Disillusioned

[Nade]

Just posting for some advice from you good people - when i've needed advice in the past people have always come up with the goods :) Basically, things haven't gone to plan so far this year in the area where i was looking to make most money which is cash - about $100 down, which isn't a big deal on its own its just im running bad and not playing v well so it's frustrating and causing me frustration and stress which leads me to think is it worth it? Not sure i've got better things to be doing than trying to make money (maybe Uni work :unsure) but i don't know about this whole poker malarky at the moment, it's not motivation, i've been really motivated all year but only way i can describe it is things haven't 'clicked'. I've also been torn as to what form to play if not cash - the SNGs i've played i'm about break even, the MTT i'm miles up due to the big cash in the paddypower game. So should i concentrate more on MTT where i've had success in the few i've played? Only thing is i know they're very high variance and so dedicating a lot of money to play them doesn't appeal to me at all, in fact i only play the focus games for BPP points! The SNGs - the level i play at $5/$10 isn't enough to make a decent bit of money so just play them for fun really. For the first time i'm sort of thinking of packing it in - become a 'normal' student again with a crap job or whatever. But then again the addiction is there so i know i'd still want to play, but perhaps on a smaller scale and ultimately the question 'What if' would always be in my mind if i quit. Heads a bit fuzzy at the moment, i'm disillusioned, don't know what to do .. :unsure

[friskyfitz]

Re: Disillusioned O.K - Heres an option that might interest you if you have the patience. LIMIT poker.... I find that at $1/$2 levels, the standard of play is better but you can easily grind results. Its not as aggressive as NL in general but the muppets that do exist are easily spotted and unless you are really ulucky, you can catch them much easier. I turned a $50 buy-in into $198 in less than 2 hours last night and Im really not a dencent player TBH. I was trying it out as Ive just lost most of my love for NL at the moment. I play mostly Omaha now. just a thought!

[SteveO]

Re: Disillusioned Don't play limit Nade you're an action player and you'll lose heart all together. Take a break and play some low level PL omaha much more fun and a lot of terrible players.

[Tweetypie05]

Re: Disillusioned

Don't play limit Nade you're an action player and you'll lose heart all together. Take a break and play some low level PL omaha much more fun and a lot of terrible players.

Absolutely agree. The PL Omaha at low stakes is full of fish (I am one) and can be fun... lots of hands to play so plenty of action. Good luck with what you decide. Sometimes a break is all you need to get the desire back. :ok

[Valiant23]

Re: Disillusioned I think the key when you're having a bad run is to be bothered but not let it bother you and as easy as it sounds it takes a lot of mental strength for some to be like that. Eventually you kind of accept that the money doesn't matter and if you're getting your chips in in the right situations then eventually things will turn in your favour. If you're not prepared to accept this then there is absolutely no harm in taking a break. You can either take a complete break or try your hand at a variant.

[Chanso]

Re: Disillusioned I know exactly how you feel Nade , I have taken a few months of because of my head being up my arse and I still have no Idea what I'm doing wrong. Spoke to Fenners and a couple of other PPlrs they say that I should be more patient and when I get a descent hand play more aggresively. Every time I raise aggresively I get called even when I have a good hand and lose. Poker luck is like buses nowt for ages then 2 at once

[friskyfitz]

Re: Disillusioned Are people that much against Limit ??? Dont see why...

[Valiant23]

Re: Disillusioned I'm not, honest. :D I prefer playing 'other' limit poker but I like limit hold em too. I think that maybe some NL players don't quite appreciate the intricacies and think cos they're dealt AA they should 3 bet to the river.

[ubermonkey1]

Re: Disillusioned i agree with tweety about omaha:ok pl omaha is a great way to relieve a bit of holdem tension and it's also a good way to practise post flop play . pl is a good way to practise pot building as well so it should help your holdem game as well as providing a bit of a change:dude if you really feel daring play some hilo as its always a good game for action junkies and quite a refreshing change from the fold fold fold fold push mentality that you get in holdem which can become very boring. i myself have gone through similar spells of discontent as it can get a bit dull grinding out results and sometimes you get one of those runs that you are going to keep losing even though you are playing pretty well,in fact it feels like the dealer has some grudge against you:puke usually its a good idea to at least have a few weeks break if you have lost your confidence as it will be effecting your game which causes a bit of a vicious circle which is not good. if you feel the poker bug itching read a book or watch some quality players on tv or the net,this may help to regain some self belief if you see that your peers are doing the same thing you would do and your not on the wrong track:ok then if you still feel like you want to play start off slowly play some different stuff and have some fun . dont get caught up in too many leagues/points scoring events that last for long periods these really can make you feel like a slave to the game which doesnt help if your not enjoying it . i'm not saying dont play leagues but limit yourself to a couple of nights that you will be playing not pretty much every night,that way the other nights you play if and when you fancy it . most of all make sure whatever you are going to play you must want to win ,playing for fun is not an attitude that is going to get you a decent income from sngs etc, every one should be serious or you will lose far to many buy ins with a "its only $5 attitude " better to play a few games seriously than play loads because you feel you have to and dont concentrate ,this will throw away your profit in the long run. thing is with this is you wont make a million quid playing $5/$10sngs but if you build up enough to get up to $20games and so on and so on then you can start thinking about making some decent money:dude but if you arent going to play 100% you wont get past the $5/$10 games .it aint a quick process but it can be worth it . even if you scale down your play you can still make a decent amount doing something you enjoy, and there aren't many people that have that opportunity . so i definately wouldnt give up ,theres always the chance of something really big round the corner as runadrum has shown recently:ok

[Tom Hedonist]

Re: Disillusioned

its just im running bad and not playing v well

Same thing happened to me in cash games at about the end of Nov/start of December. I was playing too loose and at the same time a fair few genuine hands were cracked. TBH the ratio of stupidity to bad luck was probably about 5/2 in favour of stupidity. :$ By the time the Xmas fortnight came along, I was utterly fed up with the whole shebang and stopped playing cash games altogether. I didn't start playing again until 4th Jan. The time off gave me the chance to examine whether I wanted to play anymore, or quit now with a profit. Before I decided to carry on, I dl'ed a couple of poker shows and that caused me to think more about my own game and work out what had changed me from a month on month winner, to someone who was leaking money left, right and centre. January was good for me and so far February has been even better. I feel as though I've got my 'old game' back. I'm much more confident and so its no surprise that my interest has returned. Nade, have a couple of weeks off fellah. Try and find something totally different to occupy your time. Maybe watch a couple of poker shows once your feeling strong enough :lol By Steak and BJ Day, you'll be back to tearing up the tables :ok

[happyhornet]

Re: Disillusioned Nade, I can empathise completely. I was in a similar spot only a few weeks ago, and posted here for advice. I was running bad, and it was getting me down. As expected, I got a good but varied response of suggestions. For me, I took a few days off, then looked at the hand histories of my recent games. As with Tom above, I found that as my 'bad' run went on, my calls got worse (and I'm pretty useless to start with!!), and confidence dropped. I went back to basics playing ABC poker, got the feel back. Now I feel better about my game than ever before. You'll be fine. If cash is where you are best, I would personally stick with it, but take a break first.:ok Good luck:hope

[glceud]

Re: Disillusioned

it's frustrating and causing me frustration and stress which leads me to think is it worth it? Not sure i've got better things to be doing than trying to make money :unsure

Thats the $60,000,000 question. I've been doing this for 7 years now and the only reason I do is its the only way I have of making money. Its a crap, time consuming, unhealthy existence and I wouldnt wish it on any one. I suggest you go and do studenty things to the max as these are(according to millions) the best days of your life. Play the odd game for fun but dont let it take over your life.

[Nade]

Re: Disillusioned Thanks for help guys, a supreme range of ideas and ways to tackle the situation. :ok Had virtually a day off and my mind feels clearer already and i think with a couple more days rest i should be mentally ready to take on the enemy again.

O.K - Heres an option that might interest you if you have the patience. LIMIT poker....

The limited experience i had with limit was in the HORSE tourneys and it really isn't for me, it's so frustratingly restrains the play.

play some low level PL omaha much more fun and a lot of terrible players.

Absolutely agree. The PL Omaha at low stakes is full of fish (I am one) and can be fun... lots of hands to play so plenty of action. Good luck with what you decide. Sometimes a break is all you need to get the desire back. :ok

Will considerate it, just at v low stakes though for the craic to loosen the belt a bit :tongue2

I think the key when you're having a bad run is to be bothered but not let it bother you and as easy as it sounds it takes a lot of mental strength for some to be like that. Eventually you kind of accept that the money doesn't matter and if you're getting your chips in in the right situations then eventually things will turn in your favour.

Yeh the last few months i've been excellent at not going on tilt, in fact most times i've taken a bad beat for a wadge of cash my heart rate hasn't even risen, i do just think over the course i'll win more then lose if the same happened which helps. Ultimately though it builds and it gets deflating which is where i'm at. Just need to progress to the really not bothered stage and just continue to grind like a robot day after day no matter what.

I know exactly how you feel Nade , I have taken a few months of because of my head being up my arse and I still have no Idea what I'm doing wrong. Spoke to Fenners and a couple of other PPlrs they say that I should be more patient and when I get a descent hand play more aggresively. Every time I raise aggresively I get called even when I have a good hand and lose. Poker luck is like buses nowt for ages then 2 at once

Aye, i know i'm playing too loose at this moment, maybe trying to force the issue, and even though i know people continue to call i continue to try and play fancy stuff which is stupid at the levels i play. The thing is i have a fool proof strategy for making money on the low levels up to 25/50c but at the moment can't stick to it as it's based around ABC and when i do stray i seem to get the fingers burnt every time thus re-inforcing my 'fool proof strategy' Just a matter of getting the head clear and getting back to grinding.

most of all make sure whatever you are going to play you must want to win ,playing for fun is not an attitude that is going to get you a decent income from sngs etc, every one should be serious or you will lose far to many buy ins with a "its only $5 attitude " better to play a few games seriously than play loads because you feel you have to and dont concentrate ,this will throw away your profit in the long run. thing is with this is you wont make a million quid playing $5/$10sngs but if you build up enough to get up to $20games and so on and so on then you can start thinking about making some decent money:dude but if you arent going to play 100% you wont get past the $5/$10 games .it aint a quick process but it can be worth it . even if you scale down your play you can still make a decent amount doing something you enjoy, and there aren't many people that have that opportunity . so i definately wouldnt give up ,theres always the chance of something really big round the corner as runadrum has shown recently:ok

All v good points, just want to pick up on the SNGs - That's what i try and think when playing the SNG's, only problem is i haven't mastered multi-tabling at all, for some reason struggle to do more than one which is a big hinderance :\

Same thing happened to me in cash games at about the end of Nov/start of December. I was playing too loose and at the same time a fair few genuine hands were cracked. TBH the ratio of stupidity to bad luck was probably about 5/2 in favour of stupidity. :$ By the time the Xmas fortnight came along, I was utterly fed up with the whole shebang and stopped playing cash games altogether. I didn't start playing again until 4th Jan. The time off gave me the chance to examine whether I wanted to play anymore, or quit now with a profit. Before I decided to carry on, I dl'ed a couple of poker shows and that caused me to think more about my own game and work out what had changed me from a month on month winner, to someone who was leaking money left, right and centre.

Nade, I can empathise completely. I was in a similar spot only a few weeks ago, and posted here for advice. I was running bad, and it was getting me down. As expected, I got a good but varied response of suggestions. For me, I took a few days off, then looked at the hand histories of my recent games. As with Tom above, I found that as my 'bad' run went on, my calls got worse (and I'm pretty useless to start with!!), and confidence dropped. I went back to basics playing ABC poker, got the feel back. Now I feel better about my game than ever before. You'll be fine. If cash is where you are best, I would personally stick with it, but take a break first.:ok Good luck:hope

Yup i'm playing too loose too, need to have a look at the HH the next couple of days to just confirm it in my mind and give myself a slap at where i'm just chucking money down the drain right in front of my eyes, and it will also help to clear the mind a bit.

Thats the $60,000,000 question. I've been doing this for 7 years now and the only reason I do is its the only way I have of making money. Its a crap, time consuming, unhealthy existence and I wouldnt wish it on any one. I suggest you go and do studenty things to the max as these are(according to millions) the best days of your life. Play the odd game for fun but dont let it take over your life.

It really can be a bit of a bummer but i love the freedom of earning my money this way as opposed to having to get up like some of my mates at 7am for a morning part time shift in Marks&Sparks or whatever. Will though continue to enjoy student life for all its perks, though hate the course i'm on which doesn't help :( -------------------------- Again, thanks for all the points, pretty much the plan of action is going to be chill out, study the HH, have a think, chill out, get in the right mindset and get back to grinding, build slowly not expecting miracles and things will fit into place over time. Appreciate the thoughts guys, Cheers :ok [sorry for deleting parts of peoples posts, all great points :)]

[robsterling]

Re: Disillusioned

It really can be a bit of a bummer but i love the freedom of earning my money this way as opposed to having to get up like some of my mates at 7am for a morning part time shift in Marks&Sparks or whatever. Will though continue to enjoy student life for all its perks, though hate the course i'm on which doesn't help :(

That's me down to a tee ha ha Any luck getting through the disillusionment? I would suggest playing 6 handed instead of full ring at cash (if full ring is what you play I think I remember you posting a few hands of it). I personally find full ring really boring since I switched and before only played it because I was winning so was happy. But I think 6 max is better for a few reasons, you play more hands, so get more interesting situations so become better and it's a more aggressive game and being aggressive is a fun. I definitely agree with the other guys changing up what you play will help you improve and refind your interest if you want to. Good luck

[Nade]

Re: Disillusioned Just had a gander at 5/10c 5 handed - Sat tight for about 25hands didn't play a hand then get KQo raise 4BB get 2 callers flop comes 3K5 rainbow - All money in on turn against Mr loose - turns out he had 3,5o. If it's standard play to call with this kind of stuff pre flop then short handed really isn't the game for me :eyes

[Tom Hedonist]

Re: Disillusioned

Just had a gander at 5/10c 5 handed - Sat tight for about 25hands didn't play a hand then get KQo raise 4BB get 2 callers flop comes 3K5 rainbow - All money in on turn against Mr loose - turns out he had 3' date='5o. If it's standard play to call with this kind of stuff pre flop then short handed really isn't the game for me :eyes[/quote'] If you can play 25 hands before getting involved, then switch back to full ring immediately! That's a winning game :ok I think a move to short handed, at this time, is a mistake. (No offence, robsterling). You need to rediscover your game, not discover a new game. I've done this myself, and the problem is that just at a time when I'm swearing I'll play tighter, I begin playing a game that demands I play loose. Eventually, I think us full ring players will have to make the move to short handed, if we want to keep moving forward. But I'd rather do it when I feel I'm playing my A game, than when I'm trying to discover where I am. (And I say this as someone who is playing 0.05/0.10 :rollin)

[Nade]

Re: Disillusioned Yeh i think the fact i managed such a length of not playing a hand signals getting back on the right track. The reason i tried the short handed was because, as you alluded to, it's certainly something that i know in the future i'll have to be playing more of and was thinking of starting to play them anyway then it all went to pot really. Now the next problem is fixing my ******* securecode as those useless knobs at hsbc didn't have a clue what i was talking about - no it's only a securecode with their brand on it FFS (Though it wasn't all bad as the lass serving me was hot as!). I've had to do my own research and have found the securecode belongs to mastercard and so it seems i'll have to contact them but to say it's hard finding relevant contact details is a slight understatement :wall:wall I need to get a deposit in on PKR to start my year again - Decided this is where i'll play the cash games as i know the levels up to 50/1 inside out, it's just a matter of staying diciplined then the moolah should flood in once again.