Jon-PokerVIP

goosfraba: Thank you for doing this Martin.

What tip,strategy. habit/routine did you implemented in your game that made you improve the most ?

A bunch of things! Nothing happened overnight but it's been a rather slow-going process over the years as I've gained more experience and had the pleasure to become close friends with other highly skilled professional players. I gain a lot of inspiration to my own game through them.

wallezzz: Hi Martin,
I have a question about how you learned and took your poker game to "the next level" from a beginner to a pro. Or was you just naturally good and just won and won. Or how did you develop your game? Did you example had a coach? or did you signed up to a poker training site? or did you reed books ect...

Best regards from a fellow swed wallezzz

I think it was a mix of everything. I definitely had some natural talent (I won almost every tournament I played in home games coming up, granted it could have just been variance) and that kinda inspired me to improve even more through books, forums, videos etc. I never had a coach but as I've mentioned I've learnt a lot being on the live tour surrounded by some of the best players in the world.

Today I'd recommend watching instructional videos on Run it Once and get involved in discussions on div. forums just to get your mindset right when trying to solve advanced poker problems.

Martin, thanks for taking the time! I really appreciate the values you represent and you're also the guy who inspired me to take on this journey and very soon we'll meet and be friends

To the questions:
- What does it take today in term of commitment and hours of playing/studying to go from amateur to top pro today?
- how many years to reach the top? what's the most efficient way to get there?
- How can we become good friends? how should I "approach" you?

What does it feel like to be a lot of players idol? I know you are a super modest guy but you really inspired a generation of players with your performance and many will try to imitate what you did and how you prepared for it.

What do you think the truth is about Tom Dwan? Where is he? Is he broke? Is he staked?

Back again with a question about mediation, I read back in the thread that you recommend mediation as a preparation before poker sessions.
And recently I have tried it out but the mediation I have done is just be quiet and focused on my breathing for like 5 minuts with no background sound or anything. And I have seen some result of that few times I have meditated before a poker session. And I'm trying to put in like 5 minuts meditation before every session.

But is there any other mediation/yoga that you recommend ? Like more physical yoga ? Also is there any special music or instructor that I can find online that you would recommend ? And how long do you recommend? Is 5 minuts enough or should it be like more of a 20-30 minuts session?

Best regards from wallezzz

- what would you advise an upcoming MTT pro to focus on? online or live play?

FriendOfMartin: Martin, thanks for taking the time! I really appreciate the values you represent and you're also the guy who inspired me to take on this journey and very soon we'll meet and be friends

To the questions:
- What does it take today in term of commitment and hours of playing/studying to go from amateur to top pro today?
- how many years to reach the top? what's the most efficient way to get there?
- How can we become good friends? how should I "approach" you?

Thanks!

It takes a lot more than it did a few years ago, that's for sure! It's hard to give an exakt figure because it strongly depends on your current skill level, what learning techniques works best for you (some improve better by playing while others benefit more by studying). If you aren't a pro already I'd tread very cautiously since the future of the game is so unstable. Keep your job/other income and play/study poker on the side as a hobby until you've showed a steady consistency in your results.

Sorry, I don't do play dates haha!

Jon-PokerVIP: What does it feel like to be a lot of players idol? I know you are a super modest guy but you really inspired a generation of players with your performance and many will try to imitate what you did and how you prepared for it.

It's really flattering and a huge motivator to keep performing on and off the tables!

StratoMan: What do you think the truth is about Tom Dwan? Where is he? Is he broke? Is he staked?

From what I hear he's been cleaning up in Macau these last 4-5 years.

wallezzz: Back again with a question about mediation, I read back in the thread that you recommend mediation as a preparation before poker sessions.
And recently I have tried it out but the mediation I have done is just be quiet and focused on my breathing for like 5 minuts with no background sound or anything. And I have seen some result of that few times I have meditated before a poker session. And I'm trying to put in like 5 minuts meditation before every session.

But is there any other mediation/yoga that you recommend ? Like more physical yoga ? Also is there any special music or instructor that I can find online that you would recommend ? And how long do you recommend? Is 5 minuts enough or should it be like more of a 20-30 minuts session?

Best regards from wallezzz

Check out an app called Headspace. They got a bunch of different "programs" depending on what you're looking to achieve (there's one for Performance which I currently use). I find it so much easier to commit when it's just 10-15 min with guidance. All you have to do is relax and follow the simple instructions.

For Yoga I've tried most variations. I don't really do it for psychical reasons but rather to calm my central nervous system and gain control over my breathing. I personally prefer Vinyasa but try different types until you've found what works best for you!

FriendOfMartin: - what would you advise an upcoming MTT pro to focus on? online or live play?

Mixture of both! Online is great for training but I find it gets one-sided after a while and it makes me want to test what I've learned vs live opponents.

Hey Martin,

Would you ever be interested in competing in any amateur or professional mma bouts?

Given that you focus mostly on big MTT Do you believe that you have an advantage over other pros that play cash and various other games?

Thanks for recommending the headspace ap & Bill Burr rules!

Are you granted free entry into future ME because your are a ME champ?

Austin.lee: Hey Martin,

Would you ever be interested in competing in any amateur or professional mma bouts?

Given that you focus mostly on big MTT Do you believe that you have an advantage over other pros that play cash and various other games?

Thanks for recommending the headspace ap & Bill Burr rules!

Not in the near future. Right now I'm just loving the training aspect of it and learning new skill forms. I'd probably do it if there was 0 risk of head trauma.

I think there's both up and downsides to focusing solely on MTTs. The biggest upside is that I'm able to go deeper into the strategical techniques of adjusting to the different stages of a tournament and never get mixed up with strategies which are better suited for cash games. The biggest downside is that you don't get as much experience or lay focus on playing really deep since most MTTs get shallow pretty quickly. At the same time it's far more important to be comfortable with a short stack since that's where the most costly mistakes are being made.

Yeah Burr is easily one of my favorite stand up comedians. Check out "F is for Family" on Netflix if you haven't already!

Austin.lee: Are you granted free entry into future ME because your are a ME champ?

Where is the bracelet? Could you take a picture of it for us?

How much do you charge for coaching? If you do coach people?

Jon-PokerVIP: Where is the bracelet? Could you take a picture of it for us?

It's in a safety box at the bank.

Attached Image

Bosse93: How much do you charge for coaching? If you do coach people?

$500-700/h depending on skill level. I believe there's better coaches/value available though.

Add your "Room Name" username and register with PokerVIP