Sometimes You Hate It
I play poker as kind of a part-time job. I do all right for myself, pay for food, my utility bills, cable, books, etc. I used to love playing, at the casino, with my friends, or online. Even when I lost, I'd have fun.
Ever since I've started taking it seriously, it's become less fun. Sometimes, it is fucking miserable to play.
I'm a tight player, which means I only play good hands. Most of the time, I keep myself to top 10 hands (Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks, Tens, Nines, Eights, Sevens, Ace-King, Ace) which mans I'm folding somewhere around 93% of the time before the flop. I mix it up with mediocre hands if I'm in late position and the flop is cheap, or I'm getting good pot odds. However, I try to remain disciplined and stick only to top hands.
It's a winning strategy, because most players are bad and will play any hand. They also cannot fold a good hand when it is losing. They'll call a raise with King-Jack, hit a Jack, and pay me off when I have pocket Aces. Sometimes they get lucky and outdraw me, but I'm good enough now that I can fold top hands when they're beat. Not always, but enough.
The way I play is frustrating at times. I've gone through long periods of time without getting top hands. This happens once and awhile, and for my style, that means I have to fold. I've had sessions in which I've folded 99% of the time. I once went a stretch online and in the casino in which I didn't get a pocket pair higher than Nines for about 2,000 straight hands. When I finally got Jacks, I was up against Kings. That's frustrating.
What adds to the frustration is that you see morons playing any two suited cards getting lucky and winning massive pots. It's hard to just sit there and tell yourself to just wait.
It's frustrating to endure a long run of dry cards. But it is absolutely infuriating when you get good hands, but they still lose. Also, having dry cards and folding a lot means that you're at least not losing much money. When you get good hands and they get cracked, they usually cost you a good deal of cash.
This summer, I had pocket Kings, the second best starting hand in Hold Em, cracked 20 out of 25 times. Over that period, I lost about $2,000 with just that hand. Miraculously, I remained at about even overall. But Kings were killing me.
They lost in every way imaginable. There'd be an Ace on the flop, someone would have eights and flop three of a kind, someone would bluff all-in with an unpaired Ace then hit it on the turn.
It got to the point that when I looked at my cards and saw one King, I'd pray to myself that the second card wasn't a King. One night at Turning Stone, I lost with Kings twice and was so pissed off that I got in my car, and instead of driving to Ithaca, I drove to Massachusetts.
Anyway, that's how frustrating it can be sometimes. You can play perfectly, and still lose. Get all your money in there with the best hand, then get outdrawn. Sit and wait for cards that never come.
Tonight, I got that frustrated with poker. Cards sucked. Couldn't catch a break to save my life. I didn't want to play anymore. But I knew if I did, and consistently played well, things would turn out. I sat down online at a single table tournament and dominated it. I made great calls, great bluffs, great folds, and played really well. Finally, it had worked out.
Goes to show you. Plug away, keep doing what you gotta do, and it'll work out.
Ever since I've started taking it seriously, it's become less fun. Sometimes, it is fucking miserable to play.
I'm a tight player, which means I only play good hands. Most of the time, I keep myself to top 10 hands (Aces, Kings, Queens, Jacks, Tens, Nines, Eights, Sevens, Ace-King, Ace) which mans I'm folding somewhere around 93% of the time before the flop. I mix it up with mediocre hands if I'm in late position and the flop is cheap, or I'm getting good pot odds. However, I try to remain disciplined and stick only to top hands.
It's a winning strategy, because most players are bad and will play any hand. They also cannot fold a good hand when it is losing. They'll call a raise with King-Jack, hit a Jack, and pay me off when I have pocket Aces. Sometimes they get lucky and outdraw me, but I'm good enough now that I can fold top hands when they're beat. Not always, but enough.
The way I play is frustrating at times. I've gone through long periods of time without getting top hands. This happens once and awhile, and for my style, that means I have to fold. I've had sessions in which I've folded 99% of the time. I once went a stretch online and in the casino in which I didn't get a pocket pair higher than Nines for about 2,000 straight hands. When I finally got Jacks, I was up against Kings. That's frustrating.
What adds to the frustration is that you see morons playing any two suited cards getting lucky and winning massive pots. It's hard to just sit there and tell yourself to just wait.
It's frustrating to endure a long run of dry cards. But it is absolutely infuriating when you get good hands, but they still lose. Also, having dry cards and folding a lot means that you're at least not losing much money. When you get good hands and they get cracked, they usually cost you a good deal of cash.
This summer, I had pocket Kings, the second best starting hand in Hold Em, cracked 20 out of 25 times. Over that period, I lost about $2,000 with just that hand. Miraculously, I remained at about even overall. But Kings were killing me.
They lost in every way imaginable. There'd be an Ace on the flop, someone would have eights and flop three of a kind, someone would bluff all-in with an unpaired Ace then hit it on the turn.
It got to the point that when I looked at my cards and saw one King, I'd pray to myself that the second card wasn't a King. One night at Turning Stone, I lost with Kings twice and was so pissed off that I got in my car, and instead of driving to Ithaca, I drove to Massachusetts.
Anyway, that's how frustrating it can be sometimes. You can play perfectly, and still lose. Get all your money in there with the best hand, then get outdrawn. Sit and wait for cards that never come.
Tonight, I got that frustrated with poker. Cards sucked. Couldn't catch a break to save my life. I didn't want to play anymore. But I knew if I did, and consistently played well, things would turn out. I sat down online at a single table tournament and dominated it. I made great calls, great bluffs, great folds, and played really well. Finally, it had worked out.
Goes to show you. Plug away, keep doing what you gotta do, and it'll work out.
posted by rob | 10:41 PM
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