T. Boone Pickens, the legendary oilman and hedge fund manager, is perhaps better known today as a leading advocate for U.S. energy independence. Maybe that’s not such a bad thing.

Pickens’ BP Capital has seen its hedge funds shed about $1 billion this year, costing Pickens himself $270 million that could have been spent on more television commercials flogging “the Pickens Plan.” The firm’s commodity fund, which started the year with $600 million, is down 84% through August, while its $2 billion energy stock fund is down almost 30%.

“It’s my toughest run in 10 years,” Pickens, the author of The First Billion is the Hardest, said. “We missed the turn in the market, and there’s nothing fun about it.”

But Pickens is optimistic that the funds, which have shifted into a neutral stance to minimize losses, can turn things around.

“Oil likely will finish the year around $120 or $125 a barrel,” he said.