No longer playing to win

[Sabrazack]

I have been hit by neg variance before, i started doubting my play and felt generally shitty. This time i was prepared, or so i thought. Im currently breakeven over the last 600 or so tournaments, before that i had a ROI of 15% over 2000 tours.

As earlier posters have said it just feels like i can't win anything, i expect my AJ to lose to AT more often than i win, simply because that is what has happened more often than not lately.

Anyway, my main concern is that it no longer feels like i am playing to win the tournaments i participate in. I simply play my best game and expect to get sucked out on. Bad beats no longer bother me at all, since they happen all the time. I no longer have the goal of winning $$ when i play, my only goal is to play my daily quota of tournaments and try not to lose my bankroll.

I wonder if this is good or bad, i mean, not getting upset over bad beats is probably good. But im afraid its affecting my game somehow.. Anyway, this was a very pointless post. I guess i just needed to something else to do than play poker as im finishing off my last tournament.

Wow, just pushed into queens from the SB with my 77, time to go watch TV.

[Ogre]

This is how I've been feeling lately. I have been trying to play though it but I get on a string of 4ths or bad beats and I can't continue to play and I end up quitting before I meet my quota.

[45suited]

Hang in there man. Yesterday was crap for me. I only had 5 ITMs in 20 SNGs. No firsts. Suckout after suckout. SB pushes running into aces. Queens running into aces twice.

Today, I dropped down to 3 tables. My first set, I won all three. Didn't play any better today than yesterday.

The similarities between poker and golf are amazing. One day, you're feel like you can never do well again. The next day, everything comes together and you have no F-ing idea why.

So frustrating but we keep coming back. Hang in there, your luck will improve.

[1C5]

Good point about poker being like golf. I golf lots and have to agree.

[spentrent]

Hang in there. This happens in a game with such a strong chance component. I was there last month. Find something about your game to work on -- I'm sure there's gotta be at least one area where you don't feel like an expert [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img].

I endured a breakeven month at the 22s (and then the 11s [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]) by putting a lot of thought into how I should be playing from the blinds. Rather than getting angry when I busted as a 60/40 favorite -- which is really not all that rare -- I learned to laugh it off and continue concentrating on a hole in my game.

If anything this will make you learn a lot about bankroll management -- this is why you don't blow all your money from a heater in one night... also you'll learn the very emotionally practical reasons for eschewing results-oriented thinking.

Read some Lao Tzu.

[reecelights]

I used to golf. Now I play poker. No $ROI in golf.

[1C5]

I do both.

Golf>poker.

No money for me in golf either but really, c'mon. Golf rocks.

[chopstick]

[ QUOTE ]

Anyway, my main concern is that it no longer feels like i am playing to win the tournaments i participate in. I simply play my best game and expect to get sucked out on.


[/ QUOTE ]

Wow does that hit close to home. You and me both, brother.

[burgi]

About 2 weeks ago, I felt exactly like that. I could not win an allin. I got sucked out soo many times, it really sucked.
But, two days later, everything changed around, and I won my first MTT with about 200 players (eventhough I got sucked out on the final table by J8 against my JJ on an 8, 5, 2 flop or so.
What I'm trying to say is that it's variance (and I'm going through it right now again) and it sucks, but it will turn around and even out! Focus on playing your best game and you will succeed, if you have the bankroll to manage the downswings!