I KNOW WHAT I WANT TO BE WHEN I GROW UP.

After some suggestions from a few friends I will attempt to not only start, but persist with my own blog. Truthfully I have my doubts, as I am not a linguistic genius, nor do I think that my next adventure and my quest to follow my dream will be of much interest to many, if any at all. . . But I am getting ahead of myself, and should start from the beginning, the day I fell in love with the most challenging and exciting game, No Limit Texas Hold 'Em Poker. 

 Towards the end of 2010 I found myself invited to a 'boys only' poker game that was played every Monday afternoon. I didn't know anything about the game and was just happy to be one of the few women to be invited. Three months after playing every week, something inside me unlocked and I was starting to see the game for what it was.

"Complexity built upon complexity, logic layered atop psychology, image married to imagination, and your need for discipline tugging against your need to be deceptive."

A game with endless amount of possibilities, where skill out trumps luck by a huge percentage. I was hooked, passionately in love with the game and wanted to learn as much as possible as fast as possible. 

 In 2011 I bought books, researched on the internet for 100’s of hours and played in as much poker as possible. I first joined a poker community where free tournaments were played. I made the final table my first league, placed 9th and got my first plastic bracelet. he he, I love that bracelet.

 The next league @ Poker Shuffle I did not complete as I moved onto real money tournaments. I started a poker diary and even got a second job playing as a prop for an online poker company. Yip, I got paid to play poker. I played with their money for 4 to 8 hours a shift and got a thank you salary when I walked out the door. By far one of the best jobs I have had, even though the pay was not that great, the point was that I was getting practice, and lots of it. 

 The first real money league I joined didn't go too badly. The structure was 21 games played on each Tuesday with a point system on how well you do for that night. At the end of the league the top 6 players get an additional cash prize. Surprisingly I was on top of that league for quite a few weeks, until 2012 decided to roll over. My momentum in the beginning of the league helped to secure a 6th place overall finish out of 34 players. I ended 2011 with R6500.00 in poker earnings.

 In 2012 I learnt, felt and was humbled by every poker players nightmare, the bad run. The year started off bad and just went worse. I even took a sabbatical, which for me was very difficult.  At this stage I was playing on average 4 nights a week with reading and watching poker in between games. But I did it, for 2 months. No reading, watching or playing poker. Did I learn anything, some Aha moment to clarify this game. . .  Nope.. . .   surprisingly not.

I now approach the table with more respect for the game with the understanding that this will not be an easy dream to follow. I ended 2012 with R0.00 in poker earnings.

Now 2013, I find myself about to embark on an adventure.  I am single, youngish and frustrated that I am getting nowhere in this beautiful country, so setting my sights on the horizon. Any day now I will be getting my ticket to join a Cruise Liner to continue my day job career, as a Junior Purser on board. I have lived in Cape Town, a piece of paradise, for 8 years and I have met some of the most awesome people and shared some amazing moments, but that bug, that itch, that want to see, want to be more is tugging and I have to follow.  My choice was solidified when I realized that this move can only help my poker game. There are crew games on board and I will be visiting many shores with Casinos where I can test my skill. This is the reason for my blog, to allow you to walk with me through my ups and downs with my quest to better my poker skills around the world.

Will I lose money? For sure, I expect too! I am still a novice in this game; the average amount of years of persistent play for a person to become a pro poker player is 4 to 6. To name two of the greats:

Danial Negranu:                Learnt the game at a young age and played regularly but only decided to become pro after playing for 5 years at a legal age.

Phill Ivey:                             Learnt the game from his Grandfather at the age of 8, but had to wait till he was legally allowed to play at the age of 21 before he officially became a pro.

The point I am trying to make is that I am not looking at this money as a loss. If you want to become the best golf player, gymnast, tennis player, you spend money, time and tears to get there. I have much to learn and I am not delusional of the goal I have set, I know it’s a mountain to climb. But climb it I will!