When skill means nothing...

I'm sure nearly everyone here has been through that phase where no matter how well you're playing or how pinpoint your reads are, your great hands just aren't hitting, your monsters turn into guppies, and your hits get sucker punched and you drown in the lovely river.

I'm currently going through that phase as we speak. It's been this way for a week and running and my god it's killing me! lol

So when the skill aspect of this wonderful game means nothing, what do you guys do? I guess I'm all ears to some advice on how to keep from tearing my hair out? lol

Thanks in advance ,

Tracey

Dip into the bankroll, know you're on a downswing, and keep playing (and not tilting!) til you start flopping your sets and hitting your draws.

That's poker.

hmmm... and place more risk? are you being fasciscious?

I'm not sure what you're looking for.

You can continue playing (=dip into the bankroll - you're sufficiently rolled, right?!) or you can quit. Someone here has a wonderful signature - "Poker is about making the RIGHT decision at the RIGHT time".

I'm on a bit of a downswing right now. Cold hole cards, not hitting my draws, can only flop a set with a very very scary board, people sucking out on me etc etc etc. If you made the right decision (such as getting your opp AI when you're a significant favourite), you've done the best that you can. The cards fall as they may.

oo ok i got'cha now.. and yea, I'm currently doing that as we speak (continuing my playing irregardless).

Wasn't really looking for something in particular. Just some relative experiences and what people did etc. etc. and I've gotten that from you, so I thank you for that.

In this MTT right now I'm 2 away from the moolah. So I think the luck aspect for me is taking an upswing from a prior downward spiral... All I can do is continue hoping

Thanks for taking the time out to pay my inquiry some attention. I really appreciate it.

In this MTT right now

thats what I do...

when i've had a couple bad days I spend the next day in MTT's/SnG's

then look at my history and make sure it wasnt me changing the way I play... this gives me a nice little break, and also lets me get back in stride

Quickie Newsflash: So yea... as I said, I was in an MTT. I ended up finishing 2nd in that and earned 363, whereas 1st took 580

But hey, gratitude means something to me lol considering the 'tiltage' I was headed for.

Special spanx to my 'to-be-husband' (Radashack) for bein' there as my 2nd opinion. We did it! Now you gotta' be there and make sure I break that stupid 2nd place curse I'm obviously doomed with. And it's also your turn to win that 500k today and honor your word of sending my azz to Vegas to party! Otherwise... we'd have to postpone the marriage unfortunately and I'm sure you don't want that right? lol

woo-hoo!

play through it, thats all you can do.. its all about the long term.

This morning i screwed up, dropped 4 buyins and tilted insanly.. i left and came back once i'd calmed down, and bang i get hit with a few suckouts.. it happens.. a few hours later and i'm on the rise again. The vital thing is to not let the beats change how you play, and if you do start to emotionally change, get your ass out of there.

I know its difficult to handle when everythings going wrong and has been for a while, just try to think of it as part of the whole thing, remind yourself that 10K hands later you may expierience a huge upswing, or you may hit up the very next hand. If you think of poker in the short term you will get very emotionally beat up.. look at the big picture and know that you are sposed to have downswings at some point. thats poker.

if you havent already, go read the stickies in the beginners circle, particular the "so you want to be a pro" thread. And "the psychology of losing". I found them helpful in coming to be less effected by the swings.

good luck with your travels

A few months ago I built up my cash in Pacific to over $1,000. At that time 1K to me in an online cardroom was a lot of money. I felt unbeatable. My draws were hitting, second hands were betting into me. Everything was great. People were calling me the best player at the table all the time. 3 days later (over a weekend) I completely busted out from $1,000 playing 2/4 limit until it went over my head and varianced me to death.

That's when I realized what lurks at all times. The variance monster is unavoidable. No one is safe. You'll ride an unbelievable wave out to sea and then drown. The monster will tilt your boat. He knows that all it takes is a better boat or two to freak you out. That's life.

Play correct poker and you'll make a profit. Is your poker sound?

damn, that wouldve been painful... i dont think i could quite stomach blowing my whole bankroll like that...

The skill aspect still means "everything"

All you can do is continue to make the right decisions.

-'rilla

well guys? immediately after I placed 2nd in that MTT and earned 363 to the roll, I got into another MTT and ended up adding another 270 to the bankroll by placing 1st. I finally have broken that 2nd place finish curse and made about 650 total today, and the day isn't even near over.

Again, I'm really content about the feedback I've received so far with this post. Even though it's something I've known about this game, it's always a lot different hearing it from someone besides myself - kind of like re-enforcement of knowledge I managed to lose sight of due to my passion for poker.

I'm almost positive many can relate when I say that I've got so much passion for this game, that at times I let the little things tilt me - the things in the short-term. But as stated above by someone, it's the longrun that matters most. As the big picture would show, it's just how the cookie crumbles sometimes. All I can do, have done, and will continue doing is remain vigilant in how I play etc. etc. etc.

Thanks a lot guys! Things have definitely gotten brighter. Wish me luck continually and I'll keep the faith endlessly.

The skill aspect still means "everything"

All you can do is continue to make the right decisions.

Don't make excuses. Variance is one thing. Wether you want to admit it or not, your play and mentality probably contributed as well. Too many people focus on maximizing profits, but minimizing lossess is just as, if not more important. You'd be better served by analyzing your play and making adjustments than looking for sympathy. When I hit a downswing I scour my HH and look for every place I could and should have saved myself money. Yes variance occurs, but automatically dismissing any downswing to variance alone does nothing for your game. Maybe you played every single hand perfectly and still lost, but I seriously doubt it. With honest critique you'll start to notice that your downswings occur less often and will also be less severe when they do occur.

First of all, I wasn't making excuses. I just simply do not know what to do in this sort of situation, therefore i shared it in this forum to try and gather some feedback in dealing and pulling through it. I got that thank you WITHOUT the scrutiny. As far as me seeking attention in the form of sympathy? Oh man, you REALLY don't know me or my character at all now do you?! Because if you did you'd realize that I'm the last person that needs anyone to be sympathetic towards me. If anything that kind of treatment irritates the heck out of me. I dont sit there and stew in the problem. I identify it, discuss, then get proactive with it. Afterall, if you don't like something? You change it, plain and simple.

So when a person is fairly new and doesn't know what to do and they turn to this forum to seek some advice it automatically means they're making excuses? lol Thanks for the warm welcome, it feels like I've known you forever (or atleast that's the way you're treating it by judging me and telling me what the heck I'm doing without even knowing me nor speaking to me). We got a rocket scientist in out midst... great.

Originally Posted by -trACE-

First of all, I wasn't making excuses. I just simply do not know what to do in this sort of situation, therefore i shared it in this forum to try and gather some feedback in dealing and pulling through it. I got that thank you WITHOUT the scrutiny. As far as me seeking attention in the form of sympathy? Oh man, you REALLY don't know me or my character at all now do you?! Because if you did you'd realize that I'm the last person that needs anyone to be sympathetic towards me. If anything that kind of treatment irritates the heck out of me. I dont sit there and stew in the problem. I identify it, discuss, then get proactive with it. Afterall, if you don't like something? You change it, plain and simple.

So when a person is fairly new and doesn't know what to do and they turn to this forum to seek some advice it automatically means they're making excuses? lol Thanks for the warm welcome, it feels like I've known you forever (or atleast that's the way you're treating it by judging me and telling me what the heck I'm doing without even knowing me nor speaking to me). We got a rocket scientist in out midst... great.

dont mind him, he's an asshole. welcome to FTR!

Thanks hun i appreciate it and yea... he's a prick alright... but hey, if it wasn't for jerkoffs like that? what other form of amusement would we indulge in? lol

Originally Posted by -trACE-

Thanks hun i appreciate it and yea... he's a prick alright... but hey, if it wasn't for jerkoffs like that? what other form of amusement would we indulge in? lol

poker

well duh! besides poker ya smart azz :P

Originally Posted by -trACE-

well duh! besides poker ya smart azz :P

holla

I'm in the middle of a bad run too.....my worst to date.

Was killing the $50NL about a month ago, had a bankroll of $2k so decided to move up to the $100NL tables.

Did pretty well for a couple of weeks, was up about $500 after a couple of weeks........then it all fell to pieces!!!

Lost a few big hands, mostly bad beats but one or two were my fault (I didn't think I was prone to tilting......I now know that I am!!)

My BR plummetted to $1200 in a very short time

I have now dropped back down to the $50 tables, but i know my game is not the same. I am playing scared.
I used to be an aggressive player.....i was never afraid of playing back at people. I would jump on any sign of weakness in my opps, i would check-raise with weak hands if i felt my opp was weak. i used to like being in control at the table - people feared me!

Not any more. I have become weak-passive. I know it but cant seem to change it. I can only muster any aggression when i have the nuts, and people are folding to me because thy know my hand must be good.

This is not my natural game, but i can't seem to get back to the old me.

My BR is still dropping too.....I'm down to $950 now.

I may take the advice mentioned above about SnGs and MTTs, but don't they require a different tactics to cash games.

Originally Posted by -trACE-

well duh! besides poker ya smart azz :P

blackjack? i dunno, what is this, some sort of trick question?