If you are not familiar with the term, a ‘Bucket List’ is a bunch of things you would like to do before you kick the bucket (die). This is not morbid, in fact the opposite, this kind of list can encourage people to get out of their routine and do some great stuff.
This blog post is a slightly different bucket list. On average, the poker bug lasts around 18 months… most people eventually drift away from the game. Maybe not completely, though poker fades as a main passtime or obsession (depending on the player!). A small percentage of people will carry on playing for many years, and a small sub-set of them will become professionals.
My ‘bucket list’ is made up of 10 things that recreational / leisure type players might like to achieve before they drift away from the game. I have yet to complete them all myself (though you’ll have to wait for a future blog post to see which ones are missing!)
Poker Bucket List – 10 Things To Achieve On The Virtual Felt
1) Winning A Poker Tournament: Nothing can beat that feeling of winning a tournament. In fact you’ll only ever be happy when you win. If someone said before the game starts that you would get 2nd, I am sure you’d be happy to take it… By the time there are only 2 left in the game, nothing is more disappointing! I guess a 180 Player SNG would count here too.
2) Winning A Hand Against A Name Pro: Alright, we do not all have the cash to play against Dwan or Ivey, there are opportunities on several sites to play against smaller names though. I have shared online tables with Johnny Chan, BelowAbove (Kevin Saul), Johhny Bax and played in a live tournament against a Hungarian WSOP bracelet winner know as Belabachi (might have spelled that wrong!), I did not win a hand against any of them, so back to the drawing board.
3) Hitting A One-Outer: Got all in set-over set on a dry flop? No fear, you always have an out. Same for needing to that gutshot straight flush card against the nut flush. Hitting this is a poker rite of passage, it is almost as if you are not a real player until your ‘one time’ has come in!
4) Playing In The Sunday Million: You have to play the biggest poker tournament of the week at least once. If the $215 buy-in would not get ‘approval’ from the wife (or husband!) then do not fear, there are plenty of satellite qualifiers for this game, and the standard of play in them is bad enough to give you a realistic chance of winning that seat. You can find my Sunday Million Guide here, which in turn links to an article covering the different kinds of satellites.
5) Clicking ‘CashOut’ For The First Time: Most people will never get to do this, so when you make that first withdrawal, remember to feel some warmth and gratitude to the generosity of the poker gods.
6) Owning The Table Bully: You get some obnoxious fools at the poker tables, and when one of them combines their ignorant personality in the chat box with aggressive play - and keeps on hitting hands – it can be very annoying. This list item is for the time you hit a monster yourself and then soak up his aggression until the river, when you unleash the big re-raise for the rest of his chips, satisfaction guaranteed!
7) Hitting Your Straight Flush At The Same Time As Someone Hits The Nut Flush. You get double bucket list points for this one if you use both of your hole cards instead of just one.
8) Your First 4 or 5 Figure Score: I made this a double as it depends on your bankroll / surplus cash! Hitting that first $1,000 or $10,000 win, either in a tournament or over a session of cash game play is a wonderful feeling.
9) Qualifying For A Live Poker Event: This one is a little more niche, since not everyone likes to travel. Nowadays, all online poker sites make a big effort to run qualifiers to live events. While the world series and EPT are the big ones, there are plenty of smaller and regional events to aim for instead.
10) Your First Royal Flush: Double points if you get paid off, hitting the ultimate poker hand is a great feeling, just remember to maximize the value you get from it!
If you have any more suggestions for this list, feel free to add them to the article comments on our facebook group here.
GL at the tables, Mark
Submitted by Planet Mark on Mon, 11/04/2013 - 10:31