What would/do you do, when your bad luck seems everlasting?? |
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Posted Thu Apr 13, 2006 11:20 pm GMT by cayouche
Some might know me a bit, some might not.
I've been playing poker since 1998/1999, but only since 2001 I started to learn more about the game. Only when I joined this forum (March 2004), I started to play alot more.
The circle of players I play with, most of them are from the "Moneymaker Era". They all started playing sometime in 2004, and since them, it's so much easier to find a live game than it used to be. Anyway... because I have more experience than most of them, I seem to have a better ability to read players.
I'm not the bragging type of player. I just try to play a solid game, making the right calls, etc. The edge I have, is from my reading ability.
In 2005, I netted about $4000-4500, playing both live and online games. Of that, about $3000 is in the last 4 months or so. Some do make a lot more than that, but for the stakes I play, I think it's still decent.
January 2006 was pretty good. I netted somewhere around $450. Then, in February, I was invited in a 24-player $50 freezeout. As far as I can remember, this is when my bad luck streak started... I can even remember the hand that started it all.
I came in that mini-tournament confident, but not over-confident. I had placed in the money in an online tournament, won a weekly SnG with friends, 2nd in another. I was confident I could do well... In fact, I smoked everyone at my table, quickly become massive chip lead. Table break. The play resumes, I get AA, raised, got called by one. The caller was low stack, so I pushed him in on the flop, but he flopped a set, so I doubled him up. Few hands after, I doubled another low stack. So, I became quickly 2nd in chip. Then this hand...
AJ, I raise, chip leader calls. Board comes Jxx, two hearts. I bet the pot, he min raises, I push all-in and he calls. He shows KK. Ouch. Ok, let's hope for an ace or a J. Turn brings a heart. River brings an ace. Oh man, was I happy, but oh no!! it's the ace of hearts, he has the K of hearts. I'm out of the tournament.
Since that hand, it's all bad luck. I never won a live SnG since, never placed in the $$ in a tournament, never made any profit in any cash game sessions.
It's not that I play bad, I still play the same, but I'm just so unlucky...
i.e. AK, board shows Kxxx, we end up all-in, he shows K8, and catches an 8 on the river. Hey, shit happens I know... I can deal with those. But since that day, I'm always, ALWAYS taken out of any game by such draws. Oh, another one I remember. I flop two pair, on a flop that has two spades. We ended up all-in, he shows ace high (ace of spades), he says "I couldn't fold ace high", I say WHAT??, anyway, turn and river bring two spades to take me out...
I'm not overtilt or anything... of course, I can be sad to be taken out of any tournament, like anyone else, but I can still analyze the mistakes I make, and 90% of the times, when I put my money in, I have the best hand, in a perfect situation. I'm not mad at myself for making dumb plays, I just say "Hey, maybe next time." But after a while, this is getting very frustrating...
Lately, I tried to modify my strategy a bit, and I think I learned a lot. I raise more often in position with any kind of hand, therefore forcing players to play only better hands. With that kind of strategy, you have to put even more emphasis on your flop play, than the rest. Using this, you get to steal many small pots, while being very unpredictable. I learned a lot... But still, the same shit happens... sometimes, I do have the best hand, but I still get outdrawn.
This week, AA called by K4, flop comes K4x, me=out. 55 vs. A2, he catches an ace. 55 vs. AK, he catches an ace.
You can read more here!!
So, here am I. What should I do. Take a break, and hope that my insane bad luck will go. Or, keep playing, but to play "by-the-book" poker and hope that my insane bad luck will give me a break.
Please, I need help!!
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Posted Thu Apr 13, 2006 11:27 pm GMT by JewishPete
When I say that I feel your pain, I really am being serious.
I made a post in the online forum about something quite similar. I have been playing unbelievably great lately, unfortunately I have taken some extremely painful beats that offset my good play
It's so bad that lately, When Im in a STT or MTT if I'm all-in with one caller, and I show KK to their JJ, I go into the hand just expecting to lose. my AK will never hold up to AQ.
In fact earlier today I flopped a set of Kings. JJ raises, I re-raise, he goes all in. The turn and river were both jacks.
At times its just unbelievable but you have to laugh it off and try to play your game. It's frustrating when you hit dry cards and go into a slump, but you have to stick with your game and try not to let it effect you after those cards get shuffled again.
Posted Thu Apr 13, 2006 11:32 pm GMT by kainARGH
You figure it out , you tell me ok? 
Though my shit streek is only going on about 4 weeks , It still seems ever lasting.
My recomendation would be to maybe start up a seperate bankroll and play lower stakes. Lately I've been playing .5 - .10 limit poker when typically I was strictly a live NL cash game player. Its been great for taking my mind off of things , and learning respect for limit hold-em once again. I've won nearly 30$ so far nickles and dimes at a time lol. Nothing compared to the nearly 400$ I've lost 20$ at a time at my local casino , but it keeps me playing and thats all that matters for me.
Maybe not only take some time off , but buya couple good books and just read up , while playing more part time?
Maybe take up a new game ..... I've been reading alot about triple draw , and the game seems profoundly interesting.
As far as the bad luck , its gonna end when it ends , not a whole lot you can do , other then continue to strive to know you did the right thing. Poker will even itself out in the long run ...... the long run. Maybe a year from now maybe a month from now , but you can only play poker the correct way so many times before good things will start to happen.
Hang in there man!
Posted Fri Apr 14, 2006 8:05 am GMT by UrAteUp
Cayouche sounds to me like you angered the poker gods. Time to repent your evil ways...  ...say a prayer and possibly make a sacrafice. Go pick up a 12 oz beer and kill it...then crush the can and give homage to the poker gods while you do it....  .
If that doesn't work time to look into the Ying/Yang of your world. See what is throwing your luck out of balance. Do you have a lucky card holder? If so get a new one. I know it's superstitious BS but honestly anything that will get you your mind thinking positive will get you positive results with your play.
Personally I carry a Zinno voodoo doll with me. When I get a bad beat I poke it with a needle. It always makes me feel better... .
Stick with it and make sure to be playing those good solid hands and your luck will change. You have the skill the way it seems so you just have to win a few of these hands to get your luck back.
Posted Fri Apr 14, 2006 9:53 am GMT by cayouche
| UrAteUp wrote: | | Cayouche sounds to me like you angered the poker gods. Time to repent your evil ways... ...say a prayer and possibly make a sacrafice. Go pick up a 12 oz beer and kill it...then crush the can and give homage to the poker gods while you do it.... . |
Good one!! I might actually do that!!
| UrAteUp wrote: | | If that doesn't work time to look into the Ying/Yang of your world. See what is throwing your luck out of balance. Do you have a lucky card holder? If so get a new one. I know it's superstitious BS but honestly anything that will get you your mind thinking positive will get you positive results with your play. |
I indeed got a card holder from e-bay maybe a month ago. I thought about leaving it behind, thinking it might be cursed, but hey, the results are still the same... Hey, you know what??? It's the holy weekend!!! I'll clean it with holy water!!! 
| UrAteUp wrote: | Personally I carry a Zinno voodoo doll with me. When I get a bad beat I poke it with a needle. It always makes me feel better... .
Stick with it and make sure to be playing those good solid hands and your luck will change. You have the skill the way it seems so you just have to win a few of these hands to get your luck back. |
I guess you're right. I will still take a little break though, I'm exhausted, but I'll come back playing the style that made me win alot in the first place. I guess it could also give me more insight into that new strategy I'm trying to understand.
I guess confidence has alot to do with it too. When your confidence is low, it's hard to win, no matter what luck you have.
Posted Fri Apr 21, 2006 12:34 pm GMT by cayouche
Could "confidence" has a lot to do with it too??
Of course it does. But I mean, more than one could think?? Maybe...
I remember that tournament, where supposedly things turned around, I came in very confident. Confident about my game, about my play, and confident that I could be a challenge to anyone. Surprisingly, I was tearing the table even worse that I imagined. Most of them were strongly intimidated.
That's when I might've become overconfident, and played a marginal hand (AJ). A semi-mistake that proved to be costly.
Anyway, it's extremely hard to play when you're not confident. Every good player will sense it right away. They might call you with more marginal hands and burn more times than it should.
Taking a little break is not a bad idea either, IMO. Not necessarily a long break, but a few days could do the trick. It kinda resets your brain to play only good hands and do the right fold/call at the right time.
The laws of probability have to come back your way someday, so you play good hands and you will eventually win some decent pots, get lucky sometimes, and your confidence will gradually come back.
Talking about confidence gradually coming back. Last night was a great confidence boost for me. Thursday night, our friendly, weekly, 1-table freezeout. We start with 800 chips. We were down to 6 players, and I only had 55 chips left. I thought this was going to end early for me. But then I see AJ, so I put those in, and I tripled-up. Ahh... I can at least breathe now. I end up eliminating 3 of the other 5 players to win it all. This is definitely one of my best live comebacks ever.
Those are my opinions. What are yours??
Posted Fri Apr 21, 2006 2:23 pm GMT by BeerWench13
| UrAteUp wrote: | | Go pick up a 12 oz beer and kill it...then crush the can and give homage to the poker gods while you do it.... |
AHA!!! That's what I've been doing wrongly. I haven't had canned beer since a party last summer. I only drink bottled or draught beer. Do you think it would be sufficient to break the bottle after I drain it? I've never paid homage so I need some advice here.
Seriously, though, cayouche, I think your confidence level does have a lot to do with it. A lot of poker players are like dogs. They can smell fear. It's really tough to stay confident when you've been losing for months on end and can't seem to win no matter how well you play. I've finally broken out of mine, online at least. Can't seem to break the live streak though.
I do have to say that not only have the cards been cold, but I've not been playing my game because I've not had any confidence because my cards have been cold. The classic Catch 22. A break may be a good idea, but I'd say that luck is just that... luck. In the long run your skill will overcome. All you can do is analyze your play and find those times where you slowplayed a little more than you should've or didn't steal that pot when you know you could've. Keep at it. It will turn around eventually. Good players can't lose all of the time.
Posted Fri Apr 21, 2006 4:07 pm GMT by UrAteUp
Instede of stop playing or taking a break I suggest dropping down in the stakes your playing for. If you do alot of online poker and play $1/$2 then drop to $0.50/$1.
Also I suggest check into your play really carefully. Look for situations where you knew you were beat but didn't want to admit it or made big mistakes. Analize your game and make sure your playing your A game and not your B game.
I have followed your posts for some time now since joining. You seem to be a knowledgable player so it should be too hard for you to figure out where your weakness is or where you are making mistakes.
| Quote: | | AHA!!! That's what I've been doing wrongly. I haven't had canned beer since a party last summer. I only drink bottled or draught beer. Do you think it would be sufficient to break the bottle after I drain it? I've never paid homage so I need some advice here. |
Nope Wenchy. it is possible for that to work to appease the poker gods. I think what might work better is for you to give the hubby a backrub every night for a month. You might also try treating him extra special. You know bring him a beer while he sets in his favorite chair or while he is playing poker on the pc. Things like that. That should really appease the poker gods for your sake...
Posted Fri Apr 21, 2006 4:07 pm GMT by UrAteUp
Instede of stop playing or taking a break I suggest dropping down in the stakes your playing for. If you do alot of online poker and play $1/$2 then drop to $0.50/$1.
Also I suggest check into your play really carefully. Look for situations where you knew you were beat but didn't want to admit it or made big mistakes. Analize your game and make sure your playing your A game and not your B game.
I have followed your posts for some time now since joining. You seem to be a knowledgable player so it should be too hard for you to figure out where your weakness is or where you are making mistakes.
| Quote: | | AHA!!! That's what I've been doing wrongly. I haven't had canned beer since a party last summer. I only drink bottled or draught beer. Do you think it would be sufficient to break the bottle after I drain it? I've never paid homage so I need some advice here. |
Nope Wenchy. it is possible for that to work to appease the poker gods. I think what might work better is for you to give the hubby a backrub every night for a month. You might also try treating him extra special. You know bring him a beer while he sets in his favorite chair or while he is playing poker on the pc. Things like that. That should really appease the poker gods for your sake...
Posted Sat Apr 22, 2006 11:24 am GMT by cayouche
| UrAteUp wrote: | Instede of stop playing or taking a break I suggest dropping down in the stakes your playing for. If you do alot of online poker and play $1/$2 then drop to $0.50/$1.
Also I suggest check into your play really carefully. Look for situations where you knew you were beat but didn't want to admit it or made big mistakes. Analize your game and make sure your playing your A game and not your B game.
I have followed your posts for some time now since joining. You seem to be a knowledgable player so it should be too hard for you to figure out where your weakness is or where you are making mistakes.
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Those are great suggestions UrAteUp. Unfortunately (or fortunately), I don't play online much. Not these days anyway, I can play so many live games that I don't have time for online. I remember my very first post here. I was looking for live games, cash or tourneys, in the Quebec City area. Now, everday, I can play live poker if I want to.
I like your second point a lot.
You had a few monster hands broken, you had a few bad beats, you lost to a few lucky draws. Suddenly, your confidence level is to an all-time low. Now, what happens?? The funny part with losing streaks is, it is not a losing streak until you're in it. Everyone knows that losing with a huge hand, or getting bad beats are part of the game. It's a combination of those events in a successive manner, that brings you down that is called a losing streak. You're not down until you're down.
Unconsciously, you devise a strategy too much around your situation, you start playing borderline hands, you bring your "B" game as UreAteUp called it. Finally, this is only going to make things worse, unless you get extremely lucky.
Exemple:
You're on the button, in a nine-handed game. You deal yourself KT of hearts. At least 4-5 calls to you, you say "wow, this is a monster hand compared to what I've been getting all night!!", you call. Flop comes K-T-7 with two spades. Insane flop!! One player bets huge, about half your stack, one caller, up to you, you say "here's my chance to double or triple up" so you push all-in. First player calls, the other one fold. To your surprise, he shows JT with one spade. Turn: Qs River: 9s. He gets his straight and flush. You must admit that this guy got insanely lucky. But if you look more closely, why would you "call" with KT here. This is what I mean by "B" game. Fold, or maybe raise depending on your strategy, but no call, please.
Therefore it's important to go back to basics, to play solid poker, and remember one thing, "luck comes and goes".
Oh, and BTW, thanks for the compliments UrAteUp.
Posted Sun Apr 23, 2006 8:38 pm GMT by KingOfSpades
Play with playmoney and win a couple sng's.
Posted Sun Apr 23, 2006 10:27 pm GMT by cayouche
| KingOfSpades wrote: | | Play with playmoney and win a couple sng's. |
I hope you're joking.
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 2:27 am GMT by tame_deuces
I find that going to a pub and failing miserably to pick up some woman will always put all things in perspective.
Lots of tequila also helps.
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 7:41 am GMT by BeerWench13
| UrAteUp wrote: | | try treating him extra special. You know bring him a beer while he sets in his favorite chair or while he is playing poker on the pc. |
I do this almost daily. How do you think I got the name "BeerWench" in the first place?
| cayouche wrote: | | Unconsciously, you devise a strategy too much around your situation, you start playing borderline hands, you bring your "B" game as UreAteUp called it. Finally, this is only going to make things worse, unless you get extremely lucky. |
Quoted for truth. I'm in the same rut right now. I need to get away from the suckout kings I've been playing recently and get my head back into good poker. Right now all I want to do is beat them at their own game and it's killing me. I'm not that kind of player.
| tame_deuces wrote: | | Lots of tequila also helps. |
Just don't play afterward. Trust me.
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 8:33 am GMT by JohnnyCache
ah
tequilla
or as I call it
liquid coma
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 11:27 am GMT by snoogins47
In quickly skimming/scrolling through this thread, here is what I thought I read:
| tame_deuces wrote: | | I find that going to a pub and failing miserably to pick up some woman will always put all things in perspective. |
| BeerWench13 wrote: | | I do this almost daily. |
In this case, the truth was actually much lamer than fiction.
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 11:33 am GMT by BeerWench13
C'mon, Snoo. I don't have any problem picking up chicks. They hit on me quite frequently. I have trouble getting them to understand that they lack the proper equipment to finish the job. Besides, the hubby wants in if that ever happens and that would not turn out well. I'm very selfish when it comes to certain things. He's #1 on that list.
P.S. I love your skimming abilities. Top notch!
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 3:16 pm GMT by cayouche
| BeerWench13 wrote: | | Besides, the hubby wants in if that ever happens and that would not turn out well. I'm very selfish when it comes to certain things. |
She can always give you a backrub...
Anyway...
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 3:41 pm GMT by supafrey
| Quote: | | ...quite frequently... |
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 5:13 pm GMT by cayouche
Only on THP, do losing streaks turn into tequila and girl/girl action...
Posted Mon Apr 24, 2006 6:06 pm GMT by tame_deuces
| cayouche wrote: | | Only on THP, do losing streaks turn into tequila and girl/girl action... |
I'm never going to want to win again!
Posted Tue Apr 25, 2006 2:46 am GMT by General Sal
| KingOfSpades wrote: | | Play with playmoney and win a couple sng's. |
That one was too funny. I'd say just read a poker book. Wait a couple of days... one thing I think I learned was that you have to have a clear mind when playing. Saying to yourself, "I'm gonna play solid poker" really doesn't necessarily work. You may think you're playing well though you're not.
Have a beer and watch some pornin the meantime too.
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