Cocky/lazy poker disease - how to spot it - how to cure it. (long)

[SamuraiPlatypus]

this happened to me while i was playing ring games. i went on a real good run, then started thinking i could outbluff everyone. check raising with nothing, re-raising all in with low pair.. and doing it far too often. eventually, i cashed out half my bankroll to pay for a car repair, so i took a few days off poker and was reviewing my hand history, and was shocked to see how bad i was playing. i snapped out of it by taking a few more days off poker, and actually that was when i switched to SNGs. i also had my friend watch me for the first couple tournaments and harshly inform me when i was playing stupid, after the offending plays.

it really seemed to help, and i've righted the ship, for the most part.

[Dr_Jeckyl_00]

Nice post. I want to emphasize the importance of regularly reviewing your HH whether or not your winning or losing. Even when i win, upon review I often see a play I made that was wrong... even if I won (got lucky.)

[Karak567]

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I've found that dropping to one table every once in a while is good for my game. I review the summaries of the tournaments I single-table carefully. In order to stay engaged, I actually play a higher buy-in than I normally do. Moving up to the 33's (which would be above my bankroll were I to make a habit of playing them) for a game forces me to pay attention without really putting my bankroll in jeopardy.

SlimP

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I actually thought about that as well. It's a good point.

[11t]

The true sign of a good player is being able to recognize when he is running good and getting lucky. There is a big difference.

EDIT: You can't bluff horrible players is quite possibly one of the most important things to know in poker

[Nick M]

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First of all, take down your sets a bit. Instead of 8-tabling, 4-table. Instead of 4-tabling, 2-table, etc etc. Let yourself pay more attention to a few games rather than feeling "rushed."


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this is a really good point. I think dropping down a level is nothing compared to this basic strategy of getting back on top of your game.

[astarck]

[ QUOTE ]
I've found that dropping to one table every once in a while is good for my game. I review the summaries of the tournaments I single-table carefully. In order to stay engaged, I actually play a higher buy-in than I normally do. Moving up to the 33's (which would be above my bankroll were I to make a habit of playing them) for a game forces me to pay

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I follow this exact strategy every so often. I normally couldn't single table with any excitement, but moving up to a new level brings a certain thrill with it and forces you to play your best poker. I recommend everyone do this sporadically as a way to either unwind or really analyze a single tournament.

[zkzkz]

<i>Nice post<i>
Indeed

<i>I want to emphasize the importance of regularly reviewing your HH whether or not your winning or losing. Even when i win, upon review I often see a play I made that was wrong... even if I won (got lucky.)</i>

Indeed. It's also important to see where you made the right play but could have made a better play. Maybe bet more and picked up more chips or bet less and saved some chips.

[Lisa99]

I'm a newbie compared to you guys, but I play so much that I was finding that I was sometimes on auto-pilot. I'm very visual so I created an electronic banner that stays at the top of my computer screen that says..."THINK..don't react"...It's huge, in red text and so far has seemed to work. My game has gotten back into the black on SNGs.

[Degen]

great post man

i just smashed a MTT too and came to vegas with the proceeds...i have been trying to be very conscious of what you posted here but last night didn't work too well...i don't FPS too much, i just make crazy calls that are negatively reinforced at times when my AK (A hi) is good.

I'm gonna re-read TOP before I play any more poker and re-read this another couple times