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Doug Polk Takes His Rake and Goes Home After Completing Bankroll Challenge

Back in August 2016, Doug Polk announced his $100 to $10k bankroll challenge and after playing steadily for a while, Polk largely abandoned the challenge until the end of July. After deciding that the only thing he had left in poker to accomplish was the bankroll challenge, Polk decided to buckle down and on Wednesday, Polk ended up eclipsing the $10k mark, and confirmed what he had already hinted for a while in that he’s walking away from poker.

Two Years – $10k

A bankroll challenge that started two years ago has enjoyed ups and downs, but just as recently as August 4, Polk had dipped to less than $1,000, finishing the day at $921.

From that time through Tuesday, Polk managed to pull his way up to about $3,318. Originally starting at pure micro stakes and low stake tournaments, Polk moved up to NL100 and by the final day of the challenge, he decided to take some shots at NL200.

Things went well for Polk as a combination of running well along with some well-timed bluff allowed him to build his roll enough to allow him a shot at NL500.

The bankroll soared during this time and he was well over $9k. At this point, he decided to try and end the challenge, ultimately managing to push the bankroll to $10,100.

As the following Twitter links states, Doug came, he saw, and he finally won his $10k.

We came, we took a shot, we conquered pic.twitter.com/SoP7Khyldx

— Doug Polk (@DougPolkPoker) August 23, 2018

While the challenge was spread out over two years, the reality was that Polk only played a total of 58 days with varying session lengths. So in just under two months of actual play at low stakes online poker on WSOP.com in Las Vegas, Polk averaged a profit of $172.41 per day.

Polk Walks Away from the Game

When Polk announced that he was resuming the bankroll challenge, he hinted that he didn’t feel that there was much left for him to do in poker and that he was considering walking away. Following the completion of the bankroll challenge, Polk confirmed what most have been assuming for a while. Polk announced that he is bored with poker and that he will walk away to pursue other interests.

This isn’t exactly breaking news considering that Polk has played in only two poker tournaments all summer and the occasional cash game. His last live tournament cash was in September 2017 when he finished runner-up in Event #4 of the Poker Masters. Earlier in the summer, Polk won his second career bracelet in the One Drop High Roller at the 2017 WSOP.

For his career, Polk has over $9.4 million in live tournament earnings. He also has won millions online, being a high-stakes heads-up specialist for years prior to stepping back from the game to focus on other ventures including a Crypto YouTube channel that has enjoyed a tremendous following.

Like many poker pros that retire, Polk said he may still play in the occasional event. He also stated he will continue work on his training site, Upswing Poker. We can also safely assume we will hear a lot more from him in other ventures, and when Crypto goes on another run, he will probably be at the forefront of that rush.
Will Polk truly stay retired from poker? It’s hard to say. Some former pros monumentally fail in other life prospects and find their way back to poker. Others start getting the competitive itch and make their way back. Then there are others that find success away from poker and decide to stay away from the stress and constant grind of poker.

If I were to bet money on this, I’d bet against Polk staying away permanently – unless Bitcoin starts mooning, at which point “Crypto Doug” will continue to try and rake in those crypto profits – because more rake is better.

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