Today we are speaking with Gordon, the founder, CEO and head coach of BPC. We met up with him to discuss some of the recent changes, the future of BPC, the state of the games today, and more.
In the past week or so, there have been many coaching sessions by guest coaches in the 6-max programs, which is a new addition to BPC.
BPC is constantly growing, and we are always on the lookout for things to improve, offer more to our students and the BPC community in general, and the addition of a few extra quality coaches to the 6-max programs is one of the things we implemented.
We picked only the best guys, who fit into our culture and systems well. One of our Micro coaches is our current Crusher student Lateralus. Alan Jackson is already working with us for quite some time now (he is the database scientist who checks our standard lines and takes care of our mega-million database to find the best lines), so he has been a part of the community before. Maintaining the continuity and our approach in coaching students is crucial, it’s why we are so successful.
So there will be more coaching sessions for the students in the future with the new coaches?
Yes. Nobody should ever be able to say that he did not get enough coaching. The students who work hard deserve extra attention. It’s one of the main reasons we brought on extra help on board. Long gone are the days when I was running BPC as a one-man show. Coaching 6-max students was one of the things I still could handle on my own, but the program is at a stage now when we can bring in a few great coaches to help us kick the bullshit out of the students ;).
In practice, this means, even more, coaching for the students, but of course also more work for those who can handle it and push higher and higher. There are certain requirements on how to prepare for coachings, and the students have to follow them 100%.
We don’t believe in serving the students all the answers on a plate. The student has to work for it himself. Rather than giving you a fish and feeding you for a day, we want to teach you how to fish yourself, so you can eat forever.
One of the coaches taking over some of the Micro session is Lateralus, currently in the Crusher program
Yes, that has always been the model at BPC. We do not only teach you how to make money at the tables, we are a great community and encourage students to get involved on many levels.
The coaching in the Heads up program is done by our best former students, for example, and has been so for quite a while.
Aleksandar »Lateralus« is a great guy and enthusiastic about helping other students. When I hear students emailing me stuff like “I just had a review session with Lateralus” (no money involved!), I knew this is somebody who loves teaching and reminded me a bit of myself. He already helped many guys who were struggling, and I’ve no doubt much more will find it very helpful to follow the advice of one of our own, who made the same steps before you.
Of course, I’m the first to say he still has to become a better player himself (although the last update was a 10+bb win rate at NL50) and that you can only help others when you were able to help yourself first. So keep on pushing Alex!
How does your role in BPC change with all of this?
Not that much. It’s true getting extra help will free some time on a daily basis for me, so I can focus even more on improving the quality of the program and focusing on its direction.
There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes where I can have an even bigger impact. Some things that can’t even be talked about, but have a big impact on the profitability and security for our players. If there is one thing that the outside world (and some “haters”) do not understand is the brainpower and enormous work and costs going into something that in the end looks “simple”.
We spend a lot of time thinking about improvements at BPC, for example, the big population analysis we do with our database expert Alan Jackson, to improve our lines and adapt constantly to the environment at the tables.
I will do less coaching on a daily basis, though I’m still doing video reviews and of course my door is always open to anybody who puts in the time and extra effort.
You mentioned population analysis. Reviewing the databases and seeing a lot of hands on many different sites, you have a good grasp on today’s games. What’s your opinion on the state of online poker, with all the recent changes at Pokerstars and other rooms as well?
I hear complaints about poker not being profitable anymore, “everybody is solid”, or “it’s not 2012 anymore”, and similar bullshit. It’s nonsense. Of course, things change, as in anything in life. But everybody being solid? I have to laugh at that. I see so many mistakes done even by our students – who still make lots of money despite the mistakes, btw! – that I KNOW there are thousands of idiots at the tables out there every day.
Just because some poker geek makes a GTO range for a paired board or whatever, doesn’t mean everybody is now unexploitable. That’s just bizarre to think like that. Most players will never hear or look into any of the advanced stuff. Out of those who do, most won’t bother to go past a few pages or a few videos. And out of the very few that remain, maybe a percentage point, some of them will really dominate the GTO stuff and become super good poker players, better than anyone was in 2012 before all these tools and theory was available, I guess.
So if you want to be the best in the world, yes, it’s gonna be harder than ever. But if you want to make money, it’s maybe easier than ever. Most people don’t care about the theory. They play because it’s exciting and fun. They will always do that, and it will always be profitable to play against them, if you put in the work yourself, of course.
People think you need to be a GTO master to make money at this game, which is complete nonsense. And the irony is most GTO “masters” make less money than our students, we checked it. I know real results, so the hype doesn’t fool me at all.
So you don’t think poker is dying, or HU poker is dying?
Of course not, quite the opposite. Those skeptics have been around forever. Every year I have been in poker people say this stuff. Just like people saying the economy goes down. Sure, about once in eight years they are right, but they are wrong 7 out of 8 times!
The people who keep improving and learn from mistakes in the “bad year” are those who are best to thrive in the good years.
It’s funny how people who made no money, now make 20k+/month playing HU. Then the poker economy drops by 20% and they make “only” 16k/month. Tough life! #Firstworldproblems
Part of the reality is, of course, acknowledging that things change and yes, recent changes on some sites did not make it easier on HU. So what?! I see the numbers, I know the potential.
More and more guys play online, USA is slowly but surely coming back, people play on mobile phones, tablets. I think there’s like 20 million regular Zynga poker players alone, and they already wanted to switch to real money games. We have Indian players in the program, who tell me the Indian poker boom is coming. China is next Brazil as well. These are huge countries with lots of people looking for fun ways to spend their money. Online poker is one of those ways.
Or look at technology. Don’t you think it’s ridiculous that people pay thousands of dollars every month (RAKE!!!) to play a card game on a software? Historically the price for software goes down and becomes a commodity. I don’t want to speculate too much, but tell me a reason why there won’t be a site tomorrow that charges 10Euro/month and no rake. Combine this with the rise of cryptocurrency and you can see the growth you have never imagined before. Yes, it’s not that easy, but I’m simply making a point.
Look, there is one point I want to stress on top of this. Speculating and whining is not very productive. What you learn at BPC is also something that is useful everywhere. My multimillionaire clients (the “rich businessmen”), normal students and part-time players with a full-time job regularly tell me that the poker knowledge at BPC is top notch. But what they most appreciate is the attitude and the secondary skills they have learned through working with us. I feel humbled when receiving compliments from clients (actually I should pay them…) who are so far ahead of myself in life.
The ultimate strength as a person is to not have to worry about what will happen next. Your goal should be to be SO STRONG that nothing can kill you.
And then you will know that no matter what happens, you will be prepared and willing to adapt if you have to. THAT is the ultimate strength and self-confidence people should aim for.
I know this was very long, but I always tell students that their biggest opponent is not the Villain who runs good, but the Villain between your own ears.
Last but not least, let’s talk about the coming BPC Poker Camp in Malta. These meetings are becoming legendary, what can we expect from this one?
Busted jet skis and go-karts! Lot’s of fun and hanging out with fellow poker grinders. We have some special things planned as well, which will be revealed later. One of them is our own poker tournament with lots of bragging rights attached.
The meeting won’t be as “serious” as the last one (you don’t have to wear suits), for those who don’t want it. In Dubrovnik, we went 100% hardcore. Work hard, play hard. This year we have a bigger community, so we will have something for everybody. And for those who want the hardcore experience, we have the Baller package.
Is the meeting open to anyone, or just your Coaching for Profits (CFP) students??
It’s for everybody who enjoys poker and wants to chill on the sunny poker paradise of Malta for a few days in the summer. You can also meet everybody in person that you have spent a lot of time online with over the year.
We already have non-CFP people booking their place, which is great to see, and another sign that we are growing and on the right path.
Thanks for the time, I know you have been telling me something in our last meetings about something you observed… wanna make it public?
With all the positive news and growth, there is also something I have to say. Many players today are weaklings and big time CUNTS.
I had players emailing me that they can’t play for the next week because the cat of their girlfriend is sick (NO JOKE!!!) or players showing me a 60k break-even graph and asking if they can move up to a higher limit.
This being one week after I coached them with 43 degrees fever, losing my voice in the process and being transported to a nearby hospital.
I wanna say to everybody: Push yourself harder! I see so many lazy people wasting their potential by pissing away their time for stupid things. And then they don’t do the EASY things which would really change their lives.
Even some of our students, it’s embarrassing. Most people think playing a few hours here and there is a lot. It’s nothing, ok. If you wanna make it, you gotta put in the time. Then it’s easy.
Don’t believe me, ask EVERYBODY who has made it big anywhere. Even if they talk the “balance crap”… they played 20hrs/day themselves before they became big. That’s just how things are.
Next, I love skiing. Did my first big mountain free-ride in the french alps. Another time I was skiing with a BPC partner and his wife and had to leave early because I had a coaching scheduled.
Ask yourself, what has to happen for you to miss a coaching? Your pussy getting sick (I’m talking about the cat of course!) or do you want success bad enough to not miss it even with a broken leg? The answer to this question is the answer to how your future will be.
So don’t be lazy, go after what you want. If you don’t know how to make it, join our programs, we will teach you. If you are already in the program, push harder. Now is the best time for you. With the new additions, there are more opportunities than ever to improve. So take advantage!
Last word, last thought for today?
Obsession is something good. Don’t let anybody hold you back. When the masses are against you, keep pushing. Later they will tell you how lucky and privileged you are!
Understand that real fun is not being lazy and being passive. Fun is doing something, working hard and then enjoying the fruits of your work!
Develop a sadomasochistic pleasure in beating others at the table and beating yourself at coaching.
Last, but not least: Be 100% honest with yourself and your results!
