[The_Bends]

I mostly agree with the point you're making. Not to stray to far off poker but my golfing buddy destroyed me for years by putting from around the green. He was good at it, much better than I was and could reliably get down in three shots from anywhere close. I persisted with chipping, both lofted and bump and run and although sometimes I'd get down in two and gain a shot most of the time I was mis-hiting and taking 4 or 5. Still time passed I got better, the courses we played got harder and my buddy found he had to chip, which he simply couldnt' do. I beat him easily now even though our long games are similar.

As this applies to poker at SSNL there are so many pitfalls that can send you into the confort zone. Bonus whoring is one, which makes you look like a bigger winner than you actually are, leading to complacency. Multitabling is another, boosting proffit at the expense of a few bb/100. However it also cost you a significant amount in your level of analysis as you rarely have to think about a hand before moving on to another table.

However I really think that while there are many things you can do to help improve your game at a low level (post hands, discuss theory etc) you really are limited. If you look at 95% of the NL25 hands posted on here the desission is very simple simply because you can't credit your opponent with anytihng more than a basic understanding of the game. Lots of my responces to this post go 'well yes it looks like a set but it could also be Ax, Kx, or a stupid bluff so given the odds you have to call.' The only way to truely move your game on is to move up a level and test yourself in better conditions. The higher ability of players at each level forces you to revaluate your game in light of the harsher conditions.

You can liken it to goldfish in a pond. Goldfish have unlimited growth potential but if they stay in a small puddle they can only be small. As the move through bigger ponds they too become bigger.

So your golf analogy is good but limited. In golf you truely can learn all the shot the pros play on a horrible course against an awful opponent. In poker you can't. Thats because poker is a combination of your actions and your opponents actions not events in isolation.

EDIT - First sentence made no sense