentum going and seeing what the next session has in store!

Quick update this week: I was feeling close to a little burnout from going hard to start the year (typical January behavior).

So, I opted to put health over routine (that was devised by ego) and took Sunday off, so no major weekend scores to report 😀

I did, however, manage to finish 3rd in the Monday PLO high game for $165 (about 10 buyins) to put one on the board!

Venom is only 2 weeks away now, and I really want to up my study volume.

So, if there isn't an update next week I'm just putting that extra time towards prep

Hopefully I'll have some great news come the next update!!!

#LetsGetStackin

Hello sir. I remember watching and liking your yt content way back in the day when I was just starting in poker.

I wish you all the best in your journey of learning PLO.

Hi, yes, I also watched these videos on YouTube.

Thanks so much guys!

Super cool to connect with some old students!!!

2-Week Update: Venom Pivot + $630 PLO8 Final Table Run

Hey guys — quick 2-week update. I took last week off posting, but I’m back now.

I was originally planning to play the PLO Venom, but as the days counted down I started feeling stressed, anxious, and honestly not ready. I was in full “cram mode” trying to learn everything at once, and historically that hasn’t been the best recipe for me.

The approach that’s worked better for me in competitive spots is keeping things calm — clearing my head, getting my energy right, and going in relaxed instead of forcing it. So I made the call to play the NLHE Venom instead, since it’s a format I’m much more comfortable with and I’ve cashed it before.

.

The funny part…

While streaming a Wednesday PLO8 tournament, my ACR “arch nemesis” DukaLoncic popped into chat and told me I should also play the $630 PLO8 6-max Mystery Bounty on Sunday.

I said no at first because I wanted to keep full focus on Venom and not add tables… but then he offered to buy action (and even pay markup), so I told stream:

I’ll sell 69% at 1.1 markup — if it sells out, I’ll play it.

By Saturday night, it was fully sold out… so I was locked in.

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Why this one mattered

What made it interesting is that PLO8 is my favorite game, and the feeling I had about playing this tournament was completely different than the PLO Venom prep stress.

Also, it felt poetic because it’s similar to the OSS run we had:

• 3rd place in the $215 PLO8 6-max
  
• and this was the $630 PLO8 6-max Mystery Bounty (5-card)
  

.

Results

Sunday comes, I bust the Venom (QQ < A3o), and then shifted full focus to the $630 5-card PLO8 Mystery Bounty.

We ended up going on a great run:
-made it through some weird bubble/ICM spots
(one player was sitting out which made it extra awkward)
-got into the money
-won some key all-ins
-ran it up to the final table

Ended up finishing 4th place, and chopped a $1k mystery bounty, for about ~$3.6k total.

Honestly just a really fun day — 10+ hours, tired at the end, but the stream/chat energy was amazing and it felt great to put up a score in my favorite format.

.

Goals / What’s Next

I’m still keeping “PLO Venom final table” on the roadmap long-term, but I’m bringing my main focus back to the original plan:

PLO8 + Big O

That’s the game I love most, and it’s clearly where my confidence and results are lining up right now.

So far we’ve got:

• 1st in the $55
  
• 3rd in the $215
  
• 4th in the $630
  

Next goals are to keep stacking reps online, then start aiming at live stops — hopefully something like Borgata Spring Classic (if the PLO8 event runs), and then WSOP this summer for the PLO8 bracelet events.

Appreciate all the support as always 🙏
#LetsGetStackin

Quick update.

After the heater in the $630 6-Max, chat was pushing pretty hard for me to take a shot in the $215 6-Max on Wednesday.

Turns out… they were right again.

We put together a solid run, picked up a bunch of bounties along the way, and finished 4th for just under $950.

Bustout hand was vs. none other than DukaLoncic. We got it in with a healthy equity edge — one of those spots where if we win the race, we’re in a great position to potentially navigate to heads-up. Can’t complain about getting the money in good late in a PKO.

On a separate (and pretty cool) note:

ACR has decided to rename one of the Sunday PLO8 tournaments after me. Didn’t have that on the 2026 bingo card, but here we are.

I’m running a nice giveaway to celebrate — $215 ticket to whoever comes up with the best name for it.

If anyone here wants to throw a suggestion in, details are on my X post:

https://x.com/Gripsed/status/20191692622...

Winner announced Friday, and the new name should be live in the lobby this Sunday.

Hope to see you there for that big stream!
#LetsGetStackin

It took a few months but it's finally here!

I officially have a Sunday Major on ACR Poker (so friggin cool)

Gripsed's Gambit is a $10k GTD PLO8 event with a $215 Buyin

And it runs alongside a $22 and $6.60 buyin so everyone can enjoy the great game

For the launch party I literally dressed up as Gambit and we had a blast

I didn't manage a score in the first week, but it's my personal mission to take this thing down at least once this year.

After a little bit of a hiatus getting some real life stuff in order, I'm ready to get back to the tables!

I've hired a Russian crusher as a coach who'd been teaching me a ton & I can't wait to see what the future holds.

Also I'm running a league so people can qualify to this game for just a penny.

Basically, if you win a Monday or Wednesday homegame of mine (1 cent buyin with $250 added cash) you earn a seat to a winner take all SNG

Win that and you win a $215 ticket for the Gambit

League runs every month & is a ton of fun 😀

Hope to see some of you 2p2ers there!

Wow gripsed, what an ispiring journey. I remember falling in love with MTTs thanks to your early carreer videos. Now im coming back to poker and i was looking into plo blogs to get inspired. Please, keep the blog updated, i love reading it. Couple of Questions
1) Why do you play such a "small" schedule of PLO / PLO8 mtts? are you still focused on teaching or holdem mtts?
2) How do you translate most of the PLO courses stuff (Cash mostly) to mtts?
3) are your plo vods available somewhere?
Thanks!