why am i so bad?
 

ive been plpaying about a year..mostly nl hold em and some nl hold em tournaments. i am a consistant loser despite understanding the game (i think). i began by playing way too many hands, then got much tighter and found little consistant success. i was very passive, but am now pick my spots and am aggressive when i have the best of it. but even when i am patient and appropriatly aggressive, i find i am still in the red. it just occurred to me that in about half the pots i win, i don't have the best hand...i am not called. does this indicate anything? i need all the help i can get!

Re: why am i so bad?
 

its simple... you just suck.

Re: why am i so bad?
 

you should try getting better

Re: why am i so bad?
 

It's really difficult to answer with the info you provide. I think the best you can do to answer yourself is print your highest profit/loss hands and analize the way you played them. try to imagine what would happen if you played them differently. Get some software like Poker office or poker tracker to help you keep an eye on your game and find weaknesses and strong points. If you really understand the game and spend A LOT OF TIME thinking about it AWAY from the table you should be a consistent winner

Re: why am i so bad?
 

If you play regularly online then it's worth getting hold of PokerTracker or PokerOffice or something along those lines to help evaluate the hands you play and fix up the holes in your play.

It's also worth reading up on theory, especially if you think you understand the game then make sure you understand the value of position, pot odds etc and make sure you're playing at the right limits for your bankroll.

Re: why am i so bad?
 

I think you should start from like the smallest NL cash games and try out different hands and ways to play them against certain opponents. You try to figure out what type of hands your opponent is likely to have and how he is going to play them.
For example in the really smallest games people play all sorts of hands and usually weirdly. Those games are great for figuring out which hands are solid and which are just crap. And should build you some confidence to bet hard, what you typically want to be doing.
Try out different things. Think why they worked or didn't work and in what kinds of situations those plays might work better. Also you should think about your opponents' plays: why were they bad/good and how could you use that to your adventage.

One fun drill to try out is to limp (just call) every hand pre-flop and start the play from the flop. That puts you in very tough marginal decisions on later streets which is a very good way to learn post-flop play.

Re: why am i so bad?
 

The fact that you ask the question and are honest with yourself is a big step in the right direction. Everyone can become a winner but few will do what is required.

Tell us about yourself, how long playing, age, gender and such. Take some time to write down a few hands and tell us about them.

Re: why am i so bad?
 

First, you should have posted this in the beginners forum.

Second, you may be
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] Playing too loosely, despite what you say.
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] Failing to adjust to position.
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] Choosing your bet sizes poorly.
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] Evaluating hands poorly postflop.
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] Playing tough opponents.
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] Playing too little to get accurate results.

Re: why am i so bad?
 

thank you for some of the input.

i think ione of my biggest problems is my ego gets involved. i think "anyone can play tight. but a good player would be able to play some less than premium hands by using position and betting the proper amount". usually this ends with me going bust after my opponents call in situations that are technically incorrect. i think i may be relying too much on the strict mathmatics. i would almost never call with only a draw unless the pot was offering me correct odds. yet time after time, my top pair is getting drawn out against even when i make it incorrect to call.

Re: why am i so bad?
 

[ QUOTE ]
yet time after time, my top pair is getting drawn out against even when i make it incorrect to call.

[/ QUOTE ]

and you complain?