I have decided to keep a daily journal of my first WSOP that I can look back on in future years. I started playing poker in May 2003, I love playing poker, but do not play for a living. My results are poor bearing in mind the number of tournaments I have entered. In fact, I am only 10,000 in profit over my whole poker career after deducting entry fees and expenses. Therefore, if my living depended on poker, I would have died of starvation half way through 2004. The beauty of poker is that you can play with the best players in the world if you are prepared to pay the entry fees. I intend to play 11 events at the WSOP, which will cost me around $33,000 plus expenses of $7,000. Luckily, I won 2 seats for the main event on Party Poker (Nick The Shrew Whiten is using the second one) . Over the last 8 years I have always been comped for all my hotels and expenses in Vegas due to my blackjack play, but this time, I have decided to lay off the blackjack and pay all my own bills ($140 per night at the Rio for 31 nights!), My total costs for the whole trip are therefore $40,000. I have 2 minimum targets for this trip;
1) To win $50,000 (The theoretical total cost if I had to pay into the main event)
2) To improve my tournament strategy by playing with the best players in the world
I do not subscribe to the theory shared by many average players like myself, that these top pros only win because they get sponsored into every event, or they just play on their reputation. I believe that they have key qualities that differentiate their play from the rest of the field. They know when to fire the 2nd or 3rd bullet on a bluff, when to re-raise pre-flop with junk, and when to lay down AK. I want to know how, ideally without it costing me $40,000 and this is the best place to learn - so lets hope I get some luck!
