2010

I guess I should start with a quick 2009 recap. I didn't make a boatload of money this year compared to 2008 (I'd be moderately surprised if I ever make more money from poker in a year than I did in 2008), but I think I succeeded a lot this year overall. I lived a healthier lifestyle, both in terms of eating (a little) better and working out more and socializing more. I bought myself my own place in downtown Toronto that I love, finally got around to getting laser eye surgery (which went fantastic, though I don't think I've written about it here at all), and made a lot of new friends and reconnected with some old ones. Strictly speaking I've had a solid year poker-wise, but that's mostly because at the beginning of the year when I was playing nosebleed games online I went on a big downswing in December and rebounded in January. I've done well in online tournaments as well and didn't lose too much playing live.

So the plan for 2010 is pretty vague I guess, just keep living a fun balanced life. Hopefully that will involve a bit more poker than 2009, I'd like to put up some big scores on the live circuit again this year or hit a few really big online scores. I'm not sure if I really have much in the way of goals for cash games. The big games haven't been running at all lately, and when they do they're mostly mixed games. I definitely would like to improve at the limit games so I can feel comfortable playing those more, but I'm not sure how realistic it is that I'll actually do that. I'm at the point where I feel pretty competent at all the games, and the work required to go from solid to expert is a lot, for relatively minimal improvement. I do intend to keep playing mixed game tournaments though, including the $50K player's championship at WSOP this summer.

To get the year started I am doing my usual fuck winter in Canada trip:

Jan 5-11: PCA in Bahamas

Jan 12-14: Niagara Falls $5k event.

Jan 17-Feb 23: Australia for Aussie Millions in Melbourne, ANZPT Adelaide and general awesomeness.

Feb 24-Mar 3: LA Poker Classic main event and high roller.

After that my live schedule will likely be pretty light until the WSOP. The only tournament I'll be playing for sure is the $25k WPT Championship at Bellagio in mid-April. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone reading this! Let's hope I have a lot to write about in 2010.

Mike