How long do you play for?

[mojobluesman]

My pattern is exactly the same. I like to end a session on an up note. So I tend to end a little quicker if I am ahead and stay a little longer if I am behind. Personally, I don't there's any problem with that as long as you are playing equally well on both occasions and are on a favorable table.

play until you suck. thats the best advice.

[fizzleboink]

I 3 table for 3 to 4 hour sessions. I generally play until my emotions start to affect my decisions (tilt), then I'll take a break. Although I've been getting better and better at avoiding tilt.

[imported_The Vibesman]

I single table, anywhere from 2 hours to 5 in a given session, two-three hours is usually at night after my day job, before I go to bed. Weekends I'll crank that up to 5, even 6 hour nighttime sessions if I am playing well. It actually takes me a half-hour to an hour or so to "get into a groove" and get the feel of the game.

I knock off early sometimes if I take nothing but bad beats for an hour or two ("it's not my night"), usually because, like most others probably, I find the game much tougher and mentally taxing if I am losing.

[jrz1972]

[ QUOTE ]
Obviously this is a mental problem,

[/ QUOTE ]

You need to get out of this habit. Force yourself to play, say, 300 hands every session from now on. Just tell yourself at the outset that come hell or high water you are not shutting down until you've logged 300. (Or whatever).

Keep doing that until the temptation to close up shop early has gone away.

Based on your post, it sounds like you have an unhealthy obsession with ultra-shortterm results. This is bad on several levels and the sooner you get out of this mindset the better.

[Piper Tim]

I usually play anywhere from 10 minutes to 2 hours. The really short sessions are usually b/c my kids require some sort of attention or I find I really am too tired to play well.

Stop leaving when you are up and staying when you are down.

I will almost always play, even when I plan on stopping, until the blinds reach me again.

[DCWildcat]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Obviously this is a mental problem,

[/ QUOTE ]

You need to get out of this habit. Force yourself to play, say, 300 hands every session from now on. Just tell yourself at the outset that come hell or high water you are not shutting down until you've logged 300. (Or whatever).

Keep doing that until the temptation to close up shop early has gone away.

Based on your post, it sounds like you have an unhealthy obsession with ultra-shortterm results. This is bad on several levels and the sooner you get out of this mindset the better.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is true, and a problem I have as well. I have no problem evaluating decisions based on their long-term value, with the exception of staying at a table.

[terrapin314]

30 minutes to 2 hours going anywhere from 2-4 tables. An hour is a nice length - I don't lose too much concentration.

I'm still learning, so I just single table. Usually about an hour (50 hands), sometimes more. I try not to start if I can't devote at least an hour. I'll quit if I drop a certain amount (usually around 15BB). Once I'm up by about 15BB I'll put in a 'stop loss' and quit after I've given 5BB back. Let's me keep playing if I'm doing well but let's me end up with a profit.

[Harv72b]

I did much the same thing you're describing for my first 6 months or so of poker. And I had a hard time convincing myself to change, because I was winning at a pretty good clip throughout this period.

When I finally decided to get "serious" about poker, I had a hard time adjusting to the longer sessions. I would get very frustrated when an hour or two's worth of winnings would all but evaporate over the span of a few hands, or push my sessions for way too long in an effort to chase early losses (I still have these problems from time to time, although I've learned to deal with them better).

Now, I've come up with a pretty good system--I play when I want to play, for as long as I want to play. If my mind starts wandering while I'm at the tables, then I finish up my orbits & find something else to do until I'm motivated to play some more. I do still enjoy the game enough that I end up playing nearly every day, but I might only put in 30 mins or an hour one day, and then knock out a 10 hour session the next. Or if I just don't feel like hitting the tables at all, I take a day off.

You are only costing yourself money by leaving a profitable table if you are still playing well at that point. If you're unable to focus properly on the game for whatever reason, or tilting because of a few losses, or just not motivated to stay in the game, then you are often costing yourself by money by not leaving. It doesn't matter how badly your opponents play if you end up playing even worse.

To specifically answer the title question, I usually play for at least 2 hours at a time. On the weekends, I'll often play long (8 hr+) sessions overnight. But I only 2-table; I can easily understand how trying to play 4 or more tables for that many consecutive hours would really suck.