bankroll

[supercoolmancool]

How much money should I save up before I move to Vegas to go pro, taking into account the cost of living, unexpected expenses, ect.?

[shadroch]

Offhand,if you are not planning on working,I'd suggest a minimum of six months expenses-rent,food,transportation,ect,ect.That would be about $5,000.Then whatever your BR is.I'd think that would be a minimum of $15,000.
But if you were to go with a plan to work part-time and apply money towards your expenses,you might get away with about $18,000 in total.But you'd have no saftey net.

[supercoolmancool]

Thanks. That sounds like incredible advice. Is it safe to say that everyone agrees with Shadroch?

[ihate17]

Originally Posted by supercoolmancool

Thanks. That sounds like incredible advice. Is it safe to say that everyone agrees with Shadroch?

$5,000 for 6 month's expenses? You might be able to get most of your meals comped, but do a web check on rents in Vegas and of course you will need a car to go from casino to casino because as a pro, staying in one place too long can be dangerous. The nice thing about Vegas is that there are so many casinos but in your case auto expenses must be figured in. Taking from your bankroll to pay your bills will not help you reach your goal.

With a $15,000 bankroll, what kind of bet spread and what kind of max bet are you figuring on? Have you run a computer sim showing how much your expected win per hour will be and how many hours do you plan to play per week or month? I honestly do not think that you can expect to make an average of over $1,000 per month unless you take a high risk on your bankroll and or play a huge amount of hours.
Do you have a plan B in case you run into negative variance early on? In other words a job lined up. A job will cut into your play hours but will also cover some of your overhead and perhaps make your bankroll replentisable.

ihate17

[supercoolmancool]

There are plenty of $500 apartments and I would be sharing it with a roomate so that's like $250 per month. That's $1500 for rent for 6 months. That leaves $3500 for transportation costs. that should cover it.
With a $15,000 bankroll I would be making a lot per hour. I don't know how much because it would depend on the game. I could probably afford 2 hands of $100 for a max bet. If my EV was only $25 per hour than I would only have to work 40 hours per month to average $1000 per month. My EV will be higher and I will play more hours. If I ran into negative variance I would resize my bet. If didn't have enough money to survive then I would just move back home with my parents.
Does this sound like a good idea to anyone?
What do I need to do to make this dream a reality?

[Kasi]

Originally Posted by supercoolmancool

With a $15,000 bankroll I would be making a lot per hour. I don't know how much because it would depend on the game. I could probably afford 2 hands of $100 for a max bet.

Have u ever counted a deck in your life?

"probably".. "depends on the game" resizing after negative variance. Way too vague.

You better pick a game, a count system, and a defined betting ramp for starters.

Not that a $15K roll wouldn't be fine but, I don't know, you make me nervous.

Don't sign a 1 year lease on an apt. Hope your parents take you back.

[Jeff25]

Originally Posted by supercoolmancool

What do I need to do to make this dream a reality?

Some darn good cover! They will be quick to give you the boot. I was unprepared for my first trip to Vegas and as a result was backed-off from 4 casinos, 3 within 20 mins. The 4th back-off was extended to a sister property, I was told I couldn't play even though I was just sitting at a table watching a friend play.

[WumpieJr]

I'm building a new experimental apparatus for testing interactions between the materials we make and different gasses. In the planning stages of the apparatus, my boss said "measure out all of the tubing you'll need and buy three times that amount." Turns out I used between 2 and 3 times what I thought needed due to mistakes, last minute changes, etc, so that was perfect.

I feel the same lesson could apply here.

[supercoolmancool]

Originally Posted by Kasi

Have u ever counted a deck in your life?

I have about 40 hours of counting experience with KO.

Originally Posted by Kasi

"probably".. "depends on the game" resizing after negative variance. Way too vague.

Those kinds of things you have to deal with when they come up. I've never been to Vegas so I don't really know exactly what they got. I really plan on having just a $100 max bet and then I'll decide about wonging, spreading, units ect on the fly in game. That's the only way. You have to react to those things and not plan ahead. I'm flexible. Ready for anything.

Originally Posted by Kasi

You better pick a game, a count system, and a defined betting ramp for starters.

Those things are too random. I plan to use KO for counting and Hi Lo for advanced techniques. I hardly plan on counting at all. Since I'll live in Vegas I can bet on sports too. I'm really a jack of all trades. I'm really good at everything.

Originally Posted by Kasi

Not that a $15K roll wouldn't be fine but, I don't know, you make me nervous.

Don't sign a 1 year lease on an apt. Hope your parents take you back.

Everything I touch turns to gold. I guess I don't need to prove myself here but hey I'm the real deal if there ever was one.

Originally Posted by Jeff25

Some darn good cover! They will be quick to give you the boot. I was unprepared for my first trip to Vegas and as a result was backed-off from 4 casinos, 3 within 20 mins. The 4th back-off was extended to a sister property, I was told I couldn't play even though I was just sitting at a table watching a friend play.

I'm prepared for cover. They will never catch me. They have no chance. Cover was my original fear. That was the only thing that stopped me from being pro other than being under 21. But cover is no longer a concern. I've eliminated it.

[EasyRhino]

SCMC, I'm not sure how to take your response. I mean, it was funny, but how intentionally? Also, you got 86'd from that one joint in Cowlick or wherever, right? What did you learn from that?

Jeff, care to share what went wrong in your backoffs? 20 minutes is... pretty damn awesome. I've only managed to cut it down to 40 minutes so far, and that was when I was moving my lips while counting.

Anyway, if I was going to turn pro, I'd want to a) get a lot better at my skills, and b) have $20-$25000 bankroll. Of course, I'm older and kind of risk-averse, and I wouldn't want to share a $500 apartment (if Vegas prices are anything like CA prices, that would be a crackhouse).

But hey, $15000, working car, and willingness to live like an ascetic monk, are probably the minumum to give it a shot. Parents to back you up is a good idea.

Since risk of ruin would take a more literal meaning with this endeavor, you really want to have a firmer idea of what you're running into, and have a known gameplan in advance. Especially know your betting limits before you go into a store, and stick to them in a disciplined fashion. Sure, you can adapt after each session, but every time I go into a casino planning on "winging it", I do something stupid that costs me money.