How do you usually lose ?

[tminus]

This isnt a thorough list but Im curious how people answer these. Please reply after you vote.

[johnnybeef]

I haven't voted, but I am in the middle of a 3 week stretch in which variance is kicking my ass to the tune of 50 buyins. It is your standard mix of losing every important coinflip, losing as a favorite, running into big hands when stealing etc. I must say that the biggest reason that I lose is because I am impatient to play at the higher levels and as a result take too many shots at games that are bigger than my bankroll.

[Superfluous Man]

I'm confident in my game and I don't tilt in sngs (cash games, on the other hand...), but I still feel I'm missing things. My game is far from perfect, there's always something I could learn and improve.

Anyway, the biggest reason I bust is getting caught stealing on/near the bubble, with getting blinded down and pushing marginal hands and not sucking out a close 2nd. 3rd is probably bad beats, 4th is running good hands into better hands (not far behind bad beats).

[KingDan]

Once I made a slight ICM miscalculation, leading to a loss.


However, ever other time I lose is due to a bad beat. If it weren't for luck I'd win every one.

[durron597]

I voted for being caught stealing and being blinded out, but you missed the times I get allin with the best hand and lose in that choice.

[The Stick]

Usually it's a steal with good cards gone bad first which lowers my chips. Then, a forced call... short stack goes all in for less than a full raise, and I'm in the BB and must call with my JTo. Double him up, I've got to pay the SB next, eventually go in with the best hand but it doesn't hold up against a large stack that will call with any two cards just to burst the bubble.

I know I'm not making that many mistakes, I'm getting my money in with the best of it, only to lose to the guys calling with runner-runner or miracle draws. In fact, just lost one where I flopped a set with my pocket pair, and the only caller was a guy with an unimproved 22 that called a 1/2 pot sized bet with an Ace on the flop, and caught running deuces to bust me. Heck, I've lost with A8 on a flop of A88 to a guy who limped in with J4o, then called an all-in check-raise on a J on the turn, only to catch another on the river.

Probably, it's the cold cards in the middle that kill me most. Halfway through, I'm sitting on twice the starting chips (2000), while a bunch of short stacks are under (like 6-700). But when they start going all in pre-flop every hand, a different guy each time, stealing blinds and trading chips back and forth, I don't have the cards to bust them with. Those missed opportunities to pick up the 7-800 chips end up costing me at the end, but I know they've got better than JT when they're making that move.

The flip-side is how I usually make the money--some big stack not understanding how to deal with a medium-short stack. If the current "short stack" still has enough chips that he's not directly threatened by the coming blinds, and can afford to wait 10-20 hands for one to push with... but still has so few chips that when he pushes it's all-in or nothing, I still see big stacks making calls with weak hands like A3o or K9o. Even when it's for nearly half the big stack's chips... the "short stack" quickly doubles up or more if he picks up a stray blind, and he always turns over a premium hand, AK, AQs, or QQ or better. The former big stack is crippled and suddenly moves to desperation mode, and my 2nd or 3rd place chipstack is soon in the money, where I can usually parlay in to at least 2nd, but more often 1st, place.

Edited for math reasons

[Nottom]

Where is made a standard (correct) steal and got caught and or sucked out on?

[The once and future king]

You missed:

Sayinf fuc...k you and spite calling the largest stack on the table when you are 2nd stack and they have tried to steal your blind for the umpteenth time, and the other stacks are small and irrlevant and a ITM place is allmost gaurnteed if you dont spite call.