Effects of Taking a Beating

[Onaflag]

Read no further if you loathe bad beat stories. That way you've wasted no more than two mouse clicks of your life.

The psychological effect of having my ass handed to me when I play "near" perfect SSH 2+2 poker is draining my respect for this game. Like many people, when I first started out, I had an idea that maybe too many fish on a table was a bad thing.

I quickly learned that was stupid, read the books, adjusted my strategy, and became a winning 2+2er. I am still a huge winner. I cannot, however, mathematically deal with the notion that correct play wins. Somewhere along the line I missed something.

Did I miss the lesson on variance? Nope. Did I not consume SSH until is was an integral part of my very being. Nope. Did I misunderstand Dr. Al's strategy adjustments against LAPs? Nope.

I am an intelligent winning player who doesn't quite understand how one can be a long term winner at the tiny limits I play (3/6 live) when the other eight players at the table are so horrible (California is 9 handed).

Dammit! I want to crush the game and cannot! Reading hands is nearly impossible when most players will incorrectly enter a pot and stick around come Hell or high water. We all know that their incorrect play will eventually eat their bankrolls, but their clone is standing behind their chair ready to take their place when that happens.

I have completely lost faith in the almighty aces and kings. I haven't yet started to play them passively, but I feel the urge coming to treat them like any other pair. Limp and hit a set or get out. And the set? Fill it up or get river straighted or flushed.

It seems (more than seems) that I squeeked out more profit when I was a TPP than I do being a TAP. The tightness DOES NOT go unnoticed. The books tell you the idiots don't notice and I'm telling you they do. I get comment after comment about it. When I raise, there is always an "Uh-oh" to be heard somewhere around the table, but I still get 4 cold callers just like Mr. Miller explains. What he doesn't explain is what the Hell to do on a flop of 26T rainbow when your kings should be the best hand. I'm telling you that someone has a 2, someone else has a 6, and the other idiot has a bad T. The turn is surely going to 2-pair one of these morons and they're all staying to see who catches lucky. And they do more times than not.

Why? Because there is so damn many of them! They're like lemmings all trying to dump their money in the toilet. The TAP doesn't stand a chance without a lock and when you do win a monster they look at your cards in contempt and mutter something about how that guy only plays nut hands.

What am I missing? I know it's me. That's why I'm here. I am doing something wrong and I cannot pinpoint it.

I know what it is not and I've seen all the one-liner responses like: Where do you play? Move up limits away from the fish. Reread SSH. Variance is a beeatch. Play right and the money will take care of itself. Maybe you're not as good as you think you are. (Okay, maybe that one has some validity [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img])

I'm looking for something deeper. How do we beat a table full of morons without losing our mind?

Onaflag..........

[Myst]

1. Adjust your play. Play more drawing hands with position.
2. Realize that big pairs will often times not be the best hand if 4 or 5 players see the flop. Learn to limit your losses and recognize when you are beat.
3. Be less agressive without the nuts.

Oh, from a psychological perspective? Accept that, in the almighty long run, the fish are really just having your money on loan, and soon you will take it back from them, with interest. Always play your A game, and the results will come.

[Al Schoonmaker]

I agree.

If you play properly, and the fish play badly, over the long term you will CERTAINLY win.

Regards,

Al

[TheCroShow]

just experiencing variance brutha. without lying, without exaggerating, in the last 6-8 times I was dealt AA KK and QQ respectively I have not won a single pot. One time it was head's up, capped preflop while I held QQ..board was 226, i led out, guy called...turn 4, kinda scary, i lead out, guy calls. river 5...i bet, guy raises i call...he capped preflop with A3o...good job buddy! another time some dude 3-bet me with 79o and spiked two pair on the flop with my AA..just variance, poor play getting paid. it all balances out in the end. i threw out an "unbelievable" or two, then moved on.

just suck it up, tell yourself it's variance the poker curve...keep betting and raising for value with your monster hands. in the end you will be paid off

[Onaflag]

I need to drop by here more often. You guys have made me feel better already. Thanks for the replies! Sorry for the bad beat rant, I needed to get it off my chest.

Onaflag........

[Dov]

By the way,

Why are you playing a TAP style anyway?

You should be trying to get to TAA.

You should definitely post the hands where they suck out on the turn and river. Don't post them as bad beats, though. Post them as "How could I have played this better?"

Like you said, they notice the tightness. They'll notice the aggression too.

If they start realizing that they might have to put in another 3-4 bets, not just 1 or 2, you may be facing fewer fish and your hand will hold up better.

Make them pay heavily when you have TPTK or better and look for real tells (if you play live) that will be reliable for the next time they beat your TPTK.

You will break every one of them just in time for the next one to sit down.

Good Luck

[Onaflag]

Thanks. The acronyms can get confusing from forum to forum. PokerTracker's TAP is tight, aggressive, passive (post flop). Dr. Al's book doesn't define pre/post flop seperately so TAP is tight aggressive player.

From a PT perspectve, I'm a TAA which is I think where my problem is somewhat. I do indeed charge them to be in a pot with me and I'm generally not in there without TPT/GK or a decent draw. Learning when to backoff with just top pair, or unlearning that last A in TAA, if you will, is my dilema.

Good thing for the nights I walk out +40BB in 4 hours. That keeps the BR healthy. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Thanks for the advice. It is well taken.

Onaflag.........

[steamboatin]

I think this is one of the reasons that most poker players are losers in the long term, it is not easy to maintain your discipline when you always see junk hands dragging pots. It is a problem that we all face and the ones that can maintain their discipline are the long term winners.

[Mayhap]

[ QUOTE ]

I'm looking for something deeper. How do we beat a table full of morons without losing our mind?



[/ QUOTE ]

I think I would prefer to play with a table of moderately knowledgable players over a plethora of morons. Those can be tough tables in terms of high frustration due to serendipitous moronic supersonic suck-outs. The first thing that came to mind when I read your post was: game selection.

[steamboatin]

PS. SSH increases your variance, it will increase your wins but your swings will be bigger.