A Tilt in Sheep's Clothing

[DukeOfDeath]

Alright. No math in this thread. Just an honest question. I feel like my game is improving a lot, but I constantly have a pretty steady climb upwards and a quick drop back down to where I started the climb. I keep working from $200ish up to $215 or $230 and losing it back down in 1 or 2 sessions.

Now I blame 68.72% of this on just really unlucky spots. But I think the rest might be tilt. Now I used to TILT! I mean like lose 1/3 of my stack in a bad spot and just throw the other 2/3 away within the next 2 minutes out of pure anger, cussing the whole while. That stopped happening though, so I thought I was cured.

But a new tilt has come to town. This one's tricky, because I never realize it's there. I feel a little sick to my stomach when that river brings that 1 card he needed to beat me, but I cool down and play tight for awhile (probably missing some spots to steal since they did see that I was the one playing the near nuts and not a POS hand like the other guy). Then when I do get involved in a hand I find myself in scary turn spots.

For instance last night after I got my KK against a guy who had QT and fell in love with a flopped top pair of 10s and sucked out with a river Q, I didn't get angry and start shoving everything. I didn't play a hand for almost 2 full rounds after, and even the ones I did play after that were small pots where I lost maybe 3-5 BB.

I guess what's tricky about this new tilt is it looks a lot like bad luck. You either start playing tighter than you would/should and chalking it up to having no cards. Or your focus gets a little cloudy, and you start to falter on your hand reading and just chalk it up to your opponent's luck in out flopping you each time you are forced to lay your AK down when it gets check raised, when in all honesty you should have taken a free card anyway because you missed the QT5 board anyway and easily had 6 top pair outs and 4 straight outs.

I just don't feel angry or too off until I'm in that spot where I've committed 1/3 of my stack and forced to decide if I should walk away despite having a good hand or call knowing there's such a good chance of being beat. These calls are much easier when I've been doing well and feel good, but I don't even realize I'm not on the top of my game until it's too late and I'm at this decision.

I guess this is very anecdotal b/c it's me talking about one incident last night, but it is the same general thing that happens time and again. It has to be a leak I need to fix.

The only solution I can think of is walk away after a bad beat. Because if the tilt is there and hiding, it can come out of nowhere and make you suffer more beats later when you don't expect it. It's just so tough to walk a way when you know there's a fish there who will commit his stack with a pair of 10s even though you obviously have the goods. Also, what will it do for my results if I stick around when I'm up and walk away when I'm down?

Does anyone else have this sneaky tilt? How do you detect it or avoid it? What rules do you follow in regards to how up or how down you are in a session to determine when to walk away? Does anyone notice their game deteriorate some after a particular amount of time sitting and playing?

Any advice or discussion would be greatly appreciated.

[T_B_H]

i read an article fom a pro player on another site that i wont mention

it was a very interesting read, he mentioned the ups and downs over a year period, 1 part that sticks in my mind is over a 12 month period, you will avearage running 3 months hot, 3 months run bad, and 6 months run average.

so now when i feel i'm running !"hot" i play alot more, and it has worked, when i feel i'm running "cold" great starting hands and loosing i cut back and play much less, then the 6 months ur running average i'm happy to break even.

sometimes when u run cold u get so frustrated, ur loosing hands the odds say u should win, and is so easy to change ur style play (that normally works) and go chasing hands, ok occasionally u will get lucky, but the odds are against you and u will loose more than you win

i class TILT as playing different from ur usual/normal game, and is very easy to loose big, especially because all ur sense of bankroll management goes out the window because ur so desperate to re-coup ur losses, and u end up digging a deaper hole for yourself

[DukeOfDeath]

Originally Posted by T_B_H

i read an article fom a pro player on another site that i wont mention

it was a very interesting read, he mentioned the ups and downs over a year period, 1 part that sticks in my mind is over a 12 month period, you will avearage running 3 months hot, 3 months run bad, and 6 months run average.

so now when i feel i'm running !"hot" i play alot more, and it has worked, when i feel i'm running "cold" great starting hands and loosing i cut back and play much less, then the 6 months ur running average i'm happy to break even.

sometimes when u run cold u get so frustrated, ur loosing hands the odds say u should win, and is so easy to change ur style play (that normally works) and go chasing hands, ok occasionally u will get lucky, but the odds are against you and u will loose more than you win

i class TILT as playing different from ur usual/normal game, and is very easy to loose big, especially because all ur sense of bankroll management goes out the window because ur so desperate to re-coup ur losses, and u end up digging a deaper hole for yourself

I feel like I've read every article out there about tilt (mostly because if you read one after each bad beat it shouldn't take long to see em all). I'd like to read that other one (pm me?). Even if it's just one slight new facet, it'll be worthwhile.

As far as the 3-6-3 months of run, it's obviously a lot more complicated than spring is good, summer and fall average, and winter bad. It's hard to get a feel which "month" you're in sometimes, though. But in general, yeah I play a lot more when I feel good and a lot less when it all goes wrong.

Thanks for the response.

[T_B_H]

i'll find the article tomorrow and pm u a like duke

[DukeOfDeath]

Did you ever find that article, Kev? If not it's ok. I've found some other good ones. In fact I feel like I've been a lot more aware of my state of mind playing and have been doing really well.

Shoot me that article if you can though. Thanks

[T_B_H]

i looked grrrrr minefield. i will find it i hope

[DarthYoda]

ok duke if you want my thought on this matter its as follows

play your natrual game no matter what...... the minute you start doubting yourself is the minute you start losing more...dont doubt yourself and play your own game sooner or later it will swing your way

[DukeOfDeath]

Originally Posted by DarthYoda

ok duke if you want my thought on this matter its as follows

play your natrual game no matter what...... the minute you start doubting yourself is the minute you start losing more...dont doubt yourself and play your own game sooner or later it will swing your way

Yeah good point, Yoda. I agree for the most part. Only a few things about that though:

• My "natural game" varies. I can be so tight or so loose, so passive or so aggressive, all just depending on mood or opponents or what I know my image is at the time. So there's no one solid game I can go to and hope will carry me.
• The thing about this tilt though is that I may be NOT playing my game and not even REALIZING it. So I can be off my game and piss away money and not realize it and go back to "my natural game" until it's too late.
• At higher limits (though I'm not there yet) opponents can figure out your game. To play in such a way to not be exploitable will also just make you always be breaking even (there is an absolutely stupendous article on this at another site that may be the best poker article I've ever read. I can pm anyone interested)

anyway, I do agree. I feel like if I'm losing I walk away. It may just be bad luck, but if it's me off my game I wouldn't even know. Not worth the risk.

Thanks for the 2 cents, Yoda. Cheers

[telboy]

hi duke,
i try to play my poker like golf.
if i make a bad play or in golf a bad shot,dont dwell on it,think about the next play or shot and go from there.
its all mind games the more you think about how your playing the more mistakes you can make.
good luck on the tables.

[DukeOfDeath]

Originally Posted by telboy

hi duke,
i try to play my poker like golf.
if i make a bad play or in golf a bad shot,dont dwell on it,think about the next play or shot and go from there.
its all mind games the more you think about how your playing the more mistakes you can make.
good luck on the tables.

totally agree. played tennis in high school. any other sport I played it was all about adrenaline rush, but tennis my skill always got trumped by mind games and basically tilting in tennis.

Though a lot can be said about keeping a level head and not thinking about it. There are obviously some times where you're just NOT on your best game, and I think you just have to walk away.

For instance. Being drunk and at home by the computer, it's tempting to play poker. But this is obviously a bad idea.

Good points, thanks

[roo27]

Originally Posted by DukeOfDeath

Being drunk and at home by the computer, it's tempting to play poker. But this is obviously a bad idea.

dont say that or id never play lol

[DukeOfDeath]

Originally Posted by roo27

dont say that or id never play lol

haha. I was worried this would hit too close to home for some of our members