Dan Zanger – Turned $11,000 into $18 million in 18 months in around 1998 to 2000 during Internet boom. (164,000 % gain) Read this 2006 interview article
He actually hit $42 million in 23 months on a compounded basis and then lost half back in market correction.
In 2004 and 2005, he was up 400% on his capital in weak market.
In 2006, he made $20 million. He made most money from Google and Apple.
That kind of records are not luck. (He is still an active trader now in 2008)
He is a true believer of pattern trading. He spends hours and hours every day to search 1000s potential stocks by checking their patterns. His website is chartpattern.com
He was a swimming pool contractor making $50,000 a year before 1998. His heart was in stock trading. He spent many years studying patterns. He ran into crisis 3 times before he hit big in 1998 in Internet boom.
Swing trading has huge potential while day trading has limited potential.