why do i only play good when im down?

[TNUC]

This is really starting to piss me of. When the pressure is on and i need to win or i risk going broke i can nearly always win and get up 2-300 dollars but then i start playing overly agressive and limping in alot more oop with suited hands and connecters . The worst thing is i dont realise im doing it till my bankroll is crippled. i also really struggle to put down nice hands when i know im beat which i can do when im not up.
maybe i just have really bad discipline.... any tips appreciated thanks

[absoludicrous]

[ QUOTE ]
The worst thing is i dont realise im doing it till my bankroll is crippled.

[/ QUOTE ]

Play over your bankroll much? How can you fail to realize you're playing way too many hands? Either you pay attention or you should probably quit; seeing as you don't even know when you're playing too loose. I'd be worried if I was you.

Observing your own play is one of the most important, basic concepts in life.

[Stealthy]

Every poker player needs to realise that good poker is NOT about winning pots or how good you run session to session or day to day. It is only about making the right decisions and somehow detatching yourself from the results that stem from those decisions. If you can get stacked but are happy with the decision that led to it, and therefore not let it affect your subsequent hands then your results will improve.

Your main problem seems to be in trying to win a big pot early in the session and pushing too hard trying to get it. Get over this. Be patient.

[mikechops]

I think it is the other way around for me. I would say I'm a reasonably cautious person. It goes against my nature to risk money on something without knowing the outcome. When I am up I feel a lot more relaxed. I feel more comfortable making +EV plays even if they risk losing, because the money wasn't mine to start with. All this is completely illogical, but I guess I'm human [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

It sounds as if you have the inverse problem. I.e. you have too much gamble, until the money you are playing for means something. I guess this isn't much help, but if you are aware of the problem then it is a start.

[gannina]

I have some of the same problems. If I lose big it will be in the first 10 minutes, or if I'm at a table full of fish/calling station/maniacs I get so excited because I know there is so much money to be made from them that I get a bit impatient and play too many hands, and start playing hands a bit too crazy myself. I become the fishy maniac [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[tminus]

oh yeah, me too. i build it up at 25NL and go on a tilt run after a bad beat...thinking "oh, 25$ is a small percentage of my roll, maybe Ill double up chasing this flush,etc)

then i take the remainder of my roll and step up to 200NL and somehow suckout and double up. return to 25NL and repeat.

Ive done this four times now.

yesterday i decided that from here on out i will cash out everything expect the bare minumum. sort of like buying a pack of cigarrettes and giving half of it for a friend "to hold, just in case"

oh lordee

[Antinome]

I have a leak where the result of the first few hands determines whether the table will be profitable for me or not, no matter how long I sit there. The cards have no memory, the other players have very little, so it must be me. I'm trying a couple of strategies to counter this.

[Push_Fold]

If playing to many hands makes it look like you are crippling your bankroll you need to drop down in levels - like 3-4 levels down.

[Slap My Jack]

Get your issues worked out at the lower stakes then move on up.

[TNUC]

Thanks for the replys Stealty and mikechops your posts made alot of sense. I know i have to start playing like you describe stealty cuz im pretty sure thats how all winning players play. Im gonna go study my last 1000 hands and see what i did wrong in big pots i lost and see how i can get better. thanks