The most difficult thing about poker?

[Mayhap]

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I think I lose about $50 a night to these pricks.

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That's sorta like a Vegas whore who can't make change correctly.

/M

[flair1239]

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I think I am still to emotionally attached to the game. Downswings piss me off and when the deck hits me over the head, I feel really good.

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I don't think this is a bad thing. Poker is a fun game and should be played with passion. It is fun to win and you should feel happy; it sucks to lose and it is natural to feel bad.

There is a lot of emphasis on taking emotion out of the game. I see nothing wrong with feeling passionate about the game; as long as you don't let it effect your play.

For instance when I am on a downswing, I don't even try to pretend that it does not bother me. It sucks and I hate it. However, I realise that starting to do desprate half-assed monkey plays is not the way out.

Conversly, when I am running well, I do feel really good, besides winning money this feeling is one of the reasons I play this game. However, while I am feeling good, I keep in my mind that running well does not mean that I am bullet proof, nor does it mean that I am a superior player.

In short, I think passion is one of the things that makes poker fun; but like anything else you can't let it effect your judgement.

[Grisgra]

Most difficult thing for me is improving my game against aggressive players, i.e., figuring out how to move beyond ABC poker to beat the higher limits. There's a lot fewer guideposts along the way than at the lower limits.

I can handle variance against loose-passive suckouts at this point. Frustrating, but not a big deal. The LAG suckouts where I get 3-bet pf by a suited connector that's underneath my pocket pair, and they hit their flush on the end -- that is just a lot more painful than if some loose-passive had coldcalled pf and check/called his way to victory instead. Don't know why. Maybe because against the LAG I feel like I've been outplayed, while against the LPP I can easily chalk it up to dumb luck on his part.

[PayToSee]

This post reflects a common attitude I see here and in other poker discussions, which I don't quite understand. (And, absolutely no offense towards the poster, I see this all over the place from lots of players, including in-person games, not to mention the chat windows on online games, where I've seen actual threats)...

Why are so many players so *ANGRY* when someone makes a bad decision but lucks into a good hand? Disappointed, sure. Wishing you had won the hand, sure. But I see people so angry they are on the verge of violence... like, "How DARE you be in the hand with an 8-4 and beat me?!? Damn amateur prick!"

First, I think luck is part of poker. Sure, in the long run skill will prevail. But when you lose to a runner runner straight, or whatever, *anger* seems like an inappropiate response. You accept that this happens; it's part of the game of poker.

Second, how presumptious of us to get so mad because someone plays by a different set of standards than we do. Yes, his standards are bad, but it's totally his right to play that way. Which leads me to:

Third, you ought to actually be glad that some fishy guy is going in with 8-4 or whatever. Yes, he got incredibly lucky and beat you out of a pot this time, but in the long run someone who enters with hands like that is paying your bills for you. :-)

Maybe I'm naive, but I truly don't get the people who get so upset. You shrug it off, you play the next hand correctly too, you know you'll make money... if you want to punch someone's lights out because they "shouldn't" have been in the hand, why are you playing this game?

Comments?

(Again, not directed at the prior poster - not implying you are very angry, just using your post to bring up this question).

[steamboatin]

I glad that your first post is an inteligent and well thought response, it indicates you might be a benefit to the forum.

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At this point in time, I find it very frustrating staying on my "A" game during a downswing.

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Frustration is a little different than anger. I don't lose my temper at the table or tap the aquarium, I normally congratulate them and try to encourage that type of behavior.

During a significant downswing, I find it more difficult to remain emotionally detached. This is your first post, so I have no way to know how long you have played poker or if you have yet to experience a significant downswing. The state that you describe is the best way to be, just shrug of the bad beats and keep on your "A"game. I am merely saying, sometimes, that is much hard to do than it sounds.

[Peter Harris]

virtually every time i get AQ the flop comes Kxx.

apart from that, downswings don't worry me, i analyse my play, and as Demana said in another thread, 'I am the house'. In time, all chips come.

[Zoltri]

My wife and I decided to take a vacation this week, however, our plans were wasted when her work called her back for various reasons.

No problem, I decided to play full time poker this week instead. From Sunday to Tuesday I played great! I won $5000 during that time with a $10 tournament win and cashing out nicely on some $10-$20 ring games.

Isn't life great?

Well, after playing 12-14 hours/day I hit a wall. As well as I played the first 3 days, I played horribly the last 2 and lost the $5k. I have played this game for 25 years so I should know the signs. I played quite possibly the worst poker of my life during the last 2 days and I am pissed at myself.

My 'A' game is gone but my confidence is not. I know I am a good player but because I decided this was 'poker week' I burnt myself out. I am not a young guy anymore so I think this was a lesson learned to watch my physical and mental state more closely.

Anyway, that was my sob story of the week. Its back to my real job next week and hopefully the last 2 days will be a distant memory.

[sublime]

Well, after playing 12-14 hours/day

thats like 6-8 hours longer than you should play. ever.

[PayToSee]

I definitely understand about frustration; I certainly get that myself. After losing a big pot I thought I "had", I'm steaming a bit, although I'm trying to learn to get better about letting go of that. I can hardly put myself up as a model of always being cool and collected. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

I suppose what I'm talking about is anger vs frustration. Frustration to me means you expected to win the pot, bet into it, and are disappointed (perhaps even mad) about the result.

Anger as I'm talking about it here is directed at the player. I see it in card rooms, and definitely in online games. It's not "Damn, I lost that pot", but rather "That player is an a&*%^le for even being in the pot!" or "He cheated me out of that pot because he shouldn't have even been in it!" I see this response fairly often, and just don't get it. I mean, I see guys get so mad at the player that I half way expect to see them come across the table swinging.

Maybe there is no deep answer or reason, and it's just a way some people channel their frustration?

[Viscant]

The most difficult thing for me is stepping away when it's time. Not when I've won X amount or when I've been sitting for Y amount of time. But when I'm no longer able to play my A game, I simply MUST be able to get up, step back away from the table and do something else.
I struggle so fiercely with this. My method of getting up when I notice myself making 2 bad decisions in a short period of time is usually good but only in retrospect. Some of those bad decisions can be quite expensive. I wish I was strong enough mentally to be able to play these 12 hour marathon sessions like you guys talk about; after 3-4 hours I'm usually spent and would start spewing chips if I played any longer.