Dissecting Tilt

I had one of the craziest sessions of my life on Saturday. I was experimenting with different reasons my concentration might be lacking. One theory I came up with was that since I have extra money from the tournament win, along with a decent chunk on UB (from rakeback + bonuses) that the stakes where beginning to feel a bit low. I wanted to test this out before I made any decisions on where/what I should be playing, so even though I had planned on taking some time off I decided to play a 4 table session at $200NL. I also wanted to experiment on how playing 4 tables with poker edge would differ from 6 tables using pt/pahud.

I started off playing incredibly well. When I only play 4 tables and use poker edge I always feel 100% in control of the table. A series of events caused me to go on tilt and bluff off a few buy ins. I then recovered played even better than before and ended the session up almost $800, but that’s not what this entry is about. There was a very specific progression of hands/situations that brought on the tilt, and I’d like to focus on that. I’m going to go step by step through the session to identify exactly what factors caused it. This will give me a reference so that next time I see these things happening I can catch the tilt before it even happens. Going on tilt usually doesn’t occur just because you take on bad beat. Each person has what I like to call a “tilt path”, basically a series of events that lead to uncontrollable emotions. Everyone is unique so I encourage everyone to think back to a time when they went on massive tilt and do this same exercise. Knowing the specifics of what tilts you is a huge step in preventing it.

*DISCLAIMER*
I always make a huge deal about the negative effects of telling everyone your bad beat stories. Any bad beat stories in the post are being used break down exactly what caused me to go on tilt. While you should not be telling everyone each time you take a beat it is still important to study the effect that they have on your game.

My Tilt Path

0:00-0:30: The session started off amazing. Playing 2 less tables and using Poker Edge meant I had a great read on all the players. I made some good calls and great bluffs. I’m not having any trouble concentrating on the game. All signs are pointing to this being the ideal playing situation for me at this time.

0:30:0:45: I played the following hand:
Getting Hand History Information...
----------------------------------------------------------------

Hand #39413214-31192 at Lincoln (No Limit Hold'em)
Started at 24/Feb/07 16:34:03

Zeus1998 is at seat 0 with $178.55.
Chubbbs is at seat 1 with $200.35.
thefullymonty is at seat 3 with $204.80.
fourofnokind is at seat 4 with $529.20.
P_Dynasty is at seat 5 with $197.
The button is at seat 3.

fourofnokind posts the small blind of $1.
P_Dynasty posts the big blind of $2.

Zeus1998: -- --
Chubbbs: -- --
thefullymonty: -- --
fourofnokind: -- --
P_Dynasty: 6h 6c

Pre-flop:

Zeus1998 calls. Chubbbs folds. thefullymonty folds.
fourofnokind raises to $8. P_Dynasty calls.
Zeus1998 calls.

Flop (board: Kc Ac Ad):

fourofnokind checks. P_Dynasty checks. Zeus1998
checks.

Turn (board: Kc Ac Ad 6d):

fourofnokind checks. P_Dynasty bets $15. Zeus1998
folds. fourofnokind raises to $35. P_Dynasty calls.


River (board: Kc Ac Ad 6d Qc):

fourofnokind goes all-in for $486.20. P_Dynasty goes
all-in for $154. fourofnokind is returned $332.20
(uncalled).



Showdown:

fourofnokind shows Kd As.
fourofnokind has Kd As Kc Ac Ad: full house, aces full of kings.
P_Dynasty shows 6h 6c.
P_Dynasty has 6h 6c Ac Ad 6d: full house, sixes full of aces.


Hand #39413214-31192 Summary:

$2 is raked from a pot of $402.
fourofnokind wins $400 with full house, aces full of kings.

I knew I had the worst hand and was pretty sick over my lack of execution. For the next 15 minutes I couldn’t stop thinking about it, and some tilt started to fester in the back of my head. I get very disappointed in myself when I know the correct move but fail to follow through.

1:00: I have AA in the cutoff and make a standard raise. Someone from the blinds 3 bets me and I am 100% certain they are doing it with a weak hand. I just call as I think I can get them to bluff off most of their chips. The flop comes K62 and he fires out a large bet. I just call and hope he fires again. The turn is an 8 and he makes another large bet. I put him all in and he shows 68o. I played the hand in a way that I thought was most profitable, but was a little more risky. It bit me in the ass this time and when combined with my earlier mistake the tilt started creeping even closer.

1:15: As those 2 hands started to sink in I get played back at in a few pots. The tilt takes over for the next 2 hands as I decide I’m not going to let anyone push me around, check raising someone all in at two tables. I get called in both spots (TPTK and a set) and am down 2 more buy ins just like that.

1:15-1:30: I snap back into reality immediately after these two hands. I recognize that I have a tilting image and try to take advantage of it. I over bet push with TPTK and get called by bottom pair which becomes 2 pair on the turn. I am over my tilt now so this doesn’t bother me.

1:30-4:00 After tilting I often get very focused when I realize how much I screwed up. For the next few hours I play some amazing poker and end up winning $768.

You could look at this session and call it a success….hey I ended up winning so why should I be concerned? There are two main problems that occurred in this session. First is the obvious error of me going on tilt. I would have $400 more if I simply did not allow myself to get into a mindset of tilt. The not so obvious problem comes from my extra focus after tilting. Being able to able to regain my composure and play awesome poker is a good trait, but why can’t I play with that focus all the time?

Breaking down sessions like this can go a long way in helping you figure out how to improve your mental game. We have learned so far that if I make a bad play and it’s followed up by a bad beat that equals tilt. From now I can quit as soon as these things happen, but before I go on tilt. I can also work on not allowing this chain of events to put me on tilt. This takes longer to learn than simply quitting, but is much more profitable in the end.

I have also been able to nail a specific mind set that allows me to play amazing poker. If I can recreate those same emotions every time I play poker I will have a much higher chance of playing at that same level.

This post turned into more of an article than a blog, but I hope this shows you one of the ways you can work on improving your own game. Even if the end result was good there are always things you can do better. Try breaking down a session like I did (when I do it myself I’m often more detailed than I was here). Recognizing how the flow of a session affects future hands is knowledge that will help you make tons of money down the line.

Bankroll: $6367
Hands played this week: 0
Bonus cleared this week: 0
Hands played this month: 28670
Bonus/rakeback this month: $1048

Motivation Concentration

Since my last post I haven't really had the motivation to put in a lot of hours. When I have played my concentration has been sub par to say the least. The truth is, I really have no idea why this is. It's probably a combination of the tournament win mixed in with not taking many breaks from the tables and working on the site. If I'm not playing poker I am probably working on some aspect of the site. Growing this site is very high up on my to do list, and I enjoy the work almost as much as I do playing poker. If I don't give myself some breaks from them both I run the risk of burning out on both. So, over the next few days I'll give myself some time off and not think too much of poker. I'll most likely take all of Friday and Sunday off and get in some solid playing time on Sat.

I did fight the lack of motivation the last couple of days to get in some hands. I played some heads up, mixed in non holdem games, pretty much anything to help me focus. I got in a total of 3349, made $801 playing, and cleared $133 in bonus. It was nice to make good money while the concentration was lacking, but I probably could have made even more if I was playing at full capacity. A few days of relaxation should charge my batteries again and allow me to hit the tables at full speed once again.

Bankroll: $5718
Hands played this week: 3349
Bonus cleared this week: $133
Hands played this month: 25270
Bonus/rakeback this month: $983

I love Poker!

I apologize again for the lack of updates. I've been pretty lazy about my play for the last few days, and that carried over to the blog. I decided to take it easy on the cash games for a few days and concentrate on a few tournaments that Jared wanted to stake me in. Well, I guess that turned out to be a good decision as I cashed in 3 tournaments on Friday and Saturday. On Friday I went out 11th in the FTOPS #8 $216 for $2253. On Saturday I monied in the $322 for $633, and in the $322 FTOPS #9 HA event I won it all for $41,850. After all the tournament fees were taken out and Jared got his cut I made a profit of $21,1197. Not too shabby for a weekend's work. I recorded a video of my win, and you can find it on the main page. The tournament win isn't going to affect this project at all. I won't be adding any extra money to my BR as I want to see this thing through.

My cash game play was fairly limited since my last post. I played 4135 during that time, mostly while I was in a tournament. I also 4 tabled some $200NL while I was testing out Poker Edge. It's a pretty cool program and will post a full review on the main site after I get the full version. I'm not moving up to the $200s quite yet, but Poker Edge only works on 4 tables right now and I didn't feel like 4 tabling 100NL. I pretty much broke even on my play for that period, losing $35. The bonus was once again very nice, as I made another $230 from that. I will probably run out of UB bonus money pretty soon, so I'll have to make a decision where I'm going to be playing after that.


Bankroll: $4917
Hands played this week: 0
Bonus cleared this week: $0
Hands played this month: 21921
Bonus/rakeback this month: $850

A New Routine

Over the last week I’ve made a few changes in my daily routine that I feel have made a positive impact in my game. The first change has been getting on a more regular sleeping schedule. Instead of just sleeping whenever I feel like (which in the past really could be at any point of the day) I’m trying to sleep at pretty much the same time every night and wake up between 11am and noon. I’m not sure the exact logic behind it, but I feel I can get a lot more accomplished if I wake up around then, even if I don’t leave the apartment complex.

After I wake up I spend about 30 minutes meditating. Anyone who has tried this knows that it can really clear your mind and allow you to concentrate on your day’s tasks without much distraction. I feel like meditation was created specifically for poker players. The mind is constantly racing with many different internal dialogues and most of them distract from optimal poker play. Meditation teaches you how to focus on one thing at a time which is very useful when playing poker.

The next thing I do after some breakfast is go out as practice some basketball by myself. This is similar to mediation as trying to improve my shot improves my overall focus. The exercise I get also give me a lot of energy for the rest of the day. I definitely notice a change in my game when I am getting exercise. After I a refreshing shower I am ready to hit the tables, write some articles, or do whatever else I have planned for the day.

This routine seems to be making an impact as I’ve been incredibly happy with my play for the last few days. My reads are very sharp and I am making less of the small mistakes I’ve been making the last few weeks. On Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I played 4574 hand and made $655. The bonus money keeps rolling in with $86 more added to my total. If I keep playing this well it shouldn’t be too long till I can move up again.

Bankroll: $4952
Hands played this week: 6099
Bonus cleared this week: $112
Hands played this month: 17786
Bonus/rakeback this month: $620

The Weekend

I only played 1 session each day on Sat and Sunday as I replaced my night sessions with some FTOPS tournaments that Jared is staking me in. I was incredibly happy with my cash game play this weekend. My mindset was greatly improved, and it definitely made a difference in my play. I believe the #1 thing holding most people back from being incredibly profitable is their mental approach to the game. The difference between a winning and losing session can easily be determined by your mental state at the beginning of the day.

I got in a total of 2903 hands and made $482 along with $51 more in bonus. I haven't played quite as many hands this month as I would have liked, so I will try to remedy that with a lot of play this week.

The FTOPS tournaments went pretty well. I played well in the Sunday $300, but my KK ran into AA as we were nearing the money. My MTT game seems to be pretty sharp, so hopefully I can make a big score in one of the FTOPS events.

Bankroll: $4297
Hands played this week: 1525
Bonus cleared this week: $26
Hands played this month: 13212
Bonus/rakeback this month: $534

Quo Vadimus

The last two days at the tables have been incredibly frustrating. I’ve been waiting to bust out of this cold streak for over a month, but just can’t seem to shake it. I know I should be crushing this game so only winning 3 pt bb/100 is a bit disappointing. It didn’t really start to bother me till yesterday. Bad beats don’t put me on tilt, but when those bad beats are combined with some poor play I begin to feel the tingle of tilt on the back of my neck.

If I feel like I am playing awesome I can easily shrug off any outdraw. When I don’t have the luxury of saying “I’m playing great so the money will soon come” a string of outdraws hurts much more. On Thursday I played 2759 hands and lost $443. Friday did not start off well, as I made some mistakes at the beginning of my session. I turned up my game and started playing awesome poker and I was soon even on the day. As the session started to wind down I was hammered with a slew of bad beats. I ended down $343 after 1808 hands. Going from a low point, working my way back up, and then violently thrown back down did a number on my psyche. Honestly, it was one of the worst feelings I have felt from poker. Anyone who knows poker knows that 8 buy ins in 2 days is pretty normal. It wasn’t the money that hurt. The build up of continued bad luck combined with poor play caused a pretty low feeling.

After the session was over all I wanted to do was lock myself in my room and sit in the dark feeling sorry for myself, and I did just that. While lying in bed thoughts of an extended break or switching up games raced through my head. Soon getting bored with the self loathing I decided to watch the final episode of Sports Night that for some reason I had yet to watch. It’s an amazing show and one scene from this series finale hit me really hard given my current state of mind.

In it a business owner says to the Sports Night producer:

“I’m what the world considers to be a phenomenally successful man, and I’ve failed much more than I’ve succeeded. Each time I fail I get my people together and say “where are we going?”…… and it starts to get better”.

After hearing that something in my head clicked, and I was no longer upset at poker. It reinforced the fact that poker is a crazy game and sitting around feeling sorry for myself while I could be working on improving my game was a stupid waste of time. Any self doubt that was lingering was washed away and I am now ready to do whatever it takes to become a better poker player, and person. Those who have success in the past often feel like they now have a god given right to win. Poker is not such an easy mistress, and she demands constant effort if you want to stay afloat. I am now ready to take the next step in my poker evolution. I feel incredibly lucky to live with the other instructors here at Poker Dynasty. We are really great about helping each other constantly improve, and I hope you guys are starting to get that same benefit learning from us.

It’s crazy how the universe tends to give you exactly what you need. I am a strong believer in the cliché “The only time you fail is when you don’t learn from your mistakes” It just took an amazing quote from a TV show to make me remember that.

Bankroll: $3815
Hands played this week: 10309
Bonus cleared this week: $483

Feb so Far

There has been a nasty virus going around here for the last week and it knocked us out of commission for the beginning of the month. I’m pretty much over it now (although I still haven’t got my voice back yet) and ready to hit the tables again. I have played a few sessions so far this month, but since they were pretty spread out and not too interesting I’ll just lump all the results together.

So far in Feb I have played 5742 hands and have been break even, being up only $40 so far. The bonus money has been great as I got a big chunk from the weekly bonus. So far in Feb I have cleared $325 in bonus cash. Now that I am well again my play and posting will continue as always.

Bankroll: $4601
Hands played this week: 5742
Bonus cleared this week: $325

January Review

Before I can get into what's been going on so far in February, I first need to wrap up January. It was a pretty interesting month, and I definitely took it up a notch from my December play. I started the month at the $50NL tables, but decided to move up when the uncertainty of online poker made moving up a little early the right move. It paid off very nicely, in both profit and bonus money. I don't add my rakeback total till I know the final value for the month, and it was $864 this month. Here are my Jan stats:

Profit: $2078
Hands Played: 50,789
Bonus/Rakeback: $2043

Let's take a look at some of the goals I set for Jan:

Play 50,000 Hands

It came down to play on the last day, but I accomplished this goal. 50k hands should be pretty easy for anyone playing full time. I know I should be playing even more than that, so my Feb goal will reflect that.

Make $1300 in bonus/rakeback

Earning $2043 I really crushed this one. $1300 is the bare minimum of what it will cost me to live each month, so I want to crush this one every time. I think I might challenge myself a bit more in Feb, and go with double living expenses as a goal.

Study 10 hours a week

I spent a good amount of time on forums, along with working on my game with my roommates. I think I still need to put a little more time into this. I'll be working on my game even more with my friends, and scouring the Internet for some good poker knowledge.

Practice excellent bankroll management

I feel that moving up to the $100NL tables was an excellent example of good bankroll management. BR management is all about making the most you can will your roll while keeping your risk very low. The are many factors that play into it outside of exactly how much money you have. All signs said that moving up was the correct call, not doing so would make me a bankroll wussy. Not moving up when you should can cost you a lot money. While it is better to err on the side of caution, learning when to move up is a very important skill.

Overall, I am very happy with how the month went. I accomplished all my goals and am ready to hit the tables hard again in February. Here are some goals for the upcoming month:

Play 55,000 hands

Feb is a short month, but I think a 10% increase in hands should be pretty easy. I picked up my playing time in the second half of Jan, and if I keep that up this should be easy.

$2600 in Bonus Money + Rakeback

Now that I'm at $100NL double monthly expenses is a very attainable goal. If you are able to make that much more than you need you can make sure your savings are in order, and then invest whatever extra you have. I think it's very important to give yourself a very strong financial base. Lots of poker players I know play just enough to cover all their spending, but have nothing else to show for their efforts.

Improve my game

This is a pretty broad goal, but I want to do everything I can to be a better player. Everyday I want to do one thing that will improve my game and help me to win more money. If I can do that Feb will be a very very good month.

I would like to hear everyone else's Feb poker goals. I'll be started a thread in the forums about it. If we know what your goals are we can do everything we can to help you attain them.

Motion Sickness

If poker were an amusement park I would currently be getting off the main attraction ready to throw up my overly expensive lunch. Since the beginning of last week I’ve had a series of highs and lows that might make anyone with a weak stomach sick.

I made about $2k last week, which was a very good start to $100NL. I was very excited about starting off the new week and playing a ton of poker, but things didn’t start off how I would have liked.

On Tuesday I had one of the worst days I have had in a long time. Over the course of 3893 hands I lost $934. After a loss like this you really need to examine your game to make sure there are no major leaks in it. While sessions like this will happen from time to time they are usually caused by bad luck colliding with a leak in your game. I spent a good deal of time going over the session after it was over. I definitely played some medium sized pots poorly, but overall I wasn’t too disappointed in my play. As a precaution I will continue to study each session to make sure I am making all the correct adjustments for playing low stakes NL.

Even after that session I am still beating $100NL at a respectable rate (it’s still a very small sample size), but that isn’t good enough for me. I want to be playing 5/10NL by the end of the year, so I need to be improving my game every step of the way. If you are making a lot of money from bonus/rakeback it is pretty easy to be satisfied with a moderate win rate. You can make a respectable living winning 3-4 PTBB/100 at $100NL, but why would you want to settle for that? You need to be constantly improving as a player and doing everything in your power to improve your profitability. If you become complacent you will soon find everyone else leaving you in their dust.

I considered taking Wednesday off after such a bad day, but I really wanted to get back to the tables. I know myself well enough to know Tuesday’s loss wouldn’t affect Wednesday’s play. Everything that went wrong on Tuesday went right the first session of Wednesday. I played really well and was able to make $727. It’s pretty amazing how poker can take you down one day and bring you straight back up the next. It really is like riding a roller coaster.
The next session was one of those “eh what ya gonna do” type of sessions. I lost exactly 4 big pots, and they were KK vs. AA twice, AK TPTK vs. a maniac with a set, and KK vs. 99 in a reraised pot on 955 board. It would be incorrect to fold any of these hands at $100NL, but that’s just how poker works sometimes. I lost about $354 in that session, so the day didn’t end quite as good as it started, but it still was a solid day. Total I played 3385 hands Wednesday, clearing $106 in bonus money between the two days

Bankroll: $4561
Hands played this week: 8193
Bonus cleared this week: $122
Hands played this month: 50,798
Bonus/rakeback this month $1179