Found a hole in my game - What do?

[Tb1rd]

Evening all!

So I've started playing properly again more live games and a ton of online, just basking in my £100 win last weekend . And for the most part things are going well.

However I've found a massive hole in my game. Damage control. I suck at it. And I'm not sure how to fix this hole short of changing the way I play completely; while, yes, I'm adaptable we all have our go to stratagies.

I'm not sure whether to put the root down to bad reads or bad math. But I need to fix it. So, any tips? What do you guys do when you find big holes in your game?

Cheers.

[JackSpades]

1 sure fix go play chess.

[tony48]

buy a shovel

[DukeOfDeath]

like a couple unsuccessful bluffs? or getting pushed off hands you want to showdown with? or having really good hands constantly beat by slightly better ones? just tilting in general?

what kind of damage are we trying to control?

[Pocket_Ducks]

Maybe just allow urself more time to think things through, multi tabling doesn't help, can get a better read on ur opponents.

Grats on the win

kwak

[Tb1rd]

Originally Posted by DukeOfDeath

like a couple unsuccessful bluffs? or getting pushed off hands you want to showdown with? or having really good hands constantly beat by slightly better ones? just tilting in general?

what kind of damage are we trying to control?

Unsucessful bluffs were a problem, I'd semi bluff on draws and then be stuck in a hard place when someone 3-bets me but I've stopped doing that so that's stopped me bleeding too much.

Getting pushed off of good hands and getting beaten by just about better hands is definitely a problem, but when I tilt I just tighten up and my timing goes out the window.

An example of such:

KQ on dealer
A guy a couple places to my right raises 3x BB
I call
BB calls
Flop:
Q x x (w/ some drawy looking stuff)
Checks round, I put in a bet of half the pot.
All call
Turn
x
Same again BB folds
River
x
Initial raiser puts in a nice sized bet I call
His AQ wins

I then tighten up for about an hour making poor steal attempts and bleeding back down to what I initially bought in with.

My c-bets suck too. In fact I'm starting to think my general betting patterns are what are doing me in.

[DukeOfDeath]

Originally Posted by Tb1rd

Unsucessful bluffs were a problem, I'd semi bluff on draws and then be stuck in a hard place when someone 3-bets me but I've stopped doing that so that's stopped me bleeding too much.

Getting pushed off of good hands and getting beaten by just about better hands is definitely a problem, but when I tilt I just tighten up and my timing goes out the window.

An example of such:

KQ on dealer
A guy a couple places to my right raises 3x BB
I call
BB calls
Flop:
Q x x (w/ some drawy looking stuff)
Checks round, I put in a bet of half the pot.
All call
Turn
x
Same again BB folds
River
x
Initial raiser puts in a nice sized bet I call
His AQ wins

I then tighten up for about an hour making poor steal attempts and bleeding back down to what I initially bought in with.

My c-bets suck too. In fact I'm starting to think my general betting patterns are what are doing me in.

Yeah I have that same problem a lot. This is example is kind of tricky. With multiple callers to the flop, there are likely many opponents more leaky than you. So you said tightening up didn't help, but when this type of thing happens to me tightening up helps. This guy is raising a decent hand early position, slow playing most streets, and value betting you at the end. It's a risky but somewhat solid play. Depending on how he plays the rest of the time I'd play more pots against the other players and wait for better hands against him. If he's willing to go to the felt with top top on drawy board (although depending on draws hitting, a raise may have taken him off his hand considering his river lead out was possibly also either a blocking bet or a semi-float), you can utilize that against him later.

I think in general tight can't hurt. It gives you more time to think, observe, play. It makes you inherently play better hands, which will make you more comfortable with the action going on. And when you do bluff, it will be more believable that you have something. So I keep records of my games, and there are definite swings when my boat is taking on water. When this happens I usually write in bold on my spreadsheet something to the extent of "Get your $@!#ing act together, tighten up, play the nuts, and stop throwing away chips". So tight is a good fall back.

Also, when you leak it's good to be aware of your image. If you've been caught in bluffs, play better hands, and bet your good hands because you'll likely get more action. If you think it's obvious that you've been betting on semi draws, start betting you're made hands on drawing boards aggressively and check when the draw misses and see if you get bet into.

As far as C betting goes. It's good to hover around 50% in my opinion, but also let that be very flexible. If it's forcing folds, like it should, bump it up to 2/3 of the time. If you're getting constant calls (like it seems) then maybe do only rarely when you miss (1/5?) and a majority of times you hit (2/3?). That way you're getting your money in more often with a better hand without becoming transparent.

That's a lot of stuff that might not even help. Seems like you've tried a lot already, and it doesn't solve tilting/emotional problems, and it doesn't fix bad luck or running bad. In general though, the best of the best have bad runs. It really helps to take a step back, analyze it like you are doing, and go back in when you're fresh.

As long as you're playing at levels you can afford and staying on your toes, you'll be fine. Nice thread. Nice win. Good luck, and see you at the tables.

[pokerpus]

i like how you do the same thing i do....
evaluate my game all the time.
a couple things came to mind, are you talking about live or on-line ? both i think.and so very differt of a game.
live,,i don't play enough ! i just erased a paragrph of my exploits,,,i do great live !,,it's my face... people think they can read me,,,but... i'm all over the place. i did a live tourny in vegas,,golden nugget $65 buy in 40 some-ish players.
we split winnings among 5 players i was in 2nd chips when we called the game and split the money. 6am everyone drunk.i had people cussing me out as they left the table !!! , i can look scared or happy,,anything ,,very hard to read..
on-line,,i think i way less effective this way obliviously,, i see patterns well and with players i know,, i have a general feel of things like,,so and so,,only plays downcards that have faces... or pocs,, others shy away from pocs. i like to play the person alot,, i used to play a live game every week with friends,,small money ,20 ish,
we we're able to have a pretty good idea what each oth had always,,with the pulling some junk to mix it up..
players i don't know or know well.. i go with my basic "default " poker mode.. i play tight and try to look like an idoit or at least a donk,,, i know people see im no donk fast,,,lol.,, i think im a horrible bluffer,,,don't tell anyone. some guys at my weekly game said i was pretty good bluffer,,,i really only bluff if i think people always belive me,, i never want anyone pretty sure what im up to..
best way to sum it up is ,,,,i think evaluating your game with no pride or anything in the way,,,,, thats the ticket.
i havent play u in bit,,we'll have tyo change that..and D of D has good thoughts too i think...purdy teeth too..lol
now go pratice,,,crap ,im late for outlaws,,bye.

[OP66fozzy]

If you are aware of the problem, that is half the battle won.

And while you are figuring out how to resolve it, remember Bankroll Management, at least then, if you do lose, it's not going to be too painful.