When I first heard of Russ, I was surprised he didn't try the PUA shit, but as the size of his ego became apparent, I understood why he never got into that. He thinks he's irresistible except for his face so why would he need help to impress a girl?
I think he does see himself as some sort of sugar daddy and that's coupled with his delusion that he's the only person who's nice to hookers. I don't think he grasps how hilariously out of his depth he is. I remember he expected Ariana Grande, a woman worth millions who has clothes made especially for her to be impressed by his cheap ratty suit. He sends girls cheap gift cards and expects a relationship out of it. There are escorts who have fucking houses bought for them by their clients and they don't get a relationship. I think my favorite instance of reality intruding into his fantasy was when he booked a hooker at one of the brothels and seriously thought that meant they were in a relationship and he started threatening all the guys on her Facebook. He seems very fuzzy on how prostitution actually works. He's said in the past it's how he dates and he seems to think the girls are auditioning for the role of his girlfriend. I think that's why he went so nuts over Erika. Here's a woman who's talking to him for free! She must want a boyfriend, why else would she be talking to him? When she didn't follow the script, he went bonkers.