2010 Poker Goals
Currently my idea for 2010 is to achieve the status of Supernova Elite, playing mainly Fixed Limit Texas Hold’em Full Ring Cash Games ranging from $2/4 till $15/30, 20-24 tables at the same time. Supernova Elite is the highest VIP status on PokerStars, in 2007 only 82 players achieved this status. In 2008 already 147 people made it to Supernova Elite and in 2009 there were 209.
A VIP status doesn’t tell anything about the amount of money a poker player wins on the tables. It only concerns the amount of rake paid by each player. The importance of the VIP status is not the title itself, but the benefits that come along with it. If you start the year as Supernova and reach the title of Supernova Elite by the end of the calender year, you are entitled to the following benefits:
- $29.800 Milestone Cash Credit & $1.000 in Stellar Rewards.
- 3.500.000 FPP (-400.000 FPP needed for the Milestone Cash Credits), worth $49.600.
- Monthly & Quarterly VIP Tourneys.
- You earn 5 FPP credits for every 1 VPP earned, this is in stead of the normal 3,5 multiplier you receive as Supernova. Calculating a linear pace for the year after you achieve Supernova Elite, this is worth another $18.000 during that year.
- A WCOOP main event Ticket, $5.200.
- You may also choose one of the following two options:
- Option A: Any two packages from PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, WSOP Main Event, EPT Monte Carlo, APPT Sydney.
- Option B: Any one of the above packages plus $10,000.
When picking option 2, the total amount of cash value for Supernova Elite in 2010 is $90.400. Since the EPT Monte Carlo has the most value, it’s an easy pick. Possibly I will decide to go for option 1 and also play the WSOP Main Event, but more likely the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Bahamas. These packages include the tournament buy-in ($10.000+), hotel accommodation and some spending money.
If I get all this, playing break-even poker would be okay, since the benefits of reaching Supernova Elite are enough to make up for the time invested to reach it. I would not be happy playing only break-even, since during 2009 I’ve showed that I can play up to 24 tables, while still winning money. Since the main focus will be to achieve the Supernova Elite status, I won’t set any goals for making profit. Playing break-even would be good enough.
Due to the changes PokerStars has made, it will be harder to achieve SNE for LHE FR grinders then this year. The $2/$4 VPP/Hand numbers have dropped by 19%. All the higher stake numbers are almost the same, but I expect I need to at least play an X amount of hands on $2/$4, since there will not always be 20/24 tables $3/$6 and up. Currently there are enough tables $3/$6 and higher, but starting January this will probably go down again, since a lot of people are currently chasing Supernova, Milestones Bonuses and Supernova Elite, while January people will go back in limits & number of tables. I’ve seen this last year, so I expect the same for this year. When I have to mix in a lot of $2/$4, I doubt I will grind enough VPP’s/Hour to make it anywhere close.
The VIP program changes are not bad for high volume players. Replacing the weekly freeroll by a quarterly freeroll is a big plus, since hardly anybody likes to play every week on saturday evening. By adding $1.000 in Stellar Rewards and $200 extra for the 100.000 milestone bonus, the value has increased by $1.200. They have also redone the milestone bonus structure, but this doesn’t give any extra value. There is an extra milestone bonus at the 700.000 level, and in total $800 extra (discounting the already named $200 at 100.000), but you have to pay 50.000 FPP extra, which is also worth $800, so no money is really added there. Still I like the VPP changes, as more money is given to lower volume players, which will give an overall boost to the amount of volume these people will play. “Lower” volume players are not necessarily bad players, but at least some of the money will end up at spots where I can benefit.
The way things are now, I will do a test run during January to see if Supernova Elite is indeed achievable. I’m hoping to grind out at least 100.000 VPP for the month, which will put me ahead of pace. If there are still enough tables left, my VPP/Hour doesn’t drop to much and I think it’s humanly possible for me to put in the amount of hours needed to reach Supernova Elite, I will have an official go for the rest of the year. If not, I will adjust my goals to reach another achievable milestone, which can still be very profitable, it might only sound less appealing.
A rough breakdown of the amount of VPP required by Day/Week/Month:
- VPP/Day (365 Days): 2.740
- VPP/Week (52,14 Weeks): 19.178
- VPP/Week (45 Weeks): 22.222
- VPP/Month (12 Months): 83.333
I calculate to play around 45 weeks in 2010, leaving 5 weeks for holiday and 2,14 for being sick. A breakdown of the amount of hours required estimated on 900 VPP/Hour:
- Hours/Day (365 Days): 3,0
- Hours/Week (52,14 Weeks): 21,3
- Hours/Week (45 Weeks): 24,7
- Hours/Month (12 Months): 92,6
- Hours/Year (1 Year): 1111,1
Since I’m still working 24 hours a week next to playing poker, putting in 24,7 hours a week isn’t as easy as it looks. The hard part is not to put in those hours during a week, it’s to do it week after week, until the end of the year.
If you want more information about PokerStars and/or running for Supernova Elite, check out the following websites:
