Start of sessions

[winky51]

Is it me or does this happen to everyone.

Id say 4 of 5 sessions I play I start out losing. Sometimes 3-4 BB per 100 then I catch up.

Bad beats, better hands (KK vs AA).

Is there some minor variance theory to cover this?

Very few times I start off like a rocket winning tons of money.

[tinhat]

Not just you; 7-9x/10 I start off by going in the hole (immediately) and spend the next N mins working back to 0. Frustrating because of the realization that that potential profit time is now lost (times 2).

What I don't get is why good "luck" doesn't come in the same amount as bad - even-steven. Seems like good "luck" is this little shimmering flicker that lasts just long enough to notice it; then just as quickly it's gone...

Mike

[winky51]

I suspect its that since you are new to the tables you have no info on the other players. That slight disadvantage can cost you. You dont know whos the fish, who is the TAG thats has been unlucky, who is the average player, the calling station, and so on. So your plays are standard and you either miss bets or lose bets to them.

Like you have TP medium kicker and the LAG at the table decides to bluff you on the turn with nothing. You might fold to the unknown, but if you realized what the 40% VPIP, 22% PFR, 3.5 TAF does youd call him down.

Of course a little loss might make you tilt a little, and then it avalanches.

Tonight I started with my good hands cracked by fish. down $180 in 30 mins. After 30 mins the back to build up started from the slump.

Just hate it that it happens. I usually seem to win in the end but yea it sucks always starting down my sessions. No even-stevens as you put it.

But then again it does not take much variance to shift you 1 BB/100 in earnings. I'd say tonight $100 of that lost were my mistakes. I take breaks every 2 hours. WSD% 42% tonight, BLEK!

[MikeBandy]

[ QUOTE ]
Id say 4 of 5 sessions I play I start out losing.

[/ QUOTE ]
When we’re in the zone, we’re in a state of focused attention or energy. It’s a special place where performance is enhanced.

One way to get into the zone is to perform for a little while. However, a heart surgeon who starts work at 6:00 a.m. needs to be in the zone immediately. The surgeon will learn to get there while scrubbing. Likewise, poker players can establish a routine to enable us to get to that special place. Rushing to our tournament tables isn’t conducive to our goal.

I think that’s maybe why Norman Chad says to always fold your first hand at a poker table – it’s part of the routine. Of course, he also says that sometimes you’re forced into playing that hand.

[Vincent Lepore]

Do not forget that whenever you enter a new game you must initially put money in play involuntarily (blind(s). Next remember that whenever you do put money in voluntarily that you are almost never a huge favorite to win the hand. In fact if there are more than one opponent which is almost always the case you may be a favorite against each opponent but a dog against the field. These are just a few reasons why you might start out losing on a lot of sessions even though you are a winning player.

Vince

Yeah I agree, it just a certain placebo that we some how aquire to put us in a state of zen. But with the KK AA pre flop i just go all in anyway cause they think im bluffin and they can call and your winning right there and just hope nothin helps them.

[AaronBrown]

No, it does not happen to everyone. If it consistently happens to you, it's a leak that can be fixed.

However, you may be misled by hindsight. Every poker session has ups and downs. It's highly unlikely you will be up for the entire session, just as a baseball team rarely leads its division every day of the season. At the end of the session, however much you won in the end, you will almost always be able to look back and remember a point at which you were a net loser.

For example, suppose you flip a coin with someone 1,000 times. Even if you win by the end, you expect to be down by 12 flips on average at some point before the end (if you lose, you expect to be down 37 flips at some point). Only about 5% of the time will you never be behind.

i haven't thought this thru, and i haven't read the entire thread.

but what % of hands that we put $$$$ into do we win? i'd think it's less than 25% (including blinds), so getting off to a rough start isn't too surprising. in fact, you should expect it.

[tinhat]

[ QUOTE ]
No, it does not happen to everyone. If it consistently happens to you, it's a leak that can be fixed.

[/ QUOTE ]

Huh? If we won >= 50% of the hands we play maybe you have a point. In the long run no one wins at anywhere near that rate; therefore IMM it's impossible to say that losing when sitting down "is a leak". If you have a "fix" for this "leak" I'd like to be proven wrong...

Mike

This happens because to enter a new game you must put money in the pot blindly. Also, if you don't post behind, you will also start with bad position. It takes a while to get a hand you will then play and when you do, it's not like you win every hand you play. You start out behind.

The other reason is that most good players start out extra tight until they have a feel for their table and then they can decide how they want to play. You may pay a few blinds before you really start playing.