Yes, you read that title right.  I am trying to win my way into the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event.  No, I have not seen the light and converted to NL Holdem as my personal savior.  Instead, I am playing the step tournaments on UltimateBet.  Yes, Ultimatebet.

All of you that know me are probably doing a collective eyebrow raise.  “James is playing NL Holdem?  James is trying to win his way into the Main Event?”  For those of you that don’t follow poker, UltimateBet has a series of Step tournaments that one can enter to win their way into the Main Event.  They start as cheap as a dime.  Now I see most of you doing a collective, “oh, THAT’S why he is doing it.”  Exactly.

What I have decided to do is take 1/5 of my UB bankroll, which is $100, and try and win my way into the Main Event.  I started yesterday by directly buying into a Step 1 tourney for .10 and a Step 2 for .30.  The top two advance.  I finished in the top two in both and got a Step 2 and a Step 3 ticket.   Later in the night, I bought into two Step 1′s and 1 Step 2.  Those didn’t produce much fruit, but I got my entry back.  (That happens if you finished 3rd or 4th.)

Today, I decided I was going to try and win me a few step 2 tickets.   At that point, I have setup a rough idea of how I want to proceed.  Here is my plan:

Win several Step 2 tickets and then try and play the Step 2 events.   Win as many Step 3 tickets from the Step 2′s and then move on to Step 3.  Rinse, lather, repeat.

I have decided that I want to have at least 6 tickets at any one level before I try and take a full shot to move on.  Why 6?  I will explain.  Today, I started with two Step 2 tickets.  I played 5 Step 1 games through the evening.  I finished in the top two in 4 out of 5.  (The fifth I had AA vs KK and QQ with a King on the river.  GG me.)  After winning, I had 6 tickets.   That seems like a fair amount to start taking a shot with, so I will proceed.  Chances are I will have to go back and win a few more step 1′s or even buy into some step 2′s directly to win my way to 3, but I will try and keep the 6 ticket rule.

Here are a few rules that I have setup for myself during my challenge:

1.  I cannot buy-in directly into any Step above Step 2.  Yes, Step 3 and Step 4 are uber cheap, but I want to give myself maximum opportunity.  With $20, I can take 100 shots at going up the Steps.  (Assuming I start all Step 1′s)  If I can’t make a decent showing in 100 tries, then I shouldn’t be playing in the Main Event anyway.

2.  Play a maximum of two tables at a time.  Yes, this can get a little boring for some of you, but this will allow me to concentrate the best.

3.  Do not play a Step tournament above a Step 2 unless I am fully committed to playing.  (One would argue I should be committed all the time, but c’mon, who is really THAT committed for a dime.)

4.  Don’t tilt when you take a super incredible bad beat at the lower step levels.  The lower steps are donkeyville, governed by Mayor McDonk.

5.  Don’t play after 4 a.m.   (No matter how awake I feel, playing after 4 a.m. usually results in break even at best results in my poker sit-n-go’s.  This includes my Stud 8 or Better.)

While I don’t normally like UB as a whole, I couldn’t pass up on playing these Steps.  If nothing else, this gives me a way to play a lot of NL sit-n-go’s cheaply.  With the exception of 1, I have at least made my money back in each one, so this is allowing a lot of play, even if it is at low limits.

I will try and keep track of my progress on this site.

Also, while you are at it, you can also check out www.thewsopblog.com.  I write for that blog as well and will probably mention my results there as well.

Progress so far:

Step 2:  6 tickets

Step 3: 1 ticket

Total Amount Spent:  $1.20

Step ticket Value: $2.80

Good luck at the tables.