The Spring Championship of Online Poker (SCOOP) started on PokerStars last weekend. WCOOP came a little too soon after we welcomed our first child into the world, so SCOOP is my first opportunity to put in some serious volume in a big series for a while.
And I love SCOOP.
In 2021 I won my first ever COOP in the $109 NLHE Deep Stacks tournament.
I also love having loads to study at the end of the series so I can make huge improvements to my game for the next big series.
Today I want to show you a simple tool and method that makes knowing what to study so much easier.
Let's dive in...
Why not just use tags/mark hands?
Some sites like PokerStars and 888 let you tag marked hands as you play using tracking softawre like PokerTracker 4 or Holdem Manager 3. If you play on those sites, then I recommend marking hands as you play and then spending 5-10 minutes at the end of your session to categorise those hands, as I discussed in OTB #022: My 5-Step System for Improving Your Poker Game Faster Off-The-Felt.
But if you play on a site like GG, Party or Unibet then you can't use the software to mark those hands.
Instead, you're going to need something to capture screenshots instead.
Also, sometimes it's just easier to screenshot the exact spot, e.g. facing a 3-bet jam with 12 left, than it is to tag it and then wonder why you marked the hand in the first place because there's no context.
Introducing: Snipping Tool
Snipping Tool lets you capture screenshots when you play. Not only that, you can also record short videos if you want to record the replayer rather than just take a single shot.
During your session you'll start to amass a folder of screenshots like this:
Don't just turn off the computer
At the end of your session, it's easy to just bust your final tournament and immediately turn off your computer. Instead, I recommend spending some time organising your screenshot folder (and your marked hands).
On Sunday I took over 50 screenshots of spots I was either unsure of or had some questions about.
What you'll soon realise though is that it's a whole mismash of spots, not organised and while you could just go through each screenshot in turn when you want to study, your future self will thank you if you spend some time organising them at the end of your playing session.
You'll then know exactly what you need to work on next time you study.
I created folders for the different spots as I went, like this:
Now while this takes some time the first time you do it, your next post-session will be a lot easier because you can open the picture, see what kind of spot it is and then add it to the appropriate folder. If it's a spot you don't have a folder for yet, then you just create one.
As you go through this process, you'll start to notice a specific area of your game that requires work.
How?
By seeing which folder has the most screenshots in it.
And as you play more sessions and those folders get filled even more, patterns will emerge giving you a great starting point for your study.
Can you guess which folder has the most screenshots in for me?
PKO!
So I know that next time I study, I'm going to be focusing on PKOs (Progressive Knockouts).
Summary
At the end of your session you want to have a clear idea of what to study next.
When you start your session, do this:
Create a new folder (or open the existing one that you want to add to)
Open Snipping Tool
Save screenshots as you play
At the end of your session do this:
Open each picture and create a folder for it
Add all pictures to the relevant folders
See which folder has the most pictures in it
Make that the focus of your next study session
That's it for this week.
See you next time.
Whenever you're ready, here's how I can help you:
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