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it just really gets to me when i know im good enough to kill these guys but either i lack the discipline or just dont think and make a retarded play. does this happen to anyone else? how do you fix this huge leak? i really need replies here thanks.
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This definitely happens to me, and I won't say "I'm good enough" to do anything in poker until I stop doing things like this, because in my mind there is a big difference between playing well and knowing how to play well.
I recently had a conversation with a non-poker playing friend about this problem (making plays you
know are mistakes). I told him that the biggest area I needed to improve on in my game is "execution, not understanding".
His response was "if you know the right move, why don't you just do it". Which was an obvious but great response because I had to explain to a non-poker player why I do stupid things even though I just finished telling him that the reason I'm a marginal winner instead of a solid winner is that I do stupid things.
So, I broke it down for him like this:
I play 2 or 3 tables at a time, so I see 120-180 hands an hour (150 to keep it simple). I have to make 150 preflop decisions (sometimes more than 1 decision if there is a raise after me), and then whenever I see a flop (~30-40 times) I can have multiple decisions to make before the hand is over.
I probably have to make ~220 decisions an hour while I'm playing -- 3 to 4 decisions a minute -- or 1 decision every 15-20 seconds. I probably get most of these right.
But sometimes I'll make 150 correct decisions in a row and then I'll lose my focus, or get annoyed, or get bored, or get angry, or get excited, or otherwise let my emotions cloud my judgment, or just not take the extra 3 or 4 seconds to think through a decision before making it so I fail to use the knowledge I have and then I make a mistake that I could have avoided had I successfully applied my understanding.
These mistakes, even if they happen only every 150 or 300 or 1000 decisions, can be enough to minimize or eliminate any edge I have against the other players.
After patiently listening to me make up this convoluted explanation for why I'm an idiot, my friend's response was "so what are you doing about this?" Which I guess is your question too.
I have no simple answer...
I'm working on it. I expect it to take a while. I expect improvement to be gradual.
My plan is to:
<ul type="square">[*]be honest with myself about when I do these things[*]not get mad at myself for making these mistakes[*]realize that I am making these mistakes because I lack the skills (control) to avoid them not because of some innate defect in myself[*]remember that it will take time to develop these skills[*]pause for a few seconds to reconsider all difficult/important decisions to try to ensure I've thought things through properly and am not letting my emotions control my thoughts[*]stop playing when it becomes clear that I'm not focusing or controlling my emotions and[*]do not start playing without being in a relaxed and focused state of mind.[/list]I'm not sure if this will work, but I really hope it does...