Psychology

[RiverstarsVictim]

I type this after just finishing a losing session. Not too bothered as I've had a great week where over a set amount of hands, I'm on 35 big blinds per 100. It's a cracking winrate but unsustainable. I obviously had a few big hands here and all my luck came at once. How do you play through the next amount of equivalent hands knowing you're not going to get the best of it for some while to come?

I know there's gonna be some replies saying I cant possibly "know" I wont get the best of it but I've played long enough to have instinct on these matters. Playing tight has seen me going 6000+ hands without winning a major pot. These are times where I really feel like giving up.

How do you play through these periods positively?

[RiverstarsVictim]

After just getting QQ stacked by K4 on a 434 flop I'm now further justified with my post. Up against 9 players fullring I can only hope to break even against this crap.

[Wyte22]

The problem with poker is that everything you do, doesn't sync in line with the results.

Your mind sees AA and thinks win!.....and when you get beat by 82o, your mind says "WTF?!?! WTF AND COOKIES!?"

If you ever try to apply logic to poker, you will drive yourself insane. You gotta train your mind to not see patterns that aren't there (your chances of hitting the OESD are the same as they were the first time you hit it, but you could miss the next 3!), and to realize that everything that happens in poker is often completely illogical and absent of sanity! Once you become at peace with this, the upswing and downswings.....and become at peace with the 35BB/100 and the -35BB/100 .........you can truly play thru anything without hindering yourself a psychologically donkey.

If you notice, tilt is not a playing problem but it rather a psychological problem that turns into a playing problem.

To be truly great at poker, you gotta win the mind game first! End of story!

[liladypokerpro]

Originally Posted by Wyte22 realize that everything that happens in poker is often completely illogical and absent of sanity!

That sounds like my job...I'm so fed up and pissed off and beside myself I just don't know what to do. Long story, won't go into it...but yeah your comment covers it in a nutshell...

As for the OP, I deal with the poker ups and downs pretty well for the most part...a lot better in fact than the rest of life...at least lately...

[PointerJake]

When I am in a slump I usually resort to this method of making money. I get into a cash game, and I play until I win one pot. When I am up a dollar or two or maybe 5, I leave the table and get into a sit n go with the free money. It is my way of free riding. Eventally, My luck turns and I dont have to leave the tables with little profits. It is my way of free-rolling when I am in a horrible slump. Also, I usually cash out and move to a different site after a really good upswing. I keep money on 5 diff sites to allow for this. I know this may sound ill-logical to some, but it works for me. Also, I agree totally with Wyte's comments that poker is completly irrational at times and insane. You must check your emotions and pride at the door.

[iceveins0901]

If you get really upset about being in a down swing, drop down two levels, and open up more tables than normal, then you can play extremely tight, but still see very many hands. Play your premium hands fast and just breeze through 5k hands in a few days. After that go back to your normal amount of tables, at your normal limit, and play your regular game expecting to make good decisions and expecting to get your money in good.

As long as you continue to go with the best hand, your luck cannot have you lose them all.

[RiverstarsVictim]

Wish I had 2 levels to drop My aim this calendar year was to move up 1 level when I returned from holiday end of January. By March I rebuilt my BR successfully and moved up, got off to a great start and then variance hit. I moved back down and this was when I encountered 6000+ hands of garbage. The only draws I hit was in the blinds, TPTK and sets always turned the flush card, I just couldn't win a decent sized pot. To say patterns don't exist is wrong IMO. I even wondered if I could actually play the game. Eventually I got back to winning ways but every attempt to move back up would see my big hands getting busted so I'd move back down again. This still continues, a cycle I just cannot seem to break. Now after a great week I'm getting busted by ATC, sooooo frustrating.

Anyway, apologies for moaning, I just wanted to get a bad night off my chest. I've not played a hand since my last post so now I start afresh

[frob23]

I'm just now trying to move up levels (to $25NL) and in the first 30 minutes of play, I ran a flopped set into a flopped straight, in a very crazy pot... where we pretty much knew a 3rd player was shoving any flop because he was on tilt so we both called... both hit well... and ended up all-in with the 3rd guy and each other... and there goes a big chunk of my undersized bankroll.

I get it all-in there any day of the week. And I know it was the right move. But it was brutal to have to do... and right as I was moving up.

Edit: and his hand was one of those hands where he wouldn't be calling pre-flop normally... and only did it because of the huge implied odds involved with stacking off on this third player if he hit almost anything. Which made it even worse.

[thevirus321]

Originally Posted by Wyte22 To be truly great at poker, you gotta win the mind game first! End of story!

Totally agree with this!