David, or Mason....

I have asked you questions before, and I always appreciate any response you give.
I have been playing low-limit to mid-limit holdem for about the last 5 years. I am only 23 years old. I have been a consistant winner. I have been playing anywhere from $2-$4 to $15-$30 holdem in Atlantic City. And, I have always found myself to be a solid player. But, lately, I would say the last 6 months, I find myself instead of being tight agressive, being loose aggressive! Why? I play way to many hands now. I never used to! But for some reason I make way to many loose bets, and raises! Whats the deal?
It has gotten so bad, I switched playing games. I now play more Omaha than Holdem. Where i am still tight agressive!
Why the change?

[Fitz]

I'm not David or Mason, but I think another esteemed 2+2'er may have already addressed your problem. Go to the essay section, and check out "The Different Stages in a Player's Life" by Ray Zee.

http://www.twoplustwo.com/zee2.html

I know this helped me through a similar situation, so I hope you find it useful.

Good Luck,

[Inthacup]

THANKS,
THAT WAS A VERY INTERESTING ARTICLE.
SO, I GUESS I AM AROUND THAT LOOS-AGRESSIVE STAGE.
BUT, WHAT I AM WONDERING, IS WHY THIS HAPPENS?
I WANT TO GET BACK TO MY OLD TIGHT WAYS.
HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT DOING THAT?

[Fitz]

I think what Ray is really talking about in the essay is the process of evolution that a player goes through. The only way I see to tighten up your game is to force yourself to become more discplined again. I sometimes have to force myself to do this too. The way I go about it is to think about what the true value of some of my loose calls really are. This gets into the area of hand domination. If I bring in K8s from mid position, I am making a negative EV play; now what happens once I've decided to play the hand and there is a raise behind me? In for a penny in for a pound, and I'm now in for 1 big bet on a hand that is probably way behind. I can mentally masturbate myself into thinking I can outplay my opponets after that flop, but unless I flop a flush draw, I'm in trouble with this hand. I'll only do that about 1 in 8 hands; that's a lot of negative EV to play one weak hand out of position. If I bring in pocket 3's in the same hand, it is about the same odds of flopping my set, but the small pocket pair is much easier to dump after the flop if I miss. What happens to my K8s if the flop comes K42 rainbow? If I'm ahead, I'll probably win a small pot; if I'm dominated, I'll end up paying off several bets on the way to the river. The same thought process applies to playing lots of weak hands. Axo, Axs in early position, KJo, K10o, small pocket pairs in early position among others.

Think about the true value of these marginal hands. No matter what you do, you can't turn a negative expectancy into a positive one, and no matter how well you play after the flop, you are fighting an uphill battle with most of these hands.

Remember this basic hold 'em axiom: Get your money in when you've got the best of it. Don't dribble away your profits by playing mediocre cards especially out of position.

Good Luck,

Fitz,
I will try. I try to stop -EV plays. But, you hit it on the head. Sometimes (especially against weak players) I feel that the -EV will be made up, because I can "outplay" them post-flop. Which, evidently is not true. I think I need to take a step back. Re-evaluate everything. Come back down to earth, and realize that the best way to your opponents is to start with the best hand.

THanks..

[Michael Davis]

Fitz and Anonymous,

One way I cope this problem is to actually masturbate everytime I start doing it mentally. This seems to relieve the tension and quell my haughty arrogance for a short time, but evidently not when I am posting here.


Mike

[Ryan_21]

Sounds like the problem I had. Read my post, "Feeling like a Genius" below. The good thing is, if you know what the problem is, you are already half way to fixing it. Its simple go back to the basics and tight up my friend.

Ryan_21

[Al Schoonmaker]

Ryan was right. It is the same problem with the same causes: boredom and arrogance. It's BORING to play tightly, and it's easy to convince ourselves that we play so much better than other people that we can give them a huge head start by playing too many hands.
The critical question is: Why am I playing this hand? Do I genuinely believe that it has a positive EV, or am I kidding myself because I'm bored and want action?
You and I have to ask yourself that question again, and again, and again. When I stop asking it, I play too many hands, and I pay for my foolishness.
Al

[Ryan_21]

"When I stop asking it, I play too many hands, and I pay for my foolishness."

Yes, this seems to happen to me quite frequently. About once every 2 months I have bad week or two and I feel like Im losing b/c of bad beats or some other b.s. but I know its my play so I have to just slow down a little and reread a few books and realize that Im playing bad. I wonder how long these genius relapse will go on? lol.

Ryan_21