AndyMcLEOD
WCOOP tomorrow!
Hey guys,
I'm writing this some 20 hours before the beginning of another WCOOP, and it's about time I got back on the poker horse. Motivation to grind poker lately has been very low, especially knowing that another tough few weeks were coming up, but mainly because the sports betting has been going spectacularly. I had a huge finish to the World Cup, nailed almost all the second week matches at Wimbledon and have had some huge multis come in recently including a 7-way of odds 284:1! Of course I know it's important to keep a check on the ego after such a string of results and realise just how big an upswing this represents, but it's a great feeling to be consistently selecting high value spots that others aren't seeing, capitalising fully on them, and almost just as good a feeling to be leaving alone match after match that have proven to show minimal value either way.
I'm always hesitant to tell my friends about sports betting; I know just the mention of it holds such an extreme negative connotation, so much so that no matter how much respect someone may have for me or for any sports bettor, no matter what lengths you go to to explain it - why you bet, that you are actually profitable or the dreaded "it's not as bad as you think" - you'll be met with the same cynical but silent "Yep, sure mate" response from all but the most considered of people. As such I don't bother rationalising betting to all but my closest friends who share a genuine concern for me and would like to have an honest understanding of the effect it has.
The truth is that in my case it's been a priceless resource for an array of reasons. Before I got into the whole mindgame thing I was a travelling tennis player and a reasonable all-round sportsman, and along with being an avid follower of many sports this background has given me the knowledge and understanding of all aspects of sport, in particular tennis. An appreciation of mental fortitude and how different playing styles respond to each other are just a couple of aspects that I couldn't have developed a proper understanding of without a sporting background. What's my point? Well combine that with being lucky enough to be decent at maths (dropping brags all over the place) it means I can identify a lucrative situation often enough to be profitable long term given sufficient discipline.
But the main reason why it's been so good for me is that it's given me a rewarding out from poker. My lifestyle and the environment I play in has been so poor and unconducive to poker really ever since I began playing that although I've been able to get away with it to a decent extent, as the game has continued to get tougher and my playing conditions continued to decline, so poker has presented me with what could be described as a danger. It's in my veins to aim high and want success immediately, and so throughout the years of playing poker I've extended myself beyond reasonable monetary means, accepting the high risk for high reward scenario. Whilst I believe when I've done so I've done so in games I should be profitable, due to my dreadful environment and simply to coming up against many of the world's best players on a given table, my edge has sometimes only been slight or even in some cases I can certainly say non-existent. Add this to my mental weakness in not being able to leave a table at the first onset of tilt and definitely on occasion poker has been a costly activity.
Thankfully the same setbacks I've been facing with poker don't translate to sports betting. I've got all day to mull over what's good and what's not and even better is I can get much more action than I could ever want, much more than I could get on poker and I can spread my risk over a large number of matches rather than having one poker table determine my daily result. The reason it's such an attractive proposition to so many people is best realised by the fact that in sports you can wager as much as gets accepted and your edge is still the same as if you were betting with pennies. With all that said though, the public perception of sports betting is completely fair and you have to know who you're talking to very well before you start condoning them making a habit of it!
I'm not sure exactly why I just wrote an essay justifying my betting on sports but maybe I'll direct my next girlfriend here when she won't listen to what I have to say face to face! Some exciting times coming up, WCOOP will be bigger than ever and I just got word that I'm going to get an invitation to the Brownlow Medal ceremony at Crown in a couple of weeks... It's pretty amazing, I've always thought about how much I'd give to go to the Brownlow, and maybe it's fate but the one and only, the REAL Andrew McLeod retired just a week ago as one of the all time greats of the game. In all likelihood he'll be given a special tribute on the night and to be there would be pretty surreal.
To address the environment issue again, I'm very close to sorting it out. I'm hopeful of being in position to purchase a house before the end of the year and from there I'll be lacking no motivation to get my lifestyle back to the way I want it to be. It's really been a prolonged transitional stage and unfortunately it's started to show in my tournament results and my level of play. I really can't wait to get things back on track.
If you made it this far, good luck in the WCOOP and we'll see each other again soon.
James
