Bad Cards Week(s)

[Still the Spank E]

The last two weeks have been a trial. No cards, bad cards, decent cards running into better cards, and big hands getting run down by people prayin’ rather than playin.’ I haven’t felt like writing recently, but decided to put this to paper today because I find it comforting to read other people’s experiences handling the “bad run of cards” phenomenon. Not that I have anything particularly insightful to contribute on the subject. It’s depressing, as everyone who has experienced it knows. And, of course, it is only the standard list of solutions have been crowding their way into my mind:

1. Play an inexpensive no-limit tournament: the advantage here is that, even without conning yourself into believing that a tournament amateur has an authentic shot at winning a BIG payday, you can, at least, STILL have the fun of playing no-limit, where you don’t get drawn out on quite as frequently (at least once the rebuy/add-on phase has ended) because you can go all-in with your pocket aces rather than watch them get run down by the jerk who called your PF raise (or reraise) with his 23s. Also, you get to actually bluff people in this game with a reasonable expectation that it can work, if you bet big enough—IMAGINE! This is to say that you ACTUALLY GET TO PLAY POKER! Now, I don’t mean to dismiss limit poker (except low limit), but the game, as I’ve said elsewhere, can be stultifyingly mechanical and the fun to be had when there’s no betting limit becomes EXTREMELY attractive when your few big hands have gone down at the no-foldem tables (more than) a few times. Who cares if it’s an almost guaranteed lose for an inexperienced tournament player such as yourself? You get to go ALL-IN, BABY!

2. Skip the low limit games for a few weeks and take, say, $500 to a bigger limit table. Here, the fantasy is that, like with no-limit tournament table, you’ll play against REAL players (as opposed to pray-ers) playing REAL poker, where some of the same conditions as stated in #1 apply. Wouldn’t it be nice to play against people who know when they’re beat and can actually lay down a hand they CANNOT believe is good, given how you or the other player(s) in the hand have bet their cards? When you’ve watched the grannies play enough 22-1 shots against you—and repeatedly hit them when you’re on one of these bad card streaks, the temptation is to go play with the big boys. (You didn’t need that $500 anyway, did you? ‘Might as well donate it to people who will take it from you WHILE giving you lessons in GOOD poker—about 10 minutes should be all that is necessary).

3. Play ALL suited hands and ALL connectors. When you’ve watched your Big Slick go down in defeat to J3s enough times at the no foldem tables, the temptation is to begin playing those hands yourself. Go for it!!! Imagine how free you’ll feel giving in to the temptation to play ALL suited hands and ALL connectors (up to, and including 3 gapped). You get to participate in roughly half or more of the hands played at your table; you get to at least FANTASIZE about the straights, flushes, boats, trips, and quads you’re gonna flop against 8-9 opponents, all of whom stay to the river every time—it’s great!

4. Give up poker. Take up knitting.

5. Give up poker. Take up swallowing razor blades.

(The more observant among you may have already realized that to play no foldem poker is remarkably similar to having given up playing poker as we’ve all learned it from Sklansky, Brunson, et. al. and those of you who did spot the phony option(s) should reward yourselves with a cookie).

Well, that’s all for now. I hope I’ve disabused at least some of you from pursuing the pseudo-options listed above. In all seriousness, it is the considered opinion of many people I’ve ranted/whined to that option 1 is for those prepared to committ to the tournament game in a real way; option 2 I knew better than to solicit anybody’s advice on; and, option 3 just strikes me as a form of throwing in the towel and committing oneself to a lifetime at the $2/4 (in case you wondering how people playing for 30-40 years could still be playing there). Options 4 & 5 are obviously not to be considered options at all. Have fun, everybody.

[Fitz]

I think some of your options are bankroll suicide. If one can't beat the low limit "no fold 'em" games, one has little chance of beating the higher limits where the players are, on average, going to be much more astute. You also encourage others to break, what I believe is one of the cardinal rules of gambling. NEVER STEP UP IN LIMITS WHEN YOU ARE LOSING; STEP DOWN OR QUIT! Taking a few hundred dollars and playing a higher game than one is used to will only fuel anxiety, playing scared and is money that is very much in jeopardy.

I just reread your post, and I see you don't really advocate some of this activity; I'm glad to see that. I would like to reassure you, you can beat the low limit games. Many of us here have built very respectable bankrolls playing 2/4, 3/6 and 5/10. When things are going badly, look for holes in your own game. We all have leaks, and when we are running bad, it is a good time do some self examination. Realize too, downswings happen; I've personally had more than one 250 to 300 big bet losting steak. Protect your bankroll; it is the only thing between you and sitting out.

Good luck,

Fitz

[Still the Spank E]

Your advice is quite sound. In fact, I meant all of my "solves" for when one is experiencing losing streaks strictly tongue-in-cheek. The LAST thing I or anyone experiencing bad cards needs is to raise the stakes at that moment. I appreciate your help.

[NaobisDad]

I for one have been getting bad cards the last couple of weeks. After mercilessly tilting online and losing a LOT (some lessons you have to learn the hard way, no matter what your read). I've been in the position where good cards seem to avoid me. Online as well as live.

The past week i've been in two games (pot limit Hold'Em, more a Limit man but my choices are slim). These games were low stakes and friendly. But above all that, they were JUICY. One loose aggressive, the other Loose passive and both easy to beat.

In the LAG one I saw AK once, but had to fold it on the flop to an obvious full house, and the rest of the evening I got hands the likes of 72o for FOUR HOURS.

In the other game, I got hands just good enough to break even in the end. Even when the game got shorthanded, and I had the opportunity to outplay some of the guys I didn't make more than a couple of BB's. And I made those mainly by playing trash hands knowing I could take the pot down with 2 blancs.

I wonder if my night will ever come! I want to be the one to pick up AA against these loose players tree times in a row, for once!

Just ranting [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]