How do you move from professional golf to full-time forex trading? In this episode of How To Trade It, Chris Pulver shares his unique journey from a golf professional that traveled the world to a successful Forex trader. He also talks about his long-term trading approach, how he makes decisions, and even different trades that he looks at. Don’t miss it!
How did @realchrispulver move from professional golfer to trader? Find out in this episode of How To Trade It! #stocks #stock #trading #StockMarket #Investing #DayTrading #StockPicks #forex #options Click To TweetSubscribe to How To Trade It
You’ll want to hear this episode if you are interested in…
- [1:36] Chris’s transition from professional golfer to trader
- [5:26] Trading Forex (and navigating the FIFO rule)
- [11:55] Taking a long-term approach to Forex
- [21:55] How Chris makes trading decisions
- [26:42] The recent moves on the US dollar
- [28:42] What Chris is looking at right now
- [32:06] How does inflation affect the dollar?
- [34:45] How to learn more from Chris Pulver
Chris’s transition from professional golfer to trader
Chris was in the golf business before trading. He was a PGA member who had played since he was 5. He taught golf all over the world. When in Miami, he worked with someone who came in every single afternoon. This man played golf every day. The guy happened to be a full-time Forex trader that managed 10 million dollars. Chris was like “I want to learn what you do and I’ll give you free golf lessons as long as I know you.” So Chris earned and saved as much as he could with golf to come back and trade with this gentleman. Two years later, he began trading full-time (and has been for 12+ years).
You have to trade your process and then the results will come, which I feel is similar to a golf swing. You’re working on your mechanics, the process, and making sure you swing right. Chris notes that the golf club doesn’t know who’s swinging it, but it will react based on cause and effect—just like trading.
Chris is a full-time currency trader with a stock account as well. He’s more passive in stocks because everyone has generated decent returns. But the more serious he got about Forex the more active he became in stocks as well. He’s incorporated both options and cryptocurrency trading into his portfolio. There’s always something that will give him a chance to make money and succeed. There’s a lot of waiting in trading. Chris’s goal is just to be profitable in the year. So he takes what good trades he can and he’s willing to hold and build positions.
Trading Forex (and navigating the FIFO rule)
The gentleman that introduced Chris to trading was a day trader. He traded the EUR-USD and would align the one-hour, 15-minute, and a three, two, and a one-minute chart. If the one-hour chart is bullish he’ll buy for that day. He traded 40–50 lots and made $4,000–$5,000 a day, risking about the same. He easily made $250,000 a year working three hours a day for four days a week. But that’s not how Chris trades. Why?
Chris met a friend of this guy who was a long-term Forex investor. He would take $100,000 and short the EUR-USD. He risked 10% of his account and went after long positions. Chris watched him turn that $100,000 into a $1.1 million-dollar win in 6 months. All he did was set it up. That’s how Chris decided he wanted to trade.
Chris builds a lot of small positions above and below the price. Chris points out that you want to work with a broker that allows you to close orders in a non-specific order who doesn’t adhere to the FIFO rule. The FIFO (first-in-first-out) rule states that the first trade you make must be closed first if you have more than one open trade of the same pair and size. It handcuffs traders and makes it difficult to manage positions. As a trader in the US, Chris uses OANDA because they don’t adhere to that rule. Another way to get around the FIFO rule is by changing your trade size.
How do you trade Forex and navigate the FIFO rule? @realchrispulver shares some strategies in this episode of How To Trade It! #stocks #stock #trading #StockMarket #Investing #DayTrading #StockPicks #forex #options Click To Tweet*Special offer available ONLY for listeners of the How to Trade it Podcast*
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Taking a long-term approach to Forex
Forex volatility has been down for the last few years or it comes in pockets of 2–4 weeks. So if Chris knows a trade will take a while to play out, he’ll buy where he wants to buy, sell where he wants to sell, and set profit levels he’s willing to hold for. He sticks to his original trading plan.
But when you commit to long-term plays, how do you protect yourself? Chris trades small positions and builds from micro-lots to mini lots to standard lots. His trade sizes are small enough that he can stomach fluctuations in the market.
In 2016, there was a flash-crash in the pound crosses. The pound was getting crushed. Chris notes that he got his butt kicked. He was long the GBP-AUD and went from a break-even trade to upside-down $30,000 overnight. But he stayed patient and held course for a week and got back near where he started, only taking a small loss. From what he’s seen, flash crashes aren’t uncommon but they’re usually in the direction of the trend.
The EUR went extremely high and then dropped low during the COVID pandemic. If you’re a long-term trader, you can withstand the volatility of flash crashes. Daily trading ranges were 600–1,000 pips. Chris changed his entire schedule to accommodate this and got up at 3 am to trade the London session. Once safety nets of central banks stepped up to the plate, things slowed back down.
How Chris makes trading decisions
Chris starts with higher time frames. He claims he is 90% technical and 10% macro and fundamental. At the end of the day, he sticks to the charts—and the higher time frames don’t fail him. Chris will then drill down to four-hour or one-hour charts. He looks for tops and bottoms around major levels. Chris believes there’s no better trade than placing a buy at support, it gets hit, and you’re managing profit. When traders can eliminate risk and let those profits run, the next phase is how to make more (and protect more profits).
He tries to catch the trend as it’s moving on. When the markets are extreme, he waits for confirmation and either sells or buys. But he’s terrible at letting profits run. He waited and watched hundreds of pips roll by and didn’t do anything. So he incorporated more automation to help him stay in trades and add on to them.
If Chris has overbought conditions, he wants to see if price and a momentum oscillator are disagreeing. If price makes a new high but your momentum makes a lower high, combined with overbought conditions, he’s ready for a top to form. If you go to a monthly, weekly, or daily chart it takes a lot for a market to get overbought or oversold. When it happens, there’s a decent reaction.
How does inflation affect the dollar? What trades is Chris looking at now? Listen to the whole episode to learn more!
How does @realchrispulver makes trading decisions in the #forex market? He shares some of his strategies in this episode of How To Trade It! #stocks #stock #trading #StockMarket #Investing #DayTrading #StockPicks #options Click To TweetResources & People Mentioned
Connect with Chris Pulver
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Disclaimer: Trading carries a high level of risk, and may not be suitable for all investors. Before deciding to invest you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite. The possibility exists that you could sustain a loss of some or all of your initial investment. Therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with foreign exchange trading, and seek advice from an independent financial advisor if you have any doubts.
