Advice please........

[Guest gazza271]

I'm a troubled person :sad (poker wise) Been playing for about a year and a half now and consider myself an ok player, I know I am never going to be as good as most people on here but I can honestly say I dont mind that. I really dont, honest. For me the biggest crack has always been the camaraderi (spelling ?) of Punters Lounge. I have learnt a lot,made some good buddies and had a damn good laugh along the way. I initally use about £80 - £100 of my own money in deposits and have not deposited since, I built up a small bankroll and that has sustained my poker days, It even payed for an xbox360 package (about £400) and still left me a few quid in neTeller and I was well happy with that. I was playing MTT's and would occasionally make the money, cash tables I would make a small profit if I kept my discipline and played tight but I managed to build my bankroll up playing STT's and more recently HU games. The problem starts here............... for the last 3 - 4 months I have been having a really bad spell. Most of you know me and also know that I don't post on the bad beat thread etc but for these last few months you would not believe the luck that is going against me. I could honestly fill the bad beat thread myself. Tonight has been especially bad and the amount of times I have been beaten on the river has been maddening :wall I know people will post about having lean spells etc but fcuk me we are talking about 3 - 4 months now. What I am also finding myself doing is instead of dropping a level I have stuck at my level or even moved up a level "chasing" those wins/placings and now finding myself in the posion where my bankroll has dwindled right down. Its got to the stage where my poker is not really enjoyable anymore :( , I feel I'm under pressure to get my bankroll back up, I dont want to be playing with my money, I want to use the sites/other peoples money but the more i play the more bad beats I seem to come up against. I know some people will talk about bad spells but jeez 3- 4 months!!!! Facts that go against me; never got around to reading the poker books, started on SS2 but that made my game worse :( . Odds and value - Ihave never been one for this,have always been an "instinct" player and dont really understand +/- ev and % etc. Is this where I am going wrong ??????? Do I need to study ????? For me poker was always fun and making a few quid was a bonus. I dont expect to make a million from poker but I do expect to make enough so that I do not have to play with my own money. The day it starts costing me £££££'s of my own money will be the day I walk away from poker for good. Tonight I have been really depressed about my poker and then I decide to (rightly or wrongly) have a couple more goes at something like the partypoker million qualifiers. 2 goes this afternoon I had so on the 2nd attempt tonight I win the 10 seat STT and qaulify and all the good feelings come flooding back BUT thats just 1 game I've won. Another point is the missus gets a bit pissed off at the amount of time I spend playing poker. I can see her point because it is most nights and the nights I do play then its just about the whole night gone. I love my wife and I've got a beautiful daughter and I do spend time with them but is it enough ? Do i spend to much time on poker, am I addicted ?? I've gone on a bit here so sorry but for the last 3 -4 months my poker has not been fun :( Where do I go from here ?? My bankroll is down low, my confidence is shot and I hav'nt had a decent money finish for as long as I can remember. Poker is almost a chore for me at moment. Aside from that I love the atmosphere/people/humour of PL and nothing will change that. The people I have met have been fantastic and there are several of you (you know who you are) that i would class as great mates. Do I forget my bankroll and carry on ? Do i just play freerolls ? Do i walk away from poker for a couple of months ? Give me some advice please people, you are all my friends and I welcome your views :ok

[Galronix]

Re: Advice please........ Gazza... Let my say please do not get deppressed over it mate. I am about the same level as yourself. I don't seem to win much these days and probably lose more than I win. Most of the time I play for the fun that can be had against this lot in here. Over the last few months I have had a rough time with one thing and another and my game has suffered because of it. To the point of not bothering anymore. I have found to my amazement that the people on here won't let you leave because they care about you. I have never found anywhere like this on the internet in the 8 years I've been using it. I think you need to take some time off from poker and forget about it for a while. I tried to make a clean break of it but coudn't keep away. Just hang around and don't play poker. Join in the chat and most of all read a poker book because if your like me you just may find where you are going wrong. As for +/- ev and % etc, don't worry about it, I'm just getting my head round pot odds. :lol It may come as a suprise but I have only won 1 MTT in all the 3 years I've been playing and that was a qualifier for the MKOP. Chin up mate because I for one consider you a mate and a good laugh. Get yourself and the misses to Worcester in October. :ok I've babbled on tooooo long. G