A Poker Update

I believe in poker the way I believe in the American Dream. Poker is good for you. It enriches the soul, sharpens the intellect, heals the spirit, and - when played well, nourishes the wallet.

--Lou Krieger

Over the last few years I have started taking poker more seriously, at least from an academic point of view.  I study it with a focus that I wish I had been able to manage when I was in college.  I rarely get to put this study into practice, however.

When we lived in Atlanta I would periodically play in some home games, and when we go to visit my in-laws in Florida I'll play sometimes at the poker rooms in Jacksonville.  I've come away from these stabs at playing on the positive side more than I've come away negative, and I truly feel that if I had the time to devote to playing more often I would just get better and more profitable.

Getting time to play is hard, though.  When we are in Florida it means that I have time off from both of my jobs, and my wife wants me to spend that time with the family.  That's understandable, and I can't blame her. I want to spend my spare time with them as well.  I feel this calling to play, though, that I am unable to explain to her in such a way that she will excuse my absence with any degree of regularity.

That's why I'm so happy that she has agreed to give me two days around Labor Day to go do my thing.  The BestBet Jacksonville Poker Room is having their WPT Summer Series, and I'll be playing on September 2nd and 3rd.  I'm planning to play cash games on the 2nd, and possibly play a satellite to the main event the next weekend.  I will then be playing the $340 PLO8 tourney on Monday the 3rd.

A word about the new room in Jacksonville: It's freakin' huge.  And nice.  They took an old Garden Ridge store and converted it into a poker palace.  They have over 70 tables, with room for another 50 or so if they need them.  They hosted the spring WPT televised event in April of 2012, and without exception all the pros that I follow on Twitter talked about how nice the place was. And the games are really, really good.

I had a week vacation planned to go play at the spring series, but had to cancel it for personal reasons.  I really want to take a week and just play poker. I want to see if I can adequately supplement my income with my play. It would be so nice to be able to just go somewhere and play poker for a week and then be home with my family for the rest of the month, instead of having to go into work four nights a week and sleep during the day like I currently do.

Hopefully, I'll be able to put together this week trip for either the fall series in November or the big spring series next year.