As you’ve no doubt heard by now, WCGRider is knee-deep in a ridiculous prop bet. His goal is to win $10,000 in 30 days of online poker at PokerStars.

This will all be done at 10¢/25¢ or $25 web cam, not only do they think he can do it, he is rapidly becoming more popular on Justin.tv than Sarahisnifty.

Twelve days in and the grinding is continuing at a grueling pace. After a soul-crushing four-day break-even stretch, WCGRider is back on track and at least close to on pace.

Somehow in the middle of 24-tabling WCGRider took some time to catch up with PokerListings for an update and his thoughts on the bet so far.

Can WCGRider Win $10,000 in 30 Days?

Daniel Skolovy: First, what are your regular stakes?

WCGRider: Well up until about March I was playing primarily $200 No-Limit full ring. Then I went pro at the beginning of March. I dropped out of UNCW and I had a $3,000 bankroll when I was finally all set up.

I grinded $100 NL full ring, then $200 NL full ring before switching to six-max, and I eventually moved to MSNL in late May, playing as high as $5/$10 NL.

DS: Cool, and what made you decide to do this challenge?

WCGRider: I wanted to make a name for myself and also thought it was going to be much less variance than like $5/$10.

DS: How is “the quarter” ($25 NL) compared to your expectations?

WCGRider: Well for the first week, games were wayyyyy tighter than I had anticipated. However over the past couple days, not as much so. It might be related to the hours I am playing.

DS: How many hours are you playing on average?

WCGRider: I played 100.05 according to PokerTracker in the first week. Or around 14.4 hours a day on average.

DS: How many hands do you expect to have played by the end of the month?

WCGRider: The hand amounts changed since the start of the challenge because I switched to playing more normal speed tables.

DS: It will likely be around 450-500k by the end?

WCGRider: Yeah; I’ve played almost 200k so far I’d imagine. Not exactly sure.

DS: How many FPPs do you expect to make and what do you plan on doing with them? 10,000 leather jackets?

WCGRider: Hmmm, FPPs. I am expecting to make between 2-3 $1,500 bonuses. [Each bonus is worth 100,000 FPPs and you must be a Supernova-level player to be eligible to claim.]

DS: How has this affected your sleeping/eating patterns?

WCGRider: Well, for the first week I got very very little sleep. When I would lie down there was just too much on my mind to relax.

DS: What has the hardest part been so far?

WCGRider: The psychological aspect, by far.

DS: Your four break-even days for example must have been extremely trying mentally.

WCGRider: Yeah. Well here is what happens to you. You go on a losing stretch for whatever reason and then you realize you can’t afford to do that. Like with a challenge like this there just isn’t time for a lengthy swong. So you become desperate. It’s like well what am I doing wrong?

DS: Did you start questioning your play?

WCGRider: Yup, totally. My play in one stretch of 10k hands to the next 10k hands can be totally radically different.

DS: How did you overcome that?

WCGRider: Well currently I decided I just need volume. Because to win the bet I need like 2.5 PTBB/100 if I play 25k hands a day. 3PTBB/100 if I play less. Regardless though it is achievable.

If I take too much time analyzing my play like I started to do it just adds more pressure and more pressure makes it harder to win. So I’m gonna be playing at least 20k hands a day. Regardless.

DS: Did you underestimate the physical/mental toll that this bet has taken on you?

WCGRider: Yeah, for sure. Well it depends, on days 1 and 2 I felt fine. Day 3 I started going bad so I made radical changes to my game. Day 4 didn’t get going either because I was playing so weird. Day 5 rolls around and there is all this pressure from having three break-even days and now I am behind.

So the pressure adds up and I am having trouble sleeping. It just made things more difficult. I solidly believe that if I stayed ahead of pace the whole time I would be completely fine mentally. But I have had five losing days give or take in the first 11.

DS: And physically? Are you feeling overtired?

WCGRider: Physically is whatever; I’m [normally] at my computer all day anyway.

DS: lol, how many energy drinks do you average a day?

WCGRider: Day 1-5, like 3-6. I am cutting back heavily though.

DS: I have noticed more water and Gatorade type drinks lately on the web cam.

WCGRider: Yeah I am trying to. Helps me sleep better. I predict near the end I will get back to more energy drinks to bring it home.

DS: It seems like this challenge has really brought the 2+2 community together. Why do you think that is?

WCGRider: Yeah. Well when something like this happens everyone not only has an opinion on it, but a strong one. So everyone wants to get their word in. Also when it comes to these types of challenges almost everyone fails – costanza_g, runhot, etc.

DS: It seems like the majority of players are behind you. Why do you think that is, and how does it feel to have a fan club?

WCGRider: Haha it’s nice to have support. Sometimes you just gotta break it all off. You know dance around, sing, something, just to break the pressure.

DS: I think people generally want to see you succeed.

WCGRider: This is the type of thing that defines people’s lives IMO.

DS: Awesome; so how do you feel about your chances at this point in the challenge?

WCGRider: I feel like I am ready to get to work and get back on pace.

DS: I know you hate people asking constantly where you are at, but can you ballpark it for me as of now?

WCGRider: I am up like 400 today so…

DS: Around 3,200 total?

WCGRider: 3,100-3,200 imo (as of halfway through Day 11).

DS: Do you have any regrets? and if you could do it all over would you?

WCGRider: My only regret is I did not realize what the chance of losing something like this would feel like. My entire family found out about this bet so if I lose, “I lost 20k gambling” will be the story.

On day 5 when I was two days behind pace and breaking even I cannot even begin to explain what a burden that was. You just can’t imagine it. I have not felt like that since I lost the first deposit I ever made for a whopping $30.

DS: Well you have so much invested in this challenge – time, money, emotional energy, etc. – it’s completely understandable. What are the ramifications if you do lose this bet? Is it like time to get a day job? Or will you be able to bounce back?

WCGRider: I am a college dropout with zero work history. What am I going to do honestly? Lol but since going pro with a $3,000 roll I have made $50,000 to $60,000 since March. If I lose I will still have $40,000. I will be able to play $2/$4 NL and $3/$6 and move back up to $5/$10 when the time is right.

DS: Awesome. Well, thank you for your time. I’ll let you get back to stacking donks.

WCGRider: I’ve been doing it this entire time, lol.

DS: Anything else to say in closing?

WCGRider: Yeah, no matter what people say or how bleak it looks, never stop fighting… that’s what makes you a legend forever.

DS: Great. Thanks Doug and good luck.

WCGRider: No problem.