blonde poker forum

I briefly discussed this with snoopy yesterday but I thought I'd throw it open to discuss. Firstly a confession;

I DON'T CURRENTLY KEEP RECORDS  :o

secondly a brief excuse

september 2001 to september 2004 I worked in a well know high street bank. It was a high pressure target driven sales roll. if you had a bad monday you could be sure you would be in for a week of bullying and pressure from up the line. My physical and mental health suffered and eventually a combination of back problems and anxiety attack, both stress related made me leave. I took a job in a cardboard box making factory to get as far away as possible from my previous job. I am since back to full health both physically and mentally (and also not making boxes). The reason I stopped keeping records is basically (and probably now obviously) that if I hit a bad run, even a relatively short one, it can completely destroy my game. I can tell by the money in my pocket and the food in my cupboards generally how I'm doing but if I keep specific records I become stressed and perform badly because of it.

anyone else have thoughts about record keeping, or a lack of it they'd like to share.

Adam, do you know from your own knowledge about yourself which games suit you at what times on what sites?

does your lack of record keeping extend to no player notes too?

that apart, if it stresses you then why do it, good luck!

Dont worry about not keeping records, pertainig to your poker finances anyway.
It can be used as evidence!!!!!!!!!! Keep the dough you earn from poker tucked away.
Most importantly dont let the Inland Revenue or benifits agency find out the'll dip you quicker than you can say:"Job Seekers Allowance"!

I believe in keeping records for a few reasons,

You may go on a bad run, and not ralise just how bad it is without the numbers to see where you are at. Having this info helps you plug holes in your game quicker.
Saving you money

Second reason for me is to prove to my wife exactly how well I am doing.

thirdly the numbers also show if your game is improving.

Evidence for what?? Its not taxable. And unless you have a serious amount saved up, its not gonna affect any benefit you claim either.

bolt, my winnings are tax free so no need to keep them hidden, and I dont claim job seekers, but thats a different discussion

I do keep some player notes but not too detailed because I believe there are too many factors I'm not aware of at the time. If Im playing $30 STTs on Laddies I know all the regular names and a bit about their games. on stars I rarely see the same names twice. Live it's a memory game and decisions based on instict

If your bank roll is of a sizable amout, then, for obvious reasons irrespective of any poker influence, the Inland Revenue can investigate to see if you are in the correct tax bracket.
With regards to poker winnings being taxed i have heard several different reports that the goverment plan to formulate a green paper that will outline proposals to re-introduce a gambling tax that will affect the entirety of domestic on-line gaming.These reports are unsubstantiated and speculative though i've had them all independent of one another. Heard of any such proposals?   

GAMBLING is non taxable... the government will not inccur the losses!

I can guarantee it!

I'ts only been non taxable for a few years. It was a tax that the Goverment was forced to recind, precipitated by the exodus of bookmakers offshore. With the amount of money traded on-line daily the goverment are indeed interested in reserecting the principal of the gambling tax that they indignantly gave up!

they are this is true, but if they do so remember to keep your entry receipts and losing horse racing tickets to use as losses to offset against your winnings  :D

The Goverment didn't inccur the losses, which is why you could pay the 9% tax on your bet before you placed it or have 9% deducted from your winnings. Incidently the actual tax commanded by the goverment was 7%, the extra 2% as added by the bookmakers for "adminisration costs"

I tried to save up the losers but greenpeace found out I had such a sizable amount of paper in my possesion that thay confiscated them under the conservation of rainforests act-)

I have no idea about whether there is truth in this or not but i do believe the government will find (yet) another way to add a new tax onto online gambling/poker playing.
They won't miss the oportunity.

anyway, records...

I only started keeping proper records at the beginning of September last year, this after I had left work in May.  
I am now meticulous to the point of anal in my record keeping. It is probably the only part of my life that is properly organised. I need to be organised in this area, it is a big motivational tool for me, it keeps me working hard and I am sure my performance is better for it.

I don't think that everyone needs to keep detailed records, it just doesn't suit some people. If you play primarily for fun and don't enjoy keeping records, as long your not gambling with the rent money then I can't see that it matters too much.
 

I thought with the New Year being here, I would start keeping good records,But have yet to do any of it, the reason for this is simple.

I don’t see the need for it since I know what my online bankroll is. If it goes up I’m doing ok, down I’m not. SIMPLE.

I would say if I was putting money into my bankroll from my pay check (it’s spelled like this in the States)

Then I would need to start keeping records. I still have my bankroll from last year, so I just know where I’m at without having to write stuff down.

As for player note’s, well that’s a MUST. I have them for cash games. But don’t have many for MMT because I don’t feel I need them there. Maybe I do need them, you just move so often it don’t seem worth it.

I am a record keeper, i like to know how im running and i don't think it affects my game win or lose so no problem there. I keep records for my wins or losses in one place (use cardplayers poker analyst effort).

I also use poker tracker i find this invaluable at times it has told me things i already knew about myself like that i am out and out TAG (tight aggressive) but also that i complete from the small blind too much and that i probably don't raise enough from late position, which are things that i have identified to improve my game.

Poker tracker also gives me alot info on my opponents, but i also note take online. Normally subtle things that stats can't tell me like whether people continuation bet, do they bluff rivers with overbets etc. I also date when i took the note, as new players will often improve over time.

I must admit i think this attention to detail is more common in online cash game players who will often encounter the same opponents again and again, they also will face similar situations due to the fixed blind structure.

Overall i think you are handicapping yourself not keeping records or taking notes. In this game take every advantage you can that small edge can often lead to some very profitable decisions on the felt as well as with bankroll management.

I don't keep notes. My main game is STTs and I don't think they are as valuable in these games because of the way the dynamics change so much. In any note I made I would have to record so many details describing the state of the game that I don't think it is worth it. My regular foes play cat and mouse all the time using different straegies and counter strategies so notes on them would have limited value.

I may be making excuses for my own laziness, but I think that while notes are invaluable to a cash player, they are of much less use to a STT player.

I keep records, but its a pain in the arse

All my income, What little there is, comes from poker, therefor, everything I spend has to come from my bankroll

I have to make notes on where I play, how much I spend on buy-ins, what return I get, what I take from my bankroll for living expenses, it gets really complicated

Some of it is in ££s some in $$s so I have to convert it all the time

It get's really complicated, I can have a winning month and finish with less than I started with

Got to disagree here, good notes on STT players is worth a few extra % ROI without doubt.

As for record keeping I use a combination of Pokertracker and simply looking at Withdrawal/Deposit history to keep track of profits on the few sites i play on. For live play I have an excel spreadsheet I record profit/losses and finish positions on.

That was a tax on bookmakers, NOT a tax on gambling indivduals. Income from gambling has not been taxed in the UK for many many many years, if ever... UK case law is very difficult to overturn, so when a judge passes a decree that a person who wins money from gambling not to do with his trade (eg if he gambles in his own club, it can be taxed) then it is not taxable as it is a prize and not income.

Bookmakers would pass the tax onto their customers, but this was not a tax on gambling income, it was a tax on your stake.

I kept a years worth of records to see where I was at shortly after getting started.  Last year I didn't keep detailed records.  This year I'm using pokercharts.com to help keep track of larger targets.

I don't subscribe to all that poker tracker stuff.  If it ain't broken, I don't fix it.

for what its worth, i have an excel spreadsheet for every year of play so i know to the penny how i am doing at each venue / site / game / limit etc. - I like it this way, i really like to know how i am doing and i like to analyse it throughout the year.  If losing stresses you out and affects your game then it may be good not to keep records (as long as you play for fun) as poker is my only source of income i keep extremely detailed records of wins and losses. - if i get on a losing streak long term and i can't make it pay then its back to the jobs pages, howvere i think i would still keep records out of interest.

reddog - as for $ and £ I keep all my records in £'s but use XE.com everytime for the correct realtime currency conversion.

Please give an example of a note you might make on a STT player.

During THM League I noticed that I put a not on the S James software about one player. I couldn't remember what I put so I had a peek, there was a single four letter word, which I can't repeat here, it summed him up perfectly and felt no need to change the word as he hadn't changed his ways.

Was it "LUCK" for me??   :D

I was introduced to pokercharts by Flushie in about March/April last year and have recorded every online session since.  I didn't think I would manage it at first but it soon became habit.

The most amusing example of the habit was when I woke up with a stinking hangover one morning and found my balance in one site was missing a chunk of cash.  Upon checking pokercharts I had recorded several big money heads up games lasting about 1 or 2 minutes each.  My housemate subsequently informed me that I had been taking great delight in signing up and going all in every hand when I got home bolloxed!

Before pokercharts I had always recorded any deposits and withdrawals on a spreadsheet which I still maintain.  Also I keep live results in a separate spreadsheet.

No player notes I must admit, but then I only play for fun and tend to sit watching dvds rather than actually watching the game!!

Was there a specific precedent set by the judicury that has been adapted to common Law?
Its also my understanding that being a member state of the EU has made it increasingly EASIER to discredit and superceed domestic case law precedents in the ECHR, or ECJ.

Did the note read
Redsimon: Good? :D

-Can lay down to a re-raise after making 3*BB raise

-Can't lay down to a re-raise after making 3*BB raise (lvl 5 and onwards)

Or more simply.....

-folder

-caller

Or even simpler still

-f

-c

But someone who is an 'c' earlier in the often becomes a 'f' later on, depending on the situation, you know how you regular opponents play, but I think relying on simple notes like these can be misleading for less familiar players.

Robert,

Tikay?

"sexy"

 ;scarymoment;

They're my favourites. Loose passive in the early stages and tight weak when the blinds get big  :D