1. #1
    birdmanweezy
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    Need Opinions Please

    What is the min-max range of money you would move to vegas with to try and grind out a living playing poker and some but not a lot of sports gambling? Serious question no trolls please. Include bankroll, living expenses, everything. Just looking for some opinions. Zeta weigh in.

  2. #2
    JoeyBagels
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    No sports betting just 1/2 NL.

    10K BR + 20K nut (about 6 months living).

    Which is assuming you can beat 1-2 at which point you could answer these questions yourself IMO.

    A guy named sevencard2003 has been doing it for years on less though. His blog is worth a read for the life of a quasi-homeless grinder/degen.
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  3. #3
    rake922
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    100k

  4. #4
    smoke a bowl
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    Wouldn't go with less than 30k for sure. And that's assuming living at a budget suits for roughly $900 a month(includes utility,water,cable) until the bankroll increased to 75k to 100k.

  5. #5
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by rake922 View Post
    100k
    how you doing buddy?

  6. #6
    birdmanweezy
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    thanks joey and smoke. I dont do much with my life other than work. Would really like to grind tables 8 hours a day.

  7. #7
    birdmanweezy
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    i calculated all my expenses to be around 2,000$ a month in vegas just a rough idea.

  8. #8
    JoeyBagels
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    thanks joey and smoke. I dont do much with my life other than work. Would really like to grind tables 8 hours a day.
    man do not put the pro gambler lifestyle on a pedestal... gambling for a living is like one of the last refuge's for lifes fuckups to fall back on (like drug dealing!). Any sane person can make much more money with the same amount of effort grinding the career game with 0 variance (besides maybe looking for a job every couple of years). If you see someone grinding 1-2NL for a living they have fuked up somehow and that is the truth.
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  9. #9
    The Kraken
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    You're looking for reasons to stop you from going

    I say take what you got and go

    Then let us know if you made it or not.

    When you're on your deathbed, you'll never regret doing the things you wanted to do. You'll regret not doing them because you didn't have a certain BR.
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  10. #10
    JoeyBagels
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Kraken View Post
    You're looking for reasons to stop you from going

    I say take what you got and go

    Then let us know if you made it or not.

    When you're on your deathbed, you'll never regret doing the things you wanted to do. You'll regret not doing them because you didn't have a certain BR.
    Vegas is paved with these people.

  11. #11
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by JoeyBagels View Post
    man do not put the pro gambler lifestyle on a pedestal... gambling for a living is like one of the last refuge's for lifes fuckups to fall back on (like drug dealing!). Any sane person can make much more money with the same amount of effort grinding the career game with 0 variance (besides maybe looking for a job every couple of years). If you see someone grinding 1-2NL for a living they have fuked up somehow and that is the truth.
    i am not ****** per se. I work my ass off at a decent job. Rent in my area is way over inflated and im sick of living at home. The stress of my job does get to me occasionally. The plus side is I am in no rush because of my decent job. I also live 1hr 45 mins from the conneticut casinos and am starting to go there more on weekends just to play around 1/2 and 2/4. I am just not a fan of making the drive.

  12. #12
    Big Bear
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    What is the min-max range of money you would move to vegas with to try and grind out a living playing poker and some but not a lot of sports gambling? Serious question no trolls please. Include bankroll, living expenses, everything. Just looking for some opinions. Zeta weigh in.
    atleast $1,500

  13. #13
    Big Bear
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Kraken View Post
    You're looking for reasons to stop you from going

    I say take what you got and go

    Then let us know if you made it or not.

    When you're on your deathbed, you'll never regret doing the things you wanted to do. You'll regret not doing them because you didn't have a certain BR.
    exactly go see your local loan shark and let it ride on black

  14. #14
    The Kraken
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    That's fine Joey

    The point is for Birdman to live his life the way he wants to and to quit looking for lame excuses like not having enough BR to get in his way.

    BR is simply a #. A larger BR doesn't improve his odds of making it. Just gives him more $$$ to lose

    I'd say if you got one months rent Birdman, pick up and move. Get a job and learn it hands on.

  15. #15
    JoeyBagels
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    i am not ****** per se. I work my ass off at a decent job. Rent in my area is way over inflated and im sick of living at home. The stress of my job does get to me occasionally. The plus side is I am in no rush because of my decent job. I also live 1hr 45 mins from the conneticut casinos and am starting to go there more on weekends just to play around 1/2 and 2/4. I am just not a fan of making the drive.
    Maybe get a couple of roomies if you don't want to be at your folks. I get the stress but take a vacation/hooker/girlfriend/whatever grants relief. Blowing your shit up to chase some vegas pipe dream is for crazy people. People will say "oh just do it BUD!" but they don't know how bad things get if you penetrate up. Sometimes there is no going back...

    If you're serious about it start grinding some home games in your area on weekends/nights and the occasional casino. it will give you a taste to see if you can handle the lifestyle. Worst case scenario see if you can take an extended sabbatical from the job and try out vegas or take 2 weeks if you get em and play during the series. All these are better avenues than just hitting some $$$ milestone and moving there permanently.

  16. #16
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by JoeyBagels View Post
    Maybe get a couple of roomies if you don't want to be at your folks. I get the stress but take a vacation/hooker/girlfriend/whatever grants relief. Blowing your shit up to chase some vegas pipe dream is for crazy people. People will say "oh just do it BUD!" but they don't know how bad things get if you penetrate up. Sometimes there is no going back...

    If you're serious about it start grinding some home games in your area on weekends/nights and the occasional casino. it will give you a taste to see if you can handle the lifestyle. Worst case scenario see if you can take an extended sabbatical from the job and try out vegas or take 2 weeks if you get em and play during the series. All these are better avenues than just hitting some $$$ milestone and moving there permanently.

    Yea thats what i'm doing more of this year. I never really dated seriously until like 6 months ago so Ive been going out with chicks here and there. Seems most times they are just added stress lol. I just need to entertain myself more. My boss invited me to his card game on tuesdays nights so I'm going to start going there I guess.

  17. #17
    mpaschal34
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    i am not ****** per se. I work my ass off at a decent job. Rent in my area is way over inflated and im sick of living at home. The stress of my job does get to me occasionally. The plus side is I am in no rush because of my decent job. I also live 1hr 45 mins from the conneticut casinos and am starting to go there more on weekends just to play around 1/2 and 2/4. I am just not a fan of making the drive.

    if the stress of your job gets to you, then wait to you get to vegas and have a really bad week. i don't see this ending well. maybe the next JJ Gold.

  18. #18
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by mpaschal34 View Post
    if the stress of your job gets to you, then wait to you get to vegas and have a really bad week. i don't see this ending well. maybe the next JJ Gold.
    could be

  19. #19
    birdmanweezy
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    Been reading the blog posted sevencard2003. Crazy he just bounces around using free rooms and all that. I want to be established. Decent apartment and all that. Looking into weekend bus trips down to the CT casinos so I dont have to drive home tired. Can go down Friday night and come back midnight sat for 35 bucks with 15 free food and 20 slot bonus.

  20. #20
    smoke a bowl
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    Been reading the blog posted sevencard2003. Crazy he just bounces around using free rooms and all that. I want to be established. Decent apartment and all that. Looking into weekend bus trips down to the CT casinos so I dont have to drive home tired. Can go down Friday night and come back midnight sat for 35 bucks with 15 free food and 20 slot bonus.
    Trust me when i tell you that it's a miserable grind. Games aren't what they use to be and it was miserable then. Those 8 hour sessions start feeling more like work that an actual job unless you are 1 in a million that actually enjoys it after a year or 2 of pure grinding.

  21. #21
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by smoke a bowl View Post
    Trust me when i tell you that it's a miserable grind. Games aren't what they use to be and it was miserable then. Those 8 hour sessions start feeling more like work that an actual job unless you are 1 in a million that actually enjoys it after a year or 2 of pure grinding.
    won't know till you try right?

  22. #22
    Buffalo Nickle
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    It all depends on your risk tolerance. If you are single and can go bust easily and without regret, you can obviously fly by the seat of your pants. First, you've got figure out how much money you need to produce 25K per year in income. Then you really need a year's worth of money to live off of in case luck doesn't go your way for a while or you hit a sharp downturn. Murphy's Law will always rule with these sorts of things.

    I'd want a $100K bankroll to start and then another $50K for living expenses which I would consider the bare minimum for a dreamer. You really need a good solid six figures. Obviously, if you are wild ass crazy you could do for less and it might work out.

    You've also got to remember that when you are eating your winnings, you are constantly a rat on a wheel. It is not the same as managing an investment account or something. You have constant losses due to expenses and those never go away and you have to keep winning and winning while riding into a headwind of increasingly smarter and smarter gamblers.

    First, you need to gamble online and win to the point that you really think you can do this sort of thing. You can put some pretty good money to work there without all the risk. Do that for a couple of years and if it works out, you can think about it. If you haven't substantially increased your betting pot, you know you can't do it.

    If you can win, you can always win. If you are going to lose, it's better to find out before you head to Vegas. Don't underestimate your opponent. They are smarter than you are.
    Last edited by Buffalo Nickle; 05-13-15 at 09:23 AM.

  23. #23
    smoke a bowl
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    won't know till you try right?
    Thought it was my dream about 15 years ago and can remember my sessions going from 10 hours to 8 to 6 to 4 to sometimes not even playing 3 hours in a day. Seeing the same ole miserable faces everyday that hate life just gets old. You never know, it could work out for you but it's far from glamorous imo.

  24. #24
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by Buffalo Nickle View Post
    It all depends on your risk tolerance. If you are single and can go bust easily and without regret, you can obviously fly by the seat of your pants. First, you've got figure out how much money you need to produce 25K per year in income. Then you really need a year's worth of money to live off of in case luck doesn't go your way for a while or you hit a sharp downturn. Murphy's Law will always rule with these sorts of things.

    I'd want a $100K bankroll to start and then another $50K for living expenses which I would consider the bare minimum for a dreamer. You really need a good solid six figures. Obviously, if you are wild ass crazy you could do for less and it might work out.
    1 years living bills food and all that would be around $24K. I would like a $15k roll. $39k total would be ideal scenario to move there for me anyway. I'm halfway there but it can be done on a lot less. I always figured $25-30k would be fine. Have not ruled out other places to play poker besides vegas. Baltimore, florida, are too expensive with rent and taxes. Same with LA.

  25. #25
    smoke a bowl
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    1 years living bills food and all that would be around $24K. I would like a $15k roll. $39k total would be ideal scenario to move there for me anyway. I'm halfway there but it can be done on a lot less. I always figured $25-30k would be fine. Have not ruled out other places to play poker besides vegas. Baltimore, florida, are too expensive with rent and taxes. Same with LA.
    As crazy as it sounds New Orleans could be best option. Not a ton of options there but always a couple of 1-3 games and usually a couple of 2-5s. You can make an hour trip to Biloxi from time to time for a change of pace.The play there is as bad as play was 15 years ago and price of living there not bad either. And looks like you might have a soft spot for the Big Easy already judging from your handle.

  26. #26
    Buffalo Nickle
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    1 years living bills food and all that would be around $24K. I would like a $15k roll. $39k total would be ideal scenario to move there for me anyway. I'm halfway there but it can be done on a lot less. I always figured $25-30k would be fine. Have not ruled out other places to play poker besides vegas. Baltimore, florida, are too expensive with rent and taxes. Same with LA.
    The hell with a 15K bankroll. You can do that online with no expenses. What's the point?

  27. #27
    smoke a bowl
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    Quote Originally Posted by Buffalo Nickle View Post
    The hell with a 15K bankroll. You can do that online with no expenses. What's the point?
    Online games are 100X harder to beat.

  28. #28
    Buffalo Nickle
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    Quote Originally Posted by smoke a bowl View Post
    Online games are 100X harder to beat.
    At poker? I don't know anything about poker. But how can it be harder to beat? Aren't you in a poker room with other players? You don't play against a computer, right?

  29. #29
    birdmanweezy
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    Quote Originally Posted by smoke a bowl View Post
    As crazy as it sounds New Orleans could be best option. Not a ton of options there but always a couple of 1-3 games and usually a couple of 2-5s. You can make an hour trip to Biloxi from time to time for a change of pace.The play there is as bad as play was 15 years ago and price of living there not bad either. And looks like you might have a soft spot for the Big Easy already judging from your handle.

    my handle is for incognito I am as typical whiteboy as they come.

  30. #30
    smoke a bowl
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    Quote Originally Posted by Buffalo Nickle View Post
    At poker? I don't know anything about poker. But how can it be harder to beat? Aren't you in a poker room with other players? You don't play against a computer, right?
    Correct but the rooms are full of professionals. Games at Bovada could be different but at Stars and Tilt it's an uphill battle. One of the big reasons is you can play multiple tables. So you have pros playing 6-20 tables at a time while recreational players are playing 1 or 2 max tables so the percentage of pro players taking seats is a ton higher online than in casinos.

  31. #31
    birdmanweezy
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    online poker is way harder to beat than playing live in any room city town ect. I prefer playing live by a lot. Also I will look into new orleans.

  32. #32
    smoke a bowl
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    my handle is for incognito I am as typical whiteboy as they come.
    lmao could have been a whiteboy with a soft spot for New orleans.

  33. #33
    PorkChop
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    I'd honestly go for 1-2 weeks first as a test. Get an extended rate hotel. (Believe it or not, even the major hotels/casino's have very cheap room rates weekly). SLS you can get for $50/night, Palms etc.

    I'd go for 10-14 days. With an exact amount of money to gamble with, whatever you can risk to lose. See if you can even last 2 weeks without blowing through it. Then make your decision at the end of your stay.

  34. #34
    Buffalo Nickle
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    Quote Originally Posted by birdmanweezy View Post
    online poker is way harder to beat than playing live in any room city town ect. I prefer playing live by a lot. Also I will look into new orleans.
    OK. That's probably true. But from what I've heard, you need to play in 10K pots to make a living at it. But you've also got to consider that you are going to need to make 200% just to break even. I don't think online is that much harder. That's a tough headwind.

  35. #35
    jjgold
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    2k a month income to pay rent , utilities, food, car, ect

    50k roll

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