In order to be a poker player...
 

I saw a post somewhere ( I beleive it was on pocketfives) recently saying something along the lines of "In order to be a good poker player you need to be able to take a $100 bill and burn it". The point is you have to be able to remove yourself from the money aspect of the game and just make +EV decisons. However I thought this was the total opposite of the truth. As a poker player you need to make sure all your actions are going to be +EV in the long run, which burning a money obv is not. What do you guys think of this quote, and are there other (better) quotes that fit this thread title?

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

That statement is obviously just a metaphor. I've heard the same for any type of gambling. Basically if you can't go into a game with whatever your buy in is with the ability and knowledge that it can be gone and be ok with that then you can't play ANY game of chance. It's obvious that burning money is not a +EV move but then again, playing with scared money isn't either. It clouds judgement.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[ QUOTE ]
As a poker player you need to make sure all your actions are going to be +EV in the long run, which burning a money obv is not.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll bet you a thousand dollars you can't burn a hundred dollar bill.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

Put up the money, and you'll have yourself a bet.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

BURN BABY BURN

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[ QUOTE ]
Put up the money, and you'll have yourself a bet.

[/ QUOTE ]

Just making the point that burning money, contrary to OP's belief, can be +EV.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

Meh, hyperbole makes me want to go kill someone....

The point of course is at the table you should be able to disassociate the chips from the money they represent. That doesn't in any way preclude making EV calculations to try to win more of the clay chips. Just that you can't think (apologies to Sklansky and Miller) "I just lost 50 bucks! That's a new shirt!"

There are people who literally love gambling to show the money doesn't mean anything to them, and those are my favorite people to fleece at Foxwoods or the Borgata. You want conspicuous consumption, pal? I'll give a good gamble.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

haha i would love to see that but on a more serious note you can't let the stakes you are playing effect your judgment. You should play the same way and not be scared whether it is low or high limits....obv you have to change your strategy etc but the money involved shouldnt change this decision. If it does then you need to play lower stakes where you dont feel this way.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[ QUOTE ]
It's obvious that burning money is not a +EV move but then again, playing with scared money isn't either. It clouds judgement.

[/ QUOTE ]

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

Phil Ivey said that that would be the first line of his book if he were to write one on The Circuit.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

Wow, this post ties nicely to the smashing things post.

When I began playing I would often find myself knowingly making bad plays, crying calls, etc. After knowingly donking off $, I figured if it mattered that little to me I should go ahead and pull an equivalent amount out of my wallet and burn it, cause that's what my bad play was doing. I tried with a twenty once, but I couldn't go through with it. I did improve my play, tho.

Hadn't heard the quote b4, but makes good sense 2 me.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

I burnt a backpack full with bundles of $100 counterfeits right in front of some cops when a teenager.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[ QUOTE ]
I burnt a backpack full with bundles of $100 counterfeits right in front of some cops when a teenager.

[/ QUOTE ]

this is relevant?

edit: it's like burning play money.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

I think this pretty much covers it.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[/ QUOTE ]
this is relevant?


[/ QUOTE ]

No. But it's funny.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

i burnt the money in my wallet a year ago when i wasn't going to class at college

it didn't make me start going to class like i thought it would

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

a hundred dollar bill??

how about a 20...

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[ QUOTE ]
I saw a post somewhere ( I beleive it was on pocketfives) recently saying something along the lines of "In order to be a good poker player you need to be able to take a $100 bill and burn it". The point is you have to be able to remove yourself from the money aspect of the game and just make +EV decisons. However I thought this was the total opposite of the truth. As a poker player you need to make sure all your actions are going to be +EV in the long run, which burning a money obv is not. What do you guys think of this quote, and are there other (better) quotes that fit this thread title?

[/ QUOTE ]

In poker the chips are points, not dollars. You can't think of what's in front of you as being worth a Cadillac--doing so would have disastrous implications. You use those chips to do battle. You protect them, but at the same time you aren't afraid to lose them all in the right situation. If you've calculated that pushing all-in on the river as a bluff is a profitable play, even though your opponent will call sometimes, you know that you are going to lose that stack of chips sometimes. But you do it anyway.

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
As a poker player you need to make sure all your actions are going to be +EV in the long run, which burning a money obv is not.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll bet you a thousand dollars you can't burn a hundred dollar bill.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think the right scenario is: I bet you can't burn a hundred dollar bill. If you do and you then flip a (fair) coin three times in a row and each time it comes up tails, then I'll pay you $1000.

Assuming the bet is made in good faith, a good poker player should accept it (provided he has a sufficient bankroll).

In fact, the thinking is basically the same as what goes on when you call a river bet expecting to lose but figuring you are good often enough given the pot odds being offered.

Hello,Scotty! U are speaking about a player\'s ...
 

"emotional bankroll".
Some millionaires who lose 20.00 playing poker become all bent out of shape. By the same token,a poor player who drops 100.00 will have no problem sleeping.
So your tolerance for a given loss is a function of your personality.
SittingBull

Re: In order to be a poker player...
 

Part of the reason poker is difficult is because you rarely find answer to a problem, or the proper behavior or optimum strategy at the polar end of the spectrum. Here the intent of the person is to point out that you can't be successful if you are at the risk averse pole. This ofcourse is a true. But in this kind of an example, you must becareful to not infer from it that it is correct to be at reckless pole.

To be successful, you need to value money, but be willing to risk it if it is your interest to do so. To play optimally you must navigate the grey area between wrecklessness and risk aversion.