An Expensive Lesson
Last night I began my session by immediately dropping $50 on a hand. I got a bit unlucky when a donk caught two pair when I had him dominated, but that's poker.
Then, as usual, things turned around, and I quit for dinner around +$25. Returning to the game, I swung down to -$25 for the day, then ran it up to +$144 when I check/raised the flop all-in with Ace of Clubs on a 3-club flop against an extremely aggro player and he paid me off with an OESD (ace high wins).
I dropped a few bucks from there, and then once again got into it with the aggro player. I was sitting on $210 and he had me covered. Note, this is not how to play a hand... its awful on my part but I was blinded because the action player was in the hand and I had my dad watching the game over my shoulder.
I raise to $4 with A8o from the SB with no limpers and the BB (action guy) min raises to $7, I call.
($15) Flop: T-8-x 2 clubs.
I check, Villain bets $20, I call
($55) Turn: BLANK I check, Villain checks (BELLS SHOULD GO OFF HERE BUT THEY DIDNT)
($55) River: CLUB I bet $40, Villain raises to $200, I call?!?
Now, that's as bad a hand as I've played in a long time... yes, I admit I played it like an IDIOT and I deserved to lose every cent in front of me. I started to play tilty on my tables in the next 10 hands and quit quickly when I realized I was being over-aggro in anger. Unfortunately that hand cost me $210, but here's the lesson...
I do not play well with people watching me play my cards. It was true at the Degree Poker tournament, and it was true a few weeks ago when I dropped $350, and it's true last night when I played this hand. There's some part of me that wants to impress the people watching by "outplaying" the players, when all i'm doing is outplaying myself. And, what I end up doing is paying other players and looking like I dont know what im doing.
I'm not sure why it's any different when I play alone, but it is, and measurably different at that. I think the fact of the matter is that somewhere in my head, I believe that folding in front of a "sweater" means losing -- and I don't enjoy losing so I don't fold when I need to. Laying down hands when you should know you're beat is key to being a good player, and sometimes I act like i'm not a good player.
Then tilt sets in because I played it like an idiot. The way the cards fall can be unfair sometimes, but that's poker... but when *I* donk it up, that really upsets me...
So, this lesson has cost me a few hundred of the bankroll. I certainly hope the realization helps to fix the problem.
Hopefully will be playing some B&M tonight and tomorrow -- the yankees on thanksgiving should provide some solid fishing... but who knows if i'll get anything to play with.
Still plugging leaks... lots to go... Toast.
Then, as usual, things turned around, and I quit for dinner around +$25. Returning to the game, I swung down to -$25 for the day, then ran it up to +$144 when I check/raised the flop all-in with Ace of Clubs on a 3-club flop against an extremely aggro player and he paid me off with an OESD (ace high wins).
I dropped a few bucks from there, and then once again got into it with the aggro player. I was sitting on $210 and he had me covered. Note, this is not how to play a hand... its awful on my part but I was blinded because the action player was in the hand and I had my dad watching the game over my shoulder.
I raise to $4 with A8o from the SB with no limpers and the BB (action guy) min raises to $7, I call.
($15) Flop: T-8-x 2 clubs.
I check, Villain bets $20, I call
($55) Turn: BLANK I check, Villain checks (BELLS SHOULD GO OFF HERE BUT THEY DIDNT)
($55) River: CLUB I bet $40, Villain raises to $200, I call?!?
Now, that's as bad a hand as I've played in a long time... yes, I admit I played it like an IDIOT and I deserved to lose every cent in front of me. I started to play tilty on my tables in the next 10 hands and quit quickly when I realized I was being over-aggro in anger. Unfortunately that hand cost me $210, but here's the lesson...
I do not play well with people watching me play my cards. It was true at the Degree Poker tournament, and it was true a few weeks ago when I dropped $350, and it's true last night when I played this hand. There's some part of me that wants to impress the people watching by "outplaying" the players, when all i'm doing is outplaying myself. And, what I end up doing is paying other players and looking like I dont know what im doing.
I'm not sure why it's any different when I play alone, but it is, and measurably different at that. I think the fact of the matter is that somewhere in my head, I believe that folding in front of a "sweater" means losing -- and I don't enjoy losing so I don't fold when I need to. Laying down hands when you should know you're beat is key to being a good player, and sometimes I act like i'm not a good player.
Then tilt sets in because I played it like an idiot. The way the cards fall can be unfair sometimes, but that's poker... but when *I* donk it up, that really upsets me...
So, this lesson has cost me a few hundred of the bankroll. I certainly hope the realization helps to fix the problem.
Hopefully will be playing some B&M tonight and tomorrow -- the yankees on thanksgiving should provide some solid fishing... but who knows if i'll get anything to play with.
Still plugging leaks... lots to go... Toast.
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