Is Hiring a poker coach worth it?

MagikMunkey

MagikMunkey

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CA
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Hey everyone,
Not sure if this is the spot to be posting or not but is it actually worth it to hire a poker coach? I would consider myself an advanced player and I consistently place in the top 10% of low stakes MTT's, that being said I'm finding that just after the bubble is where i generally flame out. I really want to start placing FT's and get into the higher stakes tournaments but I'm feeling stuck and overwhelmed with the sheer amount of videos and information out there. I also find it incredibly difficult to "just pick something to study" or have a direction. This is where I got the idea of hiring a coach or talking to a coach and maybe give my career some direction.
So is it actually worth it or is there something else I can do possibly free to help give me some direction and fix my leaks?

Thanks everyone!!
 
I think a good coach could help, especially if you’re stuck and don’t know which leaks to study first.
 
Das991992 said:
I think a good coach could help, especially if you’re stuck and don’t know which leaks to study first.
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who or where would you recommend finding one? lol
 
A coach can help, and you've already got a place to start, you keep going out just after the bubble. I'd go through the hands where you busted there and the ones just before, with your stack size and the payouts in mind, and if you do hire someone, bring him those hands.
 
There are now so many ways to learn and find out your leaks online, using AI to a certain extent, programs like GTO Wizard etc. If all these avenues don't help first then it might be worth finding a coach. But just know there are pitfalls with coaches. They will teach you their style of playing as that's what works for them, so if you can't adapt, or your learning style can't sync with their teaching style, you might just be wasting more money and time.
 
JudgeDJ said:
y will teach you their style of playing as that's what works for them, so if you can't adapt, or your learning style can't sync with their teaching style, you might just be wasting more money and time.
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thank you, its more of i don't know where to start and when i try to dive into fixing my leaks ect i get overwhelmed quickly. was thinking if someone could point me in a direction to start possibly and just go from there.
 
MagikMunkey said:
thank you, its more of i don't know where to start and when i try to dive into fixing my leaks ect i get overwhelmed quickly. was thinking if someone could point me in a direction to start possibly and just go from there.
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A good start would be potentially using AI, they aren't the best coach, however it's a relatively cheap alternative to having a structured plan on what to learn at your level. If you already have an AI subscription then it's free. You just need to create a project, explain to the AI that it's a poker coach, then in your first chat explain everything you know already, how much you've played, are you losing, wining. etc. The more info you give it the better, then ask it to come up with a structured plan on what you should be learning on a weekly basis.

I did this a while back and I'm still using it today, it's not perfect, but it will definitely point out the right things you should be learning on your level.
 
JudgeDJ said:
There are now so many ways to learn and find out your leaks online, using AI to a certain extent, programs like GTO Wizard etc. If all these avenues don't help first then it might be worth finding a coach. But just know there are pitfalls with coaches. They will teach you their style of playing as that's what works for them, so if you can't adapt, or your learning style can't sync with their teaching style, you might just be wasting more money and time.
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good points
 
MagikMunkey said:
Hey everyone,
Not sure if this is the spot to be posting or not but is it actually worth it to hire a poker coach? I would consider myself an advanced player and I consistently place in the top 10% of low stakes MTT's, that being said I'm finding that just after the bubble is where i generally flame out. I really want to start placing FT's and get into the higher stakes tournaments but I'm feeling stuck and overwhelmed with the sheer amount of videos and information out there. I also find it incredibly difficult to "just pick something to study" or have a direction. This is where I got the idea of hiring a coach or talking to a coach and maybe give my career some direction.
So is it actually worth it or is there something else I can do possibly free to help give me some direction and fix my leaks?

Thanks everyone!!
Click to expand...
If you have the money for a coach you are the perfect candidate. a coach can get you headed in the right direction very quickly.

Easy tip on what to do first. Study your big pot hands and your bust outs first that is where your largest leaks are always. Use a hand tracker or take notes.then use free GTO Wizard one hand per day post flop and look at those hands.

Do not try to fix multiple issues -start with the biggest errors and fix those one at a time.

🤔🤓
 
I cant say, if a coach is the right solution for you or not, since I dont know you. What I can and will say though, is that I observed, that often people think they have a specific problem like in your case "flaming out after the bubble". But in reality it might be something entirely different. Or there is not even a problem at all other than a lack of understanding of the magnitude of variance in tournaments.

You play on GG Poker and WPT Global, and sadly the tracking of these two sites by sharkscope is limited. But they did track WPT Global for around 5 month, and during that time you only played 136 games, which is not much. Also of the last 8 games, which are the only ones, I can see, because you did not opt in, around half of them were satellites. And this obviously makes it even more difficult to reach final tables, because now we are only talking about maybe 10-15 regular tournaments per month.

Sharkscope also give you an ability rating of just 50, which is pretty low. I am no idea, how this number is calculated, but usually this would be an indication of a losing player. So I think, you could improve your results a lot by studying with focus on general topics like preflop push/fold spots, C-betting, barreling turns, when to play draws aggressively or passively, when to bluff catch on the river and so on and so forth. And then also put in much more volume. If you did not take it already, I recommend this course.


I also recommend this free tool to get familiar with variance in poker:

www.primedope.com

Tournament Variance Calculator: MTT Downswings & Bankroll | PrimeDope

Simulate your tournament poker results. See realistic downswings at your ROI, calculate how many buy-ins you need, and test whether your results are statistically significant.
www.primedope.com www.primedope.com
 
Hiring a coach is for those who are serious about playing for profit and already have a solid foundation. Paying someone to teach you the basics is just a waste of money.I also recommend starting to play at the casino and making friends with other players who are better than you. It's helpful to have a friend or group of people you can just trade hands with.
 
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dreamer13 said:
Hiring a coach is for those who are serious about playing for profit and already have a solid foundation. Paying someone to teach you the basics is just a waste of money.
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Completely agree. There are also solutions in between passive learning and a coach. Like interactive training courses, where you are put through a number of situations and have to make a decision, before the "correct" answer is revealed. Even the CC 30 day course has a small element of this with its "exam" hands. And I would definitely try some of that before hiring a coach. I think, the main point is, there is no fast and easy way to become a winning poker player. Its takes time and effort both on and away from the tables. Its not enough to watch a few clickbait title Youtube vidoes telling you to "just do this and you will win".
 
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