Steam Control

[Brad F.]

Hi all,

As I creep up on a year of playing online poker, I have started to evaluate the gaping holes in my game. While I think that I sometimes get way too Laggy and make loose calls with position with way too many holdings, I don't think that this is my biggest shortcoming.

My biggest shortcoming I believe is my steam control. I usually play $5-20 MTTs, with the occasional bigger buy in. I was the chip leader 30 minutes into a $10 on stars the other day, about 11000 when the average was 1800. To make a long story short, I have Aces on the button, and the BB with 3400 calls down with bottom pair and hits trips on the river after we are all in.

This happens to everyone. It happens all the time. Shoot, I sometimes pull off the lovely two-outer.

I type into the window "Nice calls". I hate this. I am a very good natured, fun to be around guy in person, but then I feel the need to be a dikhole to persons playing a game with me.

After this every chip in every pot looked attractive, and it was so easy to move that bar farther and farther to the right until I had no chips by the end of hour 1.

As I went to bed last night, I realized that I either had to figure out some way to stay calm at the tables online, or I really needed to find a different hobby. When I evaluate hands and play the 2+2 way that I try to emulate, I am a winning player. Got very deep in a $20 a couple weeks ago, made 15th of 980 runners. I have a 9% ROI on MTT's, and while that's low it does show I'm a winning player even though I haven't been on my top game all the time.

I am more or less curious as to what others do to control steam. Have some had to overcome this problem? Also have other players had trouble maintaining their A game consistently?

I'm just throwing this out there as I am kind of overwhelmed by my alter evil ego.

Thanks for any advice/help.

Brad

Do you still get amazingly excited when you hit your two-outers? I guess this is the flip-side... my way of looking at it is that i am annoyed (furious) with myself when i make a bad (terrible) play, even when i get lucky, and happy with myself when i make a correct one, even if i get unlucky... for me, at least, you have to reach this level of emotional control before you can stop steaming

online poker is rough mate. You play a ridiculous number of hansds an hour compared to live play, so therefore are going to experience the swings more quickly than live play. I rarely play online anymore, it can be most boring and tedious, lacking any atmosphere - even though 99.9% of ppl here would disagree with that i would have 2 say. When i play live games i have to conduct myself properly, and if someone outdraws you you couldnt just say `u fuc*** idiot, ur a fish!` and then punch a wall after losing a $2000 pot could you? But you could online, and most of the time that does happen in my experience.

Thats why i dont play online, there is far more discipline and self control needed because u dont have to behave - where as on a live game you would have 2.

[Brad F.]

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Do you still get amazingly excited when you hit your two-outers? I guess this is the flip-side... my way of looking at it is that i am annoyed (furious) with myself when i make a bad (terrible) play, even when i get lucky, and happy with myself when i make a correct one, even if i get unlucky... for me, at least, you have to reach this level of emotional control before you can stop steaming

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This is actually a very good point. Yes I do get really excited when I draw out. And I get equally disgusted when others draw out.... not all the time I guess but a good majority.

Brad

[nsj]

[ QUOTE ]

As I went to bed last night, I realized that I either had to figure out some way to stay calm at the tables online, or I really needed to find a different hobby.

[/ QUOTE ]

Remind yourself it's a hobby.
Remind yourself that you want them to call...

I'm not sure why this is so difficult for some people to grasp. If I'm called as an 80% favourite, terrific. If I'm called as a 51% favourite, well hey, that's good too.

Also remember to cross your fingers, rub your bunny foot and chant 'hold!' as the board is dealt. Nothing's for sure.