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.