for those of you who run bad and considering break

[Benderqueen 0]

Hey all, I see a lot of posts especially in this area of the forum dealing with should I quit, should I take a break, and various questions all asking essentially the same thing. I have played online since 1999 and started on Planet and eventually pokerroom. I played literally 7-10 hours a day every single day, only exception being funerals which I got home and had session after. You could say I was obsessed, or you could say I was dedicated. About 4 months ago I went on biggest run of my life at Ultimate Bet, I was up 24k in less then 3 weeks and I dont play over 5 10 NL or PLO. I cashed out and decided I was going to take a break. I uninstalled all poker sites from my computer (9) at the time, and got rid of my history so I wouldnt see 2+2 or any other forums I take part in. I totally cleaned off my bookshelf of over 40 poker books and put my Cardplayer mags in a box in the garage. I was goign to purge myself of poker and was not going to be tempted. The first week was terrible, I was so board and life seemed so slow that I was aching to get back in action, afterall I had a huge nut in the back from UB and my bankroll was over 50k for first time since I started (I withdrew weekly to live, keeping only my small bankroll active). The Friday of the first week came and Cardplayer mag came in the mail, I was dying to open it but did not. I started going to a work out place with my girlfriend and got into lifting weights and doing cardio, someting I never really did since highschool football (no I wasnt all county in 1995). I started going out with my girlfriend and got laid a lot more as I actually went to bed when she did instead of 4am or so after a long session. I found reading really kept my mind active and bought all of the Dan Brown books and read them slowly for maximum enjoyment. All in all I made some serious changes in my life during the break, I got healthier, improved my relationship, got laid more, found a love of reading novels, and oh yeah got laid more. I just started playing again this week and while I was a little rusty, my game seems pretty much the same. I had a huge session at party this week and even dragged a 1k pot with Ace high in PLO8 and the 10 20 plo8 game. My advice to anyone wanting to take a break or hitting a bad patch is to do so. Poker for all practical purposes will be here when you get back. You owe it to yourself to be at the top of your game and most pros will take a break when they need to, if you are going to be at the top level you need to be focused as well and not in a rut. If your hitting a bad patch remember that all of us do, if your seeing countless bad beats remeber it has happend to all of us. Poker does not hate you, poker does not have it in for you, but if you beleive you will win every session you play, ever race you get involved in, every hand your 74 to 26 favorite in, then you need to find another game because the element of luck is ever present. Remember luck is the only factor that keeps bad players playing you, and consider if there was no luck in poker "Phil Hellmuth would win every hand" LOL Hope this helps someone out there Bender

[NickTheKid 0]

Welcome to the forumGreat Post.

[elkang 0]

Definitely good to take a break when you need it. Many people don't follow this advice and play badly (overweak or overagressive) and continue to have a bad run of cards.Even better to not need to take a break. I find myself in the former category. I like to play when I'm eager and not just grinding.

[Hawk21 0]

Excellent Post Benderqueen. I find if I dont take a break once in a while my game actually gets worse. Good to gather your thoughts after a long session as well and take some notes about high and low points.

[muckrake 0]

Its funny that I found this just now. I certainly feel like a break is in order. I went on a big run for about 2 weeks and luckily withdrew a majority of my winnings leaving about 1k to play with. considering I started with just $100 almost 1 1/2 years ago and was cashing out about 200-300 per week just playing in the evenings, leaving any extra winnings to grow the bankroll. Then about 1 month ago I had a big couple of weeks. It seemed that I could not lose at the MTT's that I played. I took many with 1st or second and raked in several thousand over the course of about 2 weeks.Like I said before, i felt like it was a good run and withdrew all but $1000 to play with. Then suddenly over the last few weeks I cannot seem to win anything. I make it deep into the Tourneys and then the HUGE beats come. So I have slowly dwindled the 1k down to about $100 with hardly any finishes in the money (with the exception of a few single and 2 table SnG's).Thanks for the post. It comes at a perfect time for me to take a much needed break. I'm sure not only will I feel better, but my wife will surely be happy as well.Thanks for taking the time to write it.

[jayboogie 0]

I'm on a terrible downswing myself. Probably have lost the last 7 or 8 sessions that I've played. Often times I play different games or take a short break when this happens. When you get rivered repeatedly over and over and get hit by longshot draws all night long, there's only so much control you can have to not tilt the least bit. I think every player tilts and the important thing is to realize when your doing it so you can stop yourself or at least minimize the damage done.I don't take breaks too often though, most of the time I play through the rough stretches because it's a challenge for myself to improve and get better. I just try to handle my beats like a pro, because shit happens. Nobody is going to win all the time and it's not realistic to expect to either. I think if you don't play through the rough stretches, you won't have the confidence to break yourself out of it when you do start running bad. I've done it several times and have run bad several times, so I know that it's just part of the game and soon enough I'll be crushing my games again. I'd encourage trying to play through it when your running bad unless your playing much worst than your usual A game, this will give you more confidence in your own abilities. Everyone knows how to play the game when they're scooping pot after pot, but it's a lil harder when your taking beat after beat.

[Benderqueen 0]

After this many years of play, one thing im certain of is online poker can overtake your life...you have to be able to find balance hope my post helps you find yours

[LAPoker 0]

This is the exact reason why I have not been playing much this month. I really want to be well rested for the WSOP. The few sessions that I have played have been great, and the majority of tournements I am making it into the top 20 or so out of 500 - 1000 people. I definitely find that the rest helps my game, as much as playing 24 X 7 worsens it.

[idiotbocs 0]

first, i think breaks are a bad idea. just make sure you're playing good.if you are bored, tilting, etc. then an hour long break might be what you need. I dont think breaks are a good idea. vacations are different.

[Marchione 0]

great post !!!I think just about everyone who plays can relate !When i lived in london england i didnt play online for 13 months and loved it !!(ming you i did play once or twice a month in a (B&M) it was refreshing to see the sunlight and do social things with my G/F and friends well writen !!!

[awnex 0]

Well I have been only playing online holdem for about 6 months now after playing a minimal of 10+ hours everday with play money finally stepped into real money play with $25NL I played horribly over and over again I was down $-450 but finally I stepped up my game and balanced back out to $0 then upto $400 then I banked after an amazing turn around. I stopped for about a month and recently started playing again about two weeks ago.... I was up to $300 playing every day either it be play money games/tournaments or real money sit-n-go or tournies.... considering I only had a $300 bank roll I lost two $50NL games in a row so I was down to $200 then entered a $20 buy-in tournament... didnt pick up ne money from that and then ended up losing another three $50NL and a $25NL I have no Idea where in the hell I went wrong I was doing so good... i think my mindset was Im GOING TO WIN! now my bank roll is back to $0 I do want to become a true rounder... I just think I need a lot more experience or maybe just a bigger bank roll.... any opinions? Or maybe another break.

[TheIceman05 0]

Congrats on getting laid more often. My solution was similar. In order to get laid more often, I PRETENDED to take a break from poker "just for you, baby." It worked. I was happier. My pen15 was happier. And my game was just the same as always. Congrats on getting laid more often.Ice

[Sushiman 0]

You played 10+ hours a day for play money? :shock: I would imagine that hurts your skills more than anything.

[ajbarb3 0]

I feel inspired... I've hit a bad patch lately and definately could use a break. I am going to Vegas to watch a friend play in the main event and to play in one of the $1000 buy in events. Unless I win...lol... I think a break is in order. Plus it wouldn't hurt to get laid more either...

[dscoot 0]

Hey all, I see a lot of posts especially in this area of the forum dealing with should I quit, should I take a break, and various questions all asking essentially the same thing. I have played online since 1999 and started on Planet and eventually pokerroom. I played literally 7-10 hours a day every single day, only exception being funerals which I got home and had session after. You could say I was obsessed, or you could say I was dedicated. About 4 months ago I went on biggest run of my life at Ultimate Bet, I was up 24k in less then 3 weeks and I dont play over 5 10 NL or PLO. I cashed out and decided I was going to take a break. I uninstalled all poker sites from my computer (9) at the time, and got rid of my history so I wouldnt see 2+2 or any other forums I take part in. I totally cleaned off my bookshelf of over 40 poker books and put my Cardplayer mags in a box in the garage. I was goign to purge myself of poker and was not going to be tempted. The first week was terrible, I was so board and life seemed so slow that I was aching to get back in action, afterall I had a huge nut in the back from UB and my bankroll was over 50k for first time since I started (I withdrew weekly to live, keeping only my small bankroll active). The Friday of the first week came and Cardplayer mag came in the mail, I was dying to open it but did not. I started going to a work out place with my girlfriend and got into lifting weights and doing cardio, someting I never really did since highschool football (no I wasnt all county in 1995). I started going out with my girlfriend and got laid a lot more as I actually went to bed when she did instead of 4am or so after a long session. I found reading really kept my mind active and bought all of the Dan Brown books and read them slowly for maximum enjoyment. All in all I made some serious changes in my life during the break, I got healthier, improved my relationship, got laid more, found a love of reading novels, and oh yeah got laid more. I just started playing again this week and while I was a little rusty, my game seems pretty much the same. I had a huge session at party this week and even dragged a 1k pot with Ace high in PLO8 and the 10 20 plo8 game. My advice to anyone wanting to take a break or hitting a bad patch is to do so. Poker for all practical purposes will be here when you get back. You owe it to yourself to be at the top of your game and most pros will take a break when they need to, if you are going to be at the top level you need to be focused as well and not in a rut. If your hitting a bad patch remember that all of us do, if your seeing countless bad beats remeber it has happend to all of us. Poker does not hate you, poker does not have it in for you, but if you beleive you will win every session you play, ever race you get involved in, every hand your 74 to 26 favorite in, then you need to find another game because the element of luck is ever present. Remember luck is the only factor that keeps bad players playing you, and consider if there was no luck in poker "Phil Hellmuth would win every hand" LOL Hope this helps someone out there Bender

hey i just scored a good one at an ub o/hilo 1500 gaurantee 10 dollar entry, so yeah im taking a day off or two . but its also good to take a break after u lose as well.

[Dixie Wrecked 0]

i've decided to take a break too recently after running bad. For exampele, losing to a 1 outer on the river when I had him all in on the turn, he had trip 7's I had a full house 8's full of 7's and he caught that last 7 on the river :x . So, just recently getting married, inheriting 2 stepkids, buying a new house, buying a new minivan :doh: , and filling the new house with furniture, all things considered along with the downswing, I figure I will wait till I have $1200 to spare until I hit the casino again to play some 2/4 or 3/6. I will play a few online tourny's but online cash games are too boring.

[Pupsta 0]

i'm currently contemplating a break...i don't think there's a more frustrating combination than playing well and running bad...i'm 0 for my last 6 coinflips, mostly to knock me out of tourneys...just busted 19th in the greatfull red on fulltilt when 18 pay, AQ vs KQ, K spikes on river...lost almost a buyin at .5/1 plo8 when a donk pushed my pot bet when he had no reason to be in the hand on the turn, and hit one of his few outs on the river...just feels like nothing i do is right in the last week, so maybe a break is good. sorry for posting this post like a bad beat story, just needed to vent a bit.

[vonteego3 0]

Fantastic post, Bender. I've recently managed to step away from a bad run myself... with the exception of the occasional free-roll, of course (my BR on pokerchamps is up to almost 3 bucks after taking 20th in a $35 freeroll and then tripling up at .02/.04 NL!) but I realized that when seeing AK lose to AQ more often than Rip Hamilton travels and seeing AA lose to more underdogs than Mike Tyson starts to affect my attitude and my daily life, it's time to step back, get everything else straightened back up, and then jump back in when I remember why I started playing poker in the first place. So for now, it's time to concentrate on getting through the last 9 months of my AF enlistment, graduating from UTSA in the spring, cleaning up my finances so I don't have to worry about anything when I start law school next fall, and the thing I'm absolutely the most proud of... this gorgeous 2 year old dog that I'm bringing home from the shelter tomorrow to help her get over her tremendous fear of humans due to some dickhead abusing her.Again, great words of encouragement... makes it a little easier when my friends say "what do you mean, you're not gonna play tonight?"And hey... taking a break leaves me more time to bless this forum with my witty banter! wahoo! :wink:Oh, and finally... GO SPURS GO!

[angler 0]

Awesome post. I set aside two times a day when I play and I have finally learned that if I don't really itch to play, I don't. I suppose getting laid is better than getting paid sometimes, lol.

[Sushiman 0]

Well I have been only playing online holdem for about 6 months now after playing a minimal of 10+ hours everday with play money finally stepped into real money play with $25NL I played horribly over and over again I was down $-450 but finally I stepped up my game and balanced back out to $0 then upto $400 then I banked after an amazing turn around. I stopped for about a month and recently started playing again about two weeks ago.... I was up to $300 playing every day either it be play money games/tournaments or real money sit-n-go or tournies.... considering I only had a $300 bank roll I lost two $50NL games in a row so I was down to $200 then entered a $20 buy-in tournament... didnt pick up ne money from that and then ended up losing another three $50NL and a $25NL I have no Idea where in the hell I went wrong I was doing so good... i think my mindset was Im GOING TO WIN! now my bank roll is back to $0 I do want to become a true rounder... I just think I need a lot more experience or maybe just a bigger bank roll.... any opinions? Or maybe another break.

That is not running badly. You were playing way way out of your BR with the tournaments and SNGs. With $100-200 left you should be playing microlimits, certainly not $50 NL games.

[AceOfSpaiDs 0]

Good post man, I can relate to your story in a lot of ways....I been slowing down playing poker, and its good. When I play its because I want to, so I've noticed I've been playing better. My live games arent as active with my friends anymore, since everyone (including me) has picked up full-time jobs during the week and the weekends are filled with parties. The part about going 2 bed @ 4am is somethin I can relate too, I dont know how many nights my girl went 2 bed early and I stayed up playing online poker. I still look forward to getting my cardplayer and watching poker on TV whenever its on (we need WSOP 05' soon, im sick of 04' reruns), and whenever I get the urge to play and I cant find a game or get tired of online poker, I read mags or find articles on Mike Caro's website. Going to the casino is fun, I've won quite a bit of $$$$ playing Limit $2/$4 HE, but it can get expensive (especially when u go with 3-4 friends who spend a sh!tload of time at the bar), so I've cut down on going there. Anyways, good post bro

[Egarim 0]

WOW. This makes me feel a lot better. I've been on a 2 1/2 week slideeee... big slide. Every river... every allin... i couldn't win. Everytime i got deep in a tourney i would take a HUGE beat. It's been horribly frustrating. I'm going to try to play through it though. I read DN's article about rough stretches and that inspired me too. I basically got out of it that the great players show their true skill by playing well through rough stretches. The bad runs build character and show how good a poker player u really are.Well... i was on a 2.5k slide... which is a lot for me. Then sunday night i pulled in 1600 by finishing 38th out of 2000 in the 350k guranteed. I was pretty disappointed, but happy to break the slump. Seeing all these people post about being in a bad stretch has helped me put everything into perspective. I need to see that poker has no memory. It's not out to get me or purposely give me bad beats constantly ( although it does seem that way).... I just keep saying to myself poker has no memory. Keep playing well and it will come.

[solo319 0]

Great post im totaly frustrated right now myself. I started off really hot this month.(for me) Ive had 4-6k come and go this month but im up about 1700 for the three weeks so i guess i shouldnt complain. Ive had so many hands cracked latley its completly frustrated me and ive started taking risks i would never take and its killing me. Im def due for a break. Nice post and congrats on a nice run!

[Benderqueen 0]

appreciate all the nice comments the 2+2 fellas and I dont get along as me and one of their degenerates got into it once over a statement about me winning enough in 1 session to pay off my cadillac, I was not bragging just sharing info like they do all time. THIS is my new home!