The Pursuit of Perfection
“It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life.” - Captain Jean Luc Picard
I've always been more of a Star Wars fan but Captain Picard's quote resonates deeply with me. At its purest form, poker is the pursuit of perfection. We spend hundreds of hours hunched over a laptop analyzing the EV of different actions in GTO Wizard in this endeavor, hoping that it translates to success on the felt. Despite all of our efforts, once the chips have crossed the white line and the cards are on their backs, we are at the mercy of a rectangular piece of plastic after the dealer burns the penultimate card. This relinquishing of control drives some people to madness or to Gambling Anonymous meetings (perhaps one and the same). In contrast, I find inner bliss in being at the mercy of fate, the sole moment in my day when my mind quiets and a potentially life-changing outcome is out of my control.
My name is provolonesocks, and I plan to document my pursuit of perfection for all of you. I am 26 years old and I have been playing poker for four years, primarily building my roll and resume in the live arena. However, a busy school year that limits my opportunities to drive to the casino coupled with a masochistic tendency has relegated me to the deepest depths of hell: America's Cardroom.
Over the next six months, I plan to battle bots, RTA, and Russian nitregs on a foolish journey to prove something to myself and craft an impenetrable strategy that American midstakes live regs stand no chance against. This is my story.
Starting Online Bankroll: $2,523
Goals:
1) Reach $5,000 in the ACR account balance by Jan 1, 2026
2) Reach NL100 by Jan 1, 2026
3) Earn $7,500 in live MTTs before WSOP 2026
4) Earn $2000 in online MTTs before WSOP 2026
5) Shottake 5/10 NL live before WSOP 2026
I will be playing a mix of MTTs, SNGs, and NL50, with some updates from any live tournaments and 2/5 cash game sessions I can fit in on weekends. I'll post updates with my progress and hand histories of some interesting spots along the way.
1 Reply
Day 1
Starting Bankroll: $2,523
Current Bankroll: $2,258
Not the first day I was hoping for in the challenge to say the least. Didn't play my best and didn't run great either. Two interesting spots from the session, one from MTT and one from cash:
MTT HH)
Yatahay Network - 500/1000 NL (8 max) - Holdem - 4 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4: http://www.pokertracker.com
BB: 26.97 BB
CO: 88.15 BB
Hero (BTN): 47.42 BB
SB: 60.83 BB
4 players post ante of 0.13 BB, SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB
Pre Flop: (pot: 2 BB) Hero has Ks Th
fold, Hero raises to 2 BB, fold, BB calls 1 BB
Flop : (5 BB, 2 players) Qc Td 3h
BB checks, Hero checks
Turn : (5 BB, 2 players) 9s
BB bets 2.3 BB, Hero calls 2.3 BB
River : (9.6 BB, 2 players) 9d
BB bets 22.54 BB and is all-in, Hero calls 22.54 BB
BB shows Ad 3s (Two Pair, Nines and Threes)
(Pre 57%, Flop 20%, Turn 11%)
Hero shows Ks Th (Two Pair, Tens and Nines)
(Pre 43%, Flop 80%, Turn 89%)
Hero wins 54.69 BB
Not an easy spot OTR, but I think this is one of the best catchers we arrive here with. We don't have much Qx or 9x as played, so we need to call some Tx here. I think when V takes the 1/2 pot size on QT93 rainbow turn, many of the bluffs are going to come from Jx, so KT and T8 make better catchers imo. Glad I thought this one through and found the call.
Cash HH)
Yatahay Network - $0.50 NL (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4: http://www.pokertracker.com
SB: 191.64 BB
BB: 96.5 BB
UTG: 165.38 BB
MP: 100 BB
CO: 104.74 BB
Hero (BTN): 110.46 BB
SB posts SB 0.5 BB, BB posts BB 1 BB
Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) Hero has 9c 8s
fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to 2.5 BB, fold, BB calls 1.5 BB
Flop : (5.5 BB, 2 players) 7d Jc 6h
BB checks, Hero bets 2.74 BB, BB raises to 9.26 BB, Hero calls 6.52 BB
Turn : (24.02 BB, 2 players) 2s
BB bets 13.2 BB, Hero calls 13.2 BB
River : (50.42 BB, 2 players) Kd
BB bets 16.62 BB, Hero raises to 85.5 BB and is all-in, BB calls 54.92 BB and is all-in
BB shows 7s 7h (Three of a Kind, Sevens)
(Pre 54%, Flop 74%, Turn 82%)
Hero shows 9c 8s (High Card, King)
(Pre 46%, Flop 26%, Turn 18%)
BB wins 187.5 BB
Ouch. Some background on V, he's a fish I have tagged as being too agro, so I expect him to show up with lots of air on the river (54, 89, T9, 85, 43). In game, I thought he would jam all his value, and I thought he puts some air (and Jx) into block sizing to fold out other missed straight draws, but now I think he will just jam his air to maximize fold equity, so I think my jam was pretty massive punt. Didn't expect him to ever block a set here. GGs
Ate some chipotle and nursed my wounds, I'll be back stronger tomorrow
