As the new year begins, people are beginning to think about their goals for 2010 and, in this instance, the next decade. Generally, people have a hard time following through with their New Year’s resolutions after the first or second week of January, but there are a few poker players out there who have set goals for 2010 and seem intent on seeing them through to completion.
One such goal-setter is Team PokerStars Pro member Daniel Negreanu. He dedicated an entire blog entry to his eight poker goals for the year. Several center on moving up or maintaining his spot on various records lists, including all-time money earners and most World Series of Poker (WSOP) cashes. Negreanu currently holds the top spot on the all-time money earners list with $12,427,047, but Phil Ivey is nipping at his heels with $12,236,714. As for career WSOP cashes, Negreanu is currently 16th on that list with 43 cashes. In his blog, the poker pro said he’d like to pass Mike Sexton and Thor Hansen to move up to 12th, but thinks he’ll have to rack up around seven cashes in order to achieve his goal.
He also set his sights on a number of accolades, including two WSOP bracelets and a win on one of the major poker tours. Negreanu currently has two World Poker Tour (WPT) titles and four WSOP bracelets to his credit, but is clamoring for more. He is also looking to move up in stakes in his personal challenge to turn $10 into $100,000. Negreanu has worked his way up to the $0.10/$0.25 level and has a bankroll of just under $200, but he hopes to be up to $3/$6 by the time 2011 rolls around.
Full Tilt Red Pro Jeff Madsen’s goals for 2010 may not be as detailed as Negreanu’s, but a recent post in his PokerRoad blog indicated some of the things he’d like to accomplish in the next 365 days: “This year, I will figure out if being single is something I should stick to, I’ll finish my poker book like I say every year, I will improve my rapping hopefully, win a bracelet or WPT or both hopefully… In the end, I hope it just goes as well as it can. It’s all love,” wrote Madsen.
Fans of Madsen’s video blogs were likely happy to hear that the 24 year-old is still focused on his rhyming skills, as his raps have developed a loyal following among poker fans. His most recent installment featured a guest appearance from poker pro Layne Flack and Madsen indicated that the new “guest format” might be something he’ll be doing again in the future.
“Hollywood” Dave Stann also set some goals for the year in his blog, both personal and professional. In addition to taking better care of himself, Stann is also aiming to reduce his stress levels and increase his confidence in 2010.
Not everyone is keen on making New Year’s promises and setting goals for the next decade, though. Online poker pro Jon Wein told Poker News Daily that he hasn’t made any resolutions for the new year. UB.com pro Eric “basebaldy” Baldwin isn’t looking towards 2010 just yet either, as he is still relishing his achievements in 2009, including being named CardPlayer Magazine’s Player of the Year. Baldwin posted his thoughts on his Twitter account (@basebaldy) early Thursday morning: “Can we run 2009 again at midnight please? What a great year. Excited to make 2010 just as fun.”
