Hey everyone,

Well in the midst of a terrible 2 month mtt downswing and sng downswing I’ve managed to make about 6k in the past 2 days. It really shows you how you must be mentally prepared for anything in poker, and although you can statistically be ahead time and time again, you may come out on the losing side. Poker can be frustrating, agrivating, and I think perservence is definately a quality every poker player must possess.

Also I wanted to congratulate Lucas, flettl2, on completing the challenge he set out for himself. Last month, he told me he was ready to take on the 10k month challenge. I told him to shoot for the stars but not get frustrated if he can’t get it because it is no easy task (he had made about 20k total up to this point). Low and behold, he made it easily and won the bet, shipping an incredible 13k during that month. He has been one of our most successful students, netting around 20,000 since he came to our camp and that was only 3 months ago! He also has become a good friend of mine so congratulations Lucas! We’re all very proud of you. Here are his graphs for a little visual proof.

So while I feel like George Clooney from Up in the Air and I’ve been in airports for the majority of the day and life, I figured I’d take the time to reflect on poker, our experience in Costa Rica, and what we hope to do in the future for Spacegravy Poker.

Pokerwise, I feel on top of my game but Mtt’s are trying to break my spirit. While I make more money than I have ever made per game in SNG’s in the past month and a half, I can’t seem to win a 4-1  race in Mtt’s. It just reflects upon how hard it is in poker to keep your self mentally prepared at all times, no matter how your running. Just yesterday, Facestealer got 2nd in the daily 90 for 12k and the past 2 weeks we’ve been grinding on Sundays and losing to runner runner like its our job. I’m really happy for him and a big congrats to Matt! I know I can break through this downswing as long as I keep concentrating on my game and working hard to get better. Talk about a frustrating time though!

We officially closed up shop in Costa Rica and it has really set in how much I’m going to miss the place. The memories we created were unforgettable and a once in a lifetime experience. It was so satisfying to help people achieve their dreams and form friendships along the way that will last a lifetime. It seems as if just yesterday, Grayson and I were lying on his couch watching TV when Super Yachts came on and we decided on a whim to move to a tropical destination and try to open up a training school. Since then, we have had 12 students come through, all of them doing much better than before they came, and working towards their individual goals for poker. I feel as if I’ve gained 12 new best friends, and now when I travel to Europe, I’ll have a good friend in every country :p.

The new training center, wherever we end up, will offer even more options for students, as we are hoping to bring in one of the best cash players. As we teach more players and learn more about the game, it becomes easier to learn how to teach complex ideas and give our students the best experience possible. I’m excited about the future and I couldn’t have thought of a better way to spend the past year of my life.

Although I still can’t surf like Kelly Slater, surfing really is an experience that everybody should try. There is nothing like the adrenline rush of catching a huge wave and feeling the force of the ocean. Sometimes the force of the ocean was too strong and tried to drown me but I made it out alive and I recommend everybody try it at least once in their life.

I will try to respond to all the inquiries I’ve been getting about our new camp as soon as possible. Thank you to everybody who reads the blogs and inspires us to try and better my game everyday and a special thank you to Andrew ‘hg18l7′ Overby and Tommy ‘tmoney0209′ Miller for teaching me even more things about poker and visiting our house in Costa Rica. Also, Tommy stop getting 2nd places :p and a big congratulations goes out to Athanasios9 for his recent big score.

Pura Vida everyone. It was real.

-reef2287

So, I haven’t had time to update since Monte Carlo because I’ve been glued behind the computer trying to make some money. I’m in the middle of a little mtt downswing which can be really annoying, but I know things will turn around shortly. It has required me to grind the heck out of sit n goes again, and I’m starting to really make some money which is good since I bought a 2007 TSX.

As far as Monte Carlo went, it was one of the most beautiful places in the world I’ve ever seen but not really a place where I would want to live/afford to. It was super expensive and by the end, a 20 euro burger just seemed to feel normal.

Were going to be massively redoing the Spacegravy Poker website to include all of our previous students, their results, and we’re going to be looking into running online classes (possibly) since some people have expressed concern they can’t take a week out of their schedule to train. Our operations should be up and running in Florida by the end of August, so we will resume taking students then.

Heres a couple pictures of my car. Hope everybodys been doing well.

-reef2287

So, we have some bad updates on our end. Matt ‘Facestealer’ Volosevich held jj and called a mid position raise on the button and saw a board of aj4. Turn 3 River 4 and by the river he was facing an all in. He snap called with his full boat, but the other guy showed aa for the higher full house and Matt was cooler for his tournament life.

I played in the 330 Euro turbo tournament yesterday. It had a great structure, but it was super weird trying to count out other peoples stack sizes without a mouse button in front of me. I ended up cashing but lost a huge pot w/ A7 against a5 and q2 for 90k chips and I mincashed. 1st place was 11,000 euros so that was kind of agrivating. It played easier than a 11 dollar 180 man online, and it would be have been nice to bring home my first live tournament lol.

Right now, were hanging out with three of our students from Costa Rica, which has been quite the good time! Its fun to catch up with old friends, talk poker, and enjoy ourselves in Monte Carlo but it certainely isn’t cheap. Each beer cost 8 euro and a burger is 25 euro, which means an average meal is around 45 American dollars. And to think the food isn’t good either but what can you do?

I have still been on American time, so I tend to go to bed at 5 am and wake up at 2pm. This jet lag thing is killing me. I also attempted to play the sunday tournaments on an European schedule and it is near impossible. The warmup doesn’t even start until 8pm! I ended up watching two of our students in the Sunday Million, placing 63 and 45th respectfully so I stayed up until 8am lol. Congratulations to Horst ‘tschebe8′ Tschebe and Rob ‘bambrillo’ Muller for their deep runs and big cashes.

For the past week, Grayson myself and Matt have been coaching three new students and were really excited about their progress. They seem to be catching on quick, and were excited to see their results as well. They have combined to be up over 1200 this week alone!

This Sunday, Albert final tabled the TLB 1000 tournament which is quite an accomplishment to add to his resume! Coming off last months win in the 16.50 turbo, hes really becoming a force to reckon with at the tables. Congratulations Albert and keep up the good week!

In two weeks, we’re all going to Monte Carlo. I can’t wait to see it! Were also meeting up with some of our former students from Europe so it should be quite a good trip. I will post pictures from there and LA as soon as I find the cord to connect my camera to the computer.

Pokerwise nothing of great interest has happened. I’ve been traveling a lot so I haven’t put in a ton of volume. I’m currently on a little downswing, but thats always to be expected and one just has to keep playing through it and keep their head in the game.

So inbetween grinding, having 3 students, and surfing, my free time has suddenly evaporated. Next weekend I’m pretty excited, as I’m going to visit my friend in Hollywood and see how he is living. Its such a nice ability to go about and travel whenever you would like, so it should be a good time. I’ll post some pictures!

We have had so much demand for training its out of control. Were almost fully booked through May now, as half of May is taken up by our annual trip to Monte Carlo. This year, Grayson will win 77 vs a9 and be 2 million dollars richer.. I’ve got a feeling!

I really need to stop being lazy and start playing. I’ve only played 1100 games this year which is kind of pathetic. I’m still up 22k though, which isn’t bad considering I’m playing half time and its 3 months into the year. Reckon I can’t complain. Grayson and I have made a pact to try and start grinding more often. Its been tough having so many students coming but I really get a lot of enjoyment teaching to people who want to learn.

A lot of people send me emails about how much money they can expect to make and a lot of questions about monetary achievements so I thought I’d share my two cents on this… I recently read an interesting book on motivation called Drive. If you have ever wondered how to get motivated or what motivates individuals, this would be a great book to look into. One thing to consider is why you do anything you do– If it is to achieve some sort of monetary goal or stability? Well, if you answered yes and I’m sure 90% of people answer yes, you are motivated by external factors. While theres nothing wrong with that, true success comes from people who are internally motivated. When I started playing poker, I just wanted to learn about the game, how to outsmart people, and how to get better. I wasn’t concerned with money, for I knew that money would come from experience and drive. Since I turned to a full time player in May, I’ve made more than I could have ever hoped coming out of college and I haven’t nearly put in nearly enough volume to consider myself working full time.  Internal motivation makes you work towards mastery which will bring about well-being and success.

And its not just with poker. Its with anything you do. One suggestion for a great life improvement is start doing things you enjoy and strive to better yourself by figuring out your weaknesses and strengths and focus not on improving your weaknesses but by doing something that maximizes your strengths. The most successful people in life figure out what they are good at, what they enjoy doing, and become the best at that. Good luck in April everyone!

-reef2287

So next week, were going to have 3 students coming in so it will be super busy! This week I had 20 people down from school and it was pretty wild. Somehow I misplaced/lost the 1200 dollars in rent money, which was a huge debby downer. Leave it to somebody like me to do that– I hope it will show up in the upcoming week. Sigh, another life bad beat lol.

Tmoney0209 has been all week as well, and we have been talking a lot of stragety. Last month my man scored 130k, nicely done. Its great to keep having great players come and visit, and my games really developing. Its also been great to help so many students and keep in touch with so many people. I get a lot of emails a day about training, so excuse me if it takes a couple days to get back to you. Its hard to juggle playing, responding to clients, and inquiries about the camp.

Today, I got 4th in the 109 freezeout for 11k… You’ll enjoy the HH. When 1st is 28k, its really agrivating to have something like that happen. But I guess 11k isn’t bad. We have 3 students coming in this week, so I’m excited to help more people achieve poker success!

PokerStars Game #41174380933: Tournament #301010447, $100+$9 USD Hold’em No Limit – Level XXX (25000/50000) – 2010/03/14 20:06:55 CT [2010/03/14 21:06:55 ET]
Table ‘301010447 68′ 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: thugmoneymkr (2392677 in chips)
Seat 2: nineallday00 (637989 in chips)
Seat 5: reef2287 (654444 in chips)
Seat 8: simonek1323 (1096890 in chips)
thugmoneymkr: posts the ante 5000
nineallday00: posts the ante 5000
reef2287: posts the ante 5000
simonek1323: posts the ante 5000
simonek1323: posts small blind 25000
thugmoneymkr: posts big blind 50000
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to reef2287 [Kh Kd]
nineallday00: folds
reef2287: raises 50000 to 100000
simonek1323: raises 991890 to 1091890 and is all-in
thugmoneymkr: folds
reef2287: calls 549444 and is all-in
Uncalled bet (442446) returned to simonek1323
*** FLOP *** [8s 3d As]
*** TURN *** [8s 3d As] [6c]
*** RIVER *** [8s 3d As 6c] [Jh]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
simonek1323: shows [Js Jd] (three of a kind, Jacks)
reef2287: shows [Kh Kd] (a pair of Kings)
simonek1323 collected 1368888 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1368888 | Rake 0
Board [8s 3d As 6c Jh]
Seat 1: thugmoneymkr (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 2: nineallday00 folded before Flop (didn’t bet)
Seat 5: reef2287 (button) showed [Kh Kd] and lost with a pair of Kings
Seat 8: simonek1323 (small blind) showed [Js Jd] and won (1368888) with three of a kind, Jacks

Its amazing to think that 3 months ago, Grayson and I had an idea to help up and coming poker players really understand the lifestyle and the skills they needed to become a professional. While we weren’t even sure if any students would come out, we took a risk and made the website and hoped everything would work out. Since then, we have had 5 students come through who are on their way to poker success and 6 more coming next month. We have had students ranging in age from 20-55 and from all over the world (some are in the process of coming): such as Holland, Belgium, Austria, England, United States, and Canada. Lots of people have contacted me about wanting to ask the students about their experience– I will try and soon get each student an email at spacegravypoker.com where they can answer all of your questions as well as have reviews from previous students put up on the website.

We’re also looking to have an article soon in the UK Poker Player magazine about our training site so if your from the UK area, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for that.

I have really enjoyed sharing my skills to enrich peoples lives. We are fully booked through March and April slots are filling up fast. I’ve also been really glad the students have gotten a lot out of the course. I’m gaining way more friends on facebook! I also want to thank everyone on behalf of Grayson for the emails that I get telling me how much their game has improved by watching Grayson’s videos on PokerVT.

As for poker, I’ve had some big decisions in my life and haven’t been playing at all. I’ve been focusing on training players much more than playing. We’ll see what the future holds for me and poker.

Congrats to all my buddies who have recently had big scores especially HotKarlMC. Hes been a great friend to talk too and has been having killer results this year!

-reef2287

Here are my results. Finally got all the bios so they will be going up on the website soon! Ray Venegas stoped by from Intellipoker last weekend and we all took our shots at the Sunday Million and not one of us cashed! Sigh, we’ll have an interesting Sunday soon.

First graph is PokerStars and the second is Full Tilt.

Hopefully I can qualify for the LAPT and hang out with some of the guys I talk to all the time online!

-reef2287

So I FT a 20 dollar knockout tournament with 3500 entries and ended up scoring second for 10,586 dollars. I lost 1010 to 810 actually for the win, but no worries as I had to run pretty good to get to that point. It feels great to get back into the grind, as I’ve had a rough week and was down about 5k. Poker can just do that sometimes and the only way to get through it is to keep your head on straight and keep grinding. Something good will eventually happen.

Just wanted to thank the random railbirds on FT, RomanPoka33 and TheLuckyGoose1. I don’t know these guys personally but they rooted for me randomly and we had a good time joking at the final table. Kind of funny to get random fans that you have never talked to before so thanks guys!

Derrick has been doing well and I’m looking to get all the students biographies up on the website to and allow them to blog.

Until next time, run good and win flips!

-reef2287