Long Weekend Cost Me the Entry, But Not the Edge
Ahoy there Trader! ⚓️
It’s Phil…
Some days you catch it. Some days you don’t.
That’s the reality of trading with rules – and Tuesday was a no-cigar kind of day. But after a beach break, a hospital detour, and a futures pop that waited for no one… I’m fine with it.
📉 SPX’s story is only half the plot.
You’ve seen the SPX, but you’re missing the macro moves, crypto chaos, and the real reason gold’s stealing the spotlight..
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SPX Market Briefing
We opened Tuesday with a bang, but not a signal.
The first bar of the session clocked in at 5.4% range (I checked). Close enough to raise an eyebrow – but not enough to trigger the pulse bar we needed for entry. So, I watched it move. That’s part of the game.
What’s more interesting is what’s now formed on the daily chart: a picture-perfect island reversal. These are rare and powerful when they play out – a stranded gap-down followed by a gap-up with no overlap. Think of it as the market dropping its bags and turning heel.
This puts 5940-ish on the map for daily swing traders. A push above that could start a proper breakout cascade.
But here’s the twist…
Internals like the ADD (Advance-Decline) are now at bullish extremes. That usually means the rubber band is stretched – so I’m watching for a short-term pullback before the big break.
As of now, I’m flat. No trade, no stress. Let the setup come to me. That’s the benefit of the system – I don’t chase, I just respond.
Expert Insights:
Mistake: Jumping in when a setup is “close enough.”
Why it hurts: It breaks the system and invites regret.
AntiVestor fix: If the pulse bar needs 5% and we get 5.4%, we wait. That’s the discipline. And that’s what separates the system trader from the guesser.
Fun Fact
The term “island reversal” has nothing to do with palm trees – but it does describe a chart formation so isolated it looks like land in a sea of price gaps. Originally coined in the 1950s, the pattern’s power comes from its emotional impact: a sudden market U-turn that leaves late traders stranded on the wrong side.
Happy Trading,
Phil
📉 SPX’s story is only half the plot.
You’ve seen the SPX , but you’re missing the macro moves, crypto chaos, and the real reason gold’s stealing the spotlight..
⚡Get the daily newsletter – short, sharp, and brutally honest.