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what do you do when you're on a downswing ??


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obviously aside from playing more poker, of course...read a poker book? read a book about something other than poker? watch a movie? watch tv? interact with other human beings? :shock: go for a walk? get drunk?i ask because im in a 2 day downswing.. which comes after a pretty good string of + NLHE sessions... and instead of walking away when i was down just a tad (relatively) i was stubborn and kept playing .. even though i knew i wasnt playing my A game and i was on tilt some... anyway i ended up losing more, of course, quite a bit more, but not a huge impact on my BR... still an impactso yeah, back to my question, what do you guys do when this happen? do you just set a certain number of BBs or buyins you can lose, then quit? or when you feel you're playing relatively poorly, do you have the sense to walk away?appreciate your feedback !!

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I know it sounds dumb, but if I am in a downswing I will analyze my game, thinking about things such as "am I giving off major tells?" and then Ill watch some poker on TV and try and see what the pros do, hand after hand, to not show any tells. Usually by this point Ive focused on this area so much (which really doesnt matter because I am not playing with experts) that whatever problems with my game work themselves out.I always remind myself that the reason I play poker is to make money. And nothing else.

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I always remind myself that the reason I play poker is to make money. And nothing else.
Really?Do you play professionally or something?Making money for me is more of a side effect than anything else. A nice side effect.
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so yeah, back to my question, what do you guys do when this happen? do you just set a certain number of BBs or buyins you can lose, then quit? or when you feel you're playing relatively poorly, do you have the sense to walk away?
Nowadays, when I'm in a downswing that starts pissing me off, I fall back to one table only and reread a book while playing, usually SSHE. When I'm certain no new leaks have appeared in my game, I slowly go back to multitabling. I never take a break while in a downswing. That pisses me off too much.
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To be perfectly honest w/ you, I don't take a break in a downswing...Poker is like the rest of life: The more you play, the more the pendulum swings back and forth. Sometimes it swings violently, sometimes not so much, but it is ALWAYS swinging one way or the other. When I'm in a "bad swing," I try to tighten up a little(the donks can't tell), play fewer tables, and just wait out the swing until the cards come back. You'll know when they do because your checks from the BB will hit weird stuff or you'll play a hand like 2nd pair to a small bet and, although you are scared of the board, you play it cheap, and you win a lucky hand.Just make sure you understand that a hot streak is coming soon and you MUST be there when it happens. Long story short...don't get so frustrated that you blow your chip stack and, therefore, don't survive to see the cards come back around....because they will, I promise.Good Luck!

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{stuff}Good Luck!
this reminds me of my Vegas Honeymoon.my boss tell me:"Let me tell you the secret to BlackJack. It's all about streaks. When you are in a Lose-Lose-Lose streak, reduce the size of your bets. But when you are in a Win-Win-Win streak, increase your bet size. The hardest times, are when you are in a Win-Win-Lose-Lose-Win-Lose, sorta streak. Good Luck"I was a waitor then, studying to be an ActuaryHe was in PreLaw.He passed the bar and now manages waitors again.even then, I thought what he said was funny.
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I would suggest learning another game and playing that at some lower limit to add some variety.This is not just for the effect of giving you a break mentally, but money can be won in other games too. And often without the typical downswings you'll experience in holdem.

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"I lost 4 hands in a row. I'm down. What do you all do when you can't win 1/4 hands? "come on! 2 days?also.... do you all measure downswings by the depth or width? With the help of graphing software now, to me, it's the width.

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To be perfectly honest w/ you, I don't take a break in a downswing...Poker is like the rest of life: The more you play, the more the pendulum swings back and forth. Sometimes it swings violently, sometimes not so much, but it is ALWAYS swinging one way or the other. When I'm in a "bad swing," I try to tighten up a little(the donks can't tell), play fewer tables, and just wait out the swing until the cards come back. You'll know when they do because your checks from the BB will hit weird stuff or you'll play a hand like 2nd pair to a small bet and, although you are scared of the board, you play it cheap, and you win a lucky hand.Just make sure you understand that a hot streak is coming soon and you MUST be there when it happens. Long story short...don't get so frustrated that you blow your chip stack and, therefore, don't survive to see the cards come back around....because they will, I promise.Good Luck!
This advice is only good if you are completely tilt free and can play your best game while losing due to running poorly. The majority of poker players do not fit this category which is why even very good players become break even players.
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Last big downswing I had was two days before the Clemson Carolina game. I went out and got wasted because I was bummed about 100 BB swing. Well anyway I went to the bar to watch the game, only to see Carolina **** it up beyond belief. That was it I just lost control I went to score two 8 balls of blow, then it was straight to the strip club. Since all the strippers know me as a high roller from my poker winnings, and since I had not won any that week I had to think of a plan fast. Well if there is one thing strippers love more than money, it is drugs. Thats where the blow came in. After that it was time to meet up with my fellow Carolina fans and mourn about our loss, and how we would totally make up for it at the bowl game(which of course we did not). At this point the last thing on my mind was poker, the only thing I was concerned about was getting my heartrate down, and making sure I did not succumb to alcohol poisoning. Around 4:00 am I get home, still ready to party, by myself. I logged onto pokerroom. I knew if I played the usual ring games I would lose my ass, so I registered for a $5 tourney. I'm not too good at tournament poker, and really much prefer the stabilty of cash games, but I thought what the hell. 4 hours later, barley alive I took it down and won $700 to put me positive for the week. So what should you do? I think you know the answer.

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Last big downswing I had was two days before the Clemson Carolina game. I went out and got wasted because I was bummed about 100 BB swing. Well anyway I went to the bar to watch the game, only to see Carolina censored it up beyond belief. That was it I just lost control I went to score two 8 balls of blow, then it was straight to the strip club. Since all the strippers know me as a high roller from my poker winnings, and since I had not won any that week I had to think of a plan fast. Well if there is one thing strippers love more than money, it is drugs. Thats where the blow came in. After that it was time to meet up with my fellow Carolina fans and mourn about our loss, and how we would totally make up for it at the bowl game(which of course we did not). At this point the last thing on my mind was poker, the only thing I was concerned about was getting my heartrate down, and making sure I did not succumb to alcohol poisoning. Around 4:00 am I get home, still ready to party, by myself. I logged onto pokerroom. I knew if I played the usual ring games I would lose my ass, so I registered for a $5 tourney. I'm not too good at tournament poker, and really much prefer the stabilty of cash games, but I thought what the hell. 4 hours later, barley alive I took it down and won $700 to put me positive for the week. So what should you do? I think you know the answer.
I thorougly enjoyed this story. Thank you.
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It depends on your mentality as a player. If you have trouble analyzing how you are playing honestly during a downswing, then you may need to set a limit for how much you can lose and stick to it. If you can be honest, then you just do what screech said and make a good decision. Or you can do what a lot of other players do and get into the Zen-like mentality. This mentality attempts to teach you to accept your losses and wins the same, and not be effected mentally by it. A good book for that would be Zen and the Art of Poker, by Larry W. Phillips.

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I usually just kick my girlfriends cat across the room a few times.Makes me feel better. But lately the little bugger sees me get mad at the computer and runs for his life, but I can usually find him. :twisted:

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