Poker is a game where you have to play against some people. It's also a complex game that doesn't end before flop or on flop all the time. There is 3 streets to play after pre-flop. You should always have some sort of a small plan for every card that comes up.
What cards will you cbet? When will you check/fold flop or check/call (check/raise)?
How does some card affect your range?
How does it affect your villains (perceived) range?
What is your perceived range and does that card hit it well?
And so on. Always have a plan.
Friday 3 January 2014
Monday 24 June 2013
How to "quick" fix your tilt problems
Okay, so many of us have had some or even more problems with tilting - bad players take our money even if we were ahead, or then we played bad and got angry. Anyway, tilt is a problem and can make a winning player to be BE player. And in a down-swing it can be bye bye for your BR. Here's some tips how to generally prevent on from losing whole roll and to slow-down tilt. Of course, only true solution is to try to find the cause for your anger..
1. DON'T BUY mental game of poker - yet
If you want to have some solution to your problems, you should start by reading Pokerstartegy's articles about psychology and one should watch their vids. They are really +EV. Of course, if they are not helping you and you still feel frustrating or so and you want to become a pro, try The Mental Game of Poker.
2. In game you might not see when the tilt exactly comes. You should do session reviews afterwards - list up hands where you played bad and where villain played bad (beated you though he was behind when ye went AI). Sometimes you feel some heat watching them, but you have to understand deeply that they can't win buy playing bad. And when you pick up your own bad play you can just laugh and take a note about it. You should also think why you played that way and could it be the reason for your anger.
3. Have a game plan, stick to it!
Having a clear plan helps you a lot in your game and should reduce your bad play a lot. One must consider the context of the table and your own relative hand-strength. Are you going to bet that table - is it bet/3bet, bet/call or perhaps bet/fold? You could also consider check/folding from time to time so you won't end up in to bad situations. You should also have plan for certain turn cards - are you still ahead, why are you betting? Bluff or value? Does that card hit our range? It's always good to give yourself good explanations about what you do or do not. When you have a game plan and you stick to it you should build up some confidence and you are controlling your own nerves a lot better.
4. Tilt Breaker +EV for hot heads.
If you are really going to play as a Pro or semi-pro, and you can't fix your tilt for now, you can buy bandage called Tilt Breaker. It prevents you from doing bigger speww and to lose too much money. One should think about a bigger situation than NL4 when playing. In NL4 losing 10 BI in tilts might be just a one-day salary or less, but go to NL100 and tilt 10BI.. That affects you huge mentally!
Hopefully you people had some help here if ye had problems with tilt. Pokerstrategy.com is also a good community to use for your problems - there's plenty of mental coaches such as J. Tendler and that Swedish guy (sorry, can't remember your name :d) that are likely to help you with your questions here.
If you want to have some solution to your problems, you should start by reading Pokerstartegy's articles about psychology and one should watch their vids. They are really +EV. Of course, if they are not helping you and you still feel frustrating or so and you want to become a pro, try The Mental Game of Poker.
2. In game you might not see when the tilt exactly comes. You should do session reviews afterwards - list up hands where you played bad and where villain played bad (beated you though he was behind when ye went AI). Sometimes you feel some heat watching them, but you have to understand deeply that they can't win buy playing bad. And when you pick up your own bad play you can just laugh and take a note about it. You should also think why you played that way and could it be the reason for your anger.
3. Have a game plan, stick to it!
Having a clear plan helps you a lot in your game and should reduce your bad play a lot. One must consider the context of the table and your own relative hand-strength. Are you going to bet that table - is it bet/3bet, bet/call or perhaps bet/fold? You could also consider check/folding from time to time so you won't end up in to bad situations. You should also have plan for certain turn cards - are you still ahead, why are you betting? Bluff or value? Does that card hit our range? It's always good to give yourself good explanations about what you do or do not. When you have a game plan and you stick to it you should build up some confidence and you are controlling your own nerves a lot better.
4. Tilt Breaker +EV for hot heads.
If you are really going to play as a Pro or semi-pro, and you can't fix your tilt for now, you can buy bandage called Tilt Breaker. It prevents you from doing bigger speww and to lose too much money. One should think about a bigger situation than NL4 when playing. In NL4 losing 10 BI in tilts might be just a one-day salary or less, but go to NL100 and tilt 10BI.. That affects you huge mentally!
Hopefully you people had some help here if ye had problems with tilt. Pokerstrategy.com is also a good community to use for your problems - there's plenty of mental coaches such as J. Tendler and that Swedish guy (sorry, can't remember your name :d) that are likely to help you with your questions here.
Saturday 30 March 2013
How to avoid tilting - good session preparations
Have you ever had a feeling that everything goes wrong, worse players just keep beating you and you are losing tons of chips, even if you play well? Does it make you a bit angry or frustrated? That feeling is called Tilt in poker and it happens for everyone. The difference between a pro and a random player is that pro's tilt doesn't last for long and they know how to handle it (ofc, Phil Hellmuth is an exception). I gathered here some hints to avoid tilting.
But first, why are we tilting? There could be plenty of reasons. One of the most common type of tilt starts when someone takes the pot, even if he was a big underdog. Maybe you had 80 % against him, but he managed to flop a hand that beats you. Or river is the one card that makes you lose the pot. Sometimes you are just tired and bored and you start to hit the pot button all the time, losing a big pile of chips. Tilting makes you play a lot worse than you would play otherwise. It is because strong emotions usually take a place in your working memory, which processes everything you do. When you have these strong emotions, you are not making good decisions as you don't use your whole knowledge of poke. In fact, you might even be in a gamble mode due to your tilt and you know that you shouldn't play that way. You just don't care.
Good ways to avoid tilt:
1. Good session preparations
One should always be ready to play poker. You have to take up a determinated state of mind to play your best poker. You are not going to play just for fun (it's a part of game, though), but you are there to make profit. If you are a random player who plays only for enjoy, you won't last for long. When you start your session it's also important that you are calm enough. As stated, strong emotions cause you play your B-Game or worse, so it's not a good idea. One shouldn't play poker when he is tired either, coz then you are not using your whole capacity.
2. Set your goals
One should always set up goals for their game. Both short- and long-term goals help you to play more solid and to play according to your plans. It makes you more motivated for playing and then you are less likelier to go on tilt.
3. Know WHY you tilted
It happens for everyone, but next time when you have a feeling that you are going to tilt, take a piece of paper and mark it up. Then stop playing for now. After that you should think of why you tilted. Was it a donk who just hit their 1-outer, or did you do something wrong? Anyway, if you know why you tilted, you are probably able to avoid the same spot next time. Understanding and processing own faults helps you to become a player who can control their tilt
There's plenty of more to come but that will be a task that I'll perform later. With these small guidelines you can already get started.
But first, why are we tilting? There could be plenty of reasons. One of the most common type of tilt starts when someone takes the pot, even if he was a big underdog. Maybe you had 80 % against him, but he managed to flop a hand that beats you. Or river is the one card that makes you lose the pot. Sometimes you are just tired and bored and you start to hit the pot button all the time, losing a big pile of chips. Tilting makes you play a lot worse than you would play otherwise. It is because strong emotions usually take a place in your working memory, which processes everything you do. When you have these strong emotions, you are not making good decisions as you don't use your whole knowledge of poke. In fact, you might even be in a gamble mode due to your tilt and you know that you shouldn't play that way. You just don't care.
Good ways to avoid tilt:
1. Good session preparations
One should always be ready to play poker. You have to take up a determinated state of mind to play your best poker. You are not going to play just for fun (it's a part of game, though), but you are there to make profit. If you are a random player who plays only for enjoy, you won't last for long. When you start your session it's also important that you are calm enough. As stated, strong emotions cause you play your B-Game or worse, so it's not a good idea. One shouldn't play poker when he is tired either, coz then you are not using your whole capacity.
2. Set your goals
One should always set up goals for their game. Both short- and long-term goals help you to play more solid and to play according to your plans. It makes you more motivated for playing and then you are less likelier to go on tilt.
3. Know WHY you tilted
It happens for everyone, but next time when you have a feeling that you are going to tilt, take a piece of paper and mark it up. Then stop playing for now. After that you should think of why you tilted. Was it a donk who just hit their 1-outer, or did you do something wrong? Anyway, if you know why you tilted, you are probably able to avoid the same spot next time. Understanding and processing own faults helps you to become a player who can control their tilt
There's plenty of more to come but that will be a task that I'll perform later. With these small guidelines you can already get started.
Monday 10 September 2012
Wednesday 5 September 2012
Cash control - perfect example of what not to do
Well well well.. Started my day bad by playing 2-3 tables, and when I didn't hit, I started to make some extreme moves on those Speed tables - Didn't work, as you can see. I was sth like 4 BIN down, and the advise here would be: shut your poker App and F*** off. Jerk off, if you will. This time I made a different choice (which could have ended up pretty bad): I started to play nitty, and used 5-6 tables there. It's perfect example of how not to play. When your down, you quit, and try again tomorrow. This way you usually sign your death assignment, and will regret it tomorrow.
Anyway.. I managed to survive, this time. I even made some winnings today (not much, though). I noticed that playing on speed tables means, that you can't bluff that lot. 1 str maybe, 2 str for semibluff, but with air.. No more than 1 str, never. There's so many stations and maniacs etc, and the worst thing is that you can't make that much reads on them to adjust your play.
ABC poker - that's the key in games there.
Sunday 2 September 2012
Thursday 2 August 2012
When to c-bet?
C-bet? What is it? It is continuation bet, a simple bet, which follows your open raise pre-flop
When to c-bet?
If we only look what the board looks like, you should nearly always fire your c-bet. On a flop, where's A, K, Q, J, draws... Well, c-bet is usually working. By cbetting you can actually make your opponent to fold, but, on the contrary, you can also add some value for your hand (you hit a top pair, aces, and of course, want your opponent to call. That's why you cbet, even if you don't hit.)
Cbetting is easy, but the MOST important question is, when not to c-bet:
- On a multiway pot
You openraise, and there's 2 more players joining the pot. You miss the flop. Don't bet, even if your opponents check. You can make your bet only, if you hit something (top-pair, nut-flush draw, open end straight draw etc.), or if your opponents always fold on a bet without hand.
- Against calling stations
These guys love to play their hands to the end. Whenever you miss the flop, you shouldn't increase the pot, coz they won't fold. Just stay passive and hope for a hit. Of course, if you hit, you can bet 3 streets.
-Against maniacs
You can't cbet with air against them. They will raise you flop or turn, with any two, and then you're in trouble. Add value only with a hit, and let them to give their stack for you!
-On a drawy board (w/o hand)
Flop is 3 hearts, you opponent just called your opening. IF you don't have any hearts there (and your opponent is a thinking player), don't put any money to the pot. If you had sth like Kh there, then you could make one bet.
When to c-bet?
If we only look what the board looks like, you should nearly always fire your c-bet. On a flop, where's A, K, Q, J, draws... Well, c-bet is usually working. By cbetting you can actually make your opponent to fold, but, on the contrary, you can also add some value for your hand (you hit a top pair, aces, and of course, want your opponent to call. That's why you cbet, even if you don't hit.)
Cbetting is easy, but the MOST important question is, when not to c-bet:
- On a multiway pot
You openraise, and there's 2 more players joining the pot. You miss the flop. Don't bet, even if your opponents check. You can make your bet only, if you hit something (top-pair, nut-flush draw, open end straight draw etc.), or if your opponents always fold on a bet without hand.
- Against calling stations
These guys love to play their hands to the end. Whenever you miss the flop, you shouldn't increase the pot, coz they won't fold. Just stay passive and hope for a hit. Of course, if you hit, you can bet 3 streets.
-Against maniacs
You can't cbet with air against them. They will raise you flop or turn, with any two, and then you're in trouble. Add value only with a hit, and let them to give their stack for you!
-On a drawy board (w/o hand)
Flop is 3 hearts, you opponent just called your opening. IF you don't have any hearts there (and your opponent is a thinking player), don't put any money to the pot. If you had sth like Kh there, then you could make one bet.
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